The internet is full of Cinderella stories of entrepreneurs starting up a business and have it 'go viral' and suddenly they are travelling the world and spending seven minutes a day running their business. At Noisy Junction we know the reality is usually a little different. We have been part of a family with a variety of business ventures over a thirty year span, and success invariably takes one thing- hard work. There are a few other factors too, the market being a huge one, but hard work is primarily the marker of our successes. The family moved to Canada in 1989, setting up shop in a small Ontario town, opening a bookstore and a child acre centre. The bookstore was the highlight of our first work experiences (Emily, Tom and Joe all had part time jobs here) before the arrival of the behemoth that is Indigo/Chapters Books. The store eventually closed, unable to compete with the mass purchase prices that Indigo can offer. The child care centre still exists, and has an established reputation for excellence in its field.
Later, in their 20s, Tom and Joe worked for many years as partners in Adams Brothers fine furniture and woodworking. Again, developing a reputation for excellence, but the market focus was on kitchens rather than furniture and eventually both guys decided to pursue other things for a while. Emily ran a successful tutoring side gig, supporting students with a variety of academic challenges for eight years, while working full time at the child care centre.
Enter the Noisy Junction story. With an small inheritance, Tom purchased a CNC machine and the VCarve Vetric software system. THEN he asked if we wanted to start the business (it's kind of our thing- jump, because if you don't you 'll never know if you can swim!). In the past six months we have opened the bank account, registered the name, started on Instagram and Facebook (decision made not to try X or TikTok), made some test pieces, attended two craft fairs and learned a few important things that will influence this years business operations.
Top five lessons learned starting a CNC small business:
1. Turn on the router before running the machine. I know, it seems so obvious- but when you break that machine out, spend hours putting it together, and are so excited by FINALLY being able to make something, then this is where you immediately break the router bit.
2. Your following won't be great at first, and that's okay. Remember that social media is a fickle thing, and you can be doing every trick shared in every reel on Insta and still find your account isn't taking off. Statistically the number of viral posts is not large compared to the number of users- and it will take a while to build momentum. And it's HAAAAARD to be consistent when you are tired. So go easy on you.
3. Make mistakes and record yourself doing it. You are going to screw up product, you are going to book fairs that sell NOTHING, you are going to have great ideas that no one likes. But learn from the mistakes. Finesse your ideas, find like minded people to share ideas with, adjust your tactics when you find that a particular path just isn't working for you. Again, it's the hard work of persistence and staying positive in the face of difficulty that is most important
4. Your website matters. You might think you know some 'stuff; about the internet, about social media etc., but in product based marketing, knowing what a "backlink" is could define your ability to be successful. Find some free training on SEO and website design; we used HubSpot but there are others very similar to it.
5. The 'niche' thing. Yeah, that word, and the expression 'find your niche'? It can feel daunting, and you might pin lack of instant success on not knowing your niche. Yes, at times, being aware of where you fit in the world of what you sell can be very valuable. For example there are thousands of florists in the world. Jess (middle sister) has a florist design studio that she has tailored (over time) to a niche in the floristry world - high end, hand tied floral bouquets and arrangements for personal use and small events. Mum (Susan) operates a childcare centre (of which there are 20 locally) and the niche within that market is a nature based philosophy influenced by Waldorf and Montessori. See how it works? You are not creating an entirely new market, just figuring out what's very specific need you are filling with your business.
At Noisy Junction we offer fine wood products created using natural and where possible recycled wood materials and natural, non toxic finishes. We package using only paper, recycled mostly. And we look for the most unique items and designs that offer you, the consumer, choices that will last a lifetime, be useful and valued in your home.