Ultimo, Sydney is a suburb of flourishing innovation, containing numerous start-ups and small businesses. Understanding how these businesses achieve success and learning from their mistakes can assist others with their own ventures…
Where Businesses Thrive
Ultimo, Sydney is a suburb of flourishing innovation, containing numerous start-ups and small businesses. Understanding how these businesses achieve success and learning from their mistakes can assist others with their own ventures. In sitting down with local CEO Ed Kearney I discovered how digital engagement has proven a key driver for success of his start-up GownTown. Founded in 2012 GownTown is now the premier retailer of academic dress and graduation merchandise in Australia has helped over 3,000 students graduate.
Interview with Ed Kearney, CEO of GownTown:
- Tell us a little about your business:
GownTown is a time-of-life graduation products and services company that helps students get the most of one of the most important days in their young adult lives. We have disrupted the stale and overpriced graduations industry by offering high quality products and services at affordable prices.
- What are the main factors you attribute to your company’s success?
Excellent product market fit, a focus on scalability and error free execution, and being ahead of the curve with our digital marketing.
- In what ways do you engage with customers online?
We utilise digital marketing heavily to communicate with our potential customers via social media. We create highly engaging digital content including videos which effectively conveys our marketing message, as well being a signal of quality.
- Have you seen the use of online platforms directly impact your success? How?
Online platforms are key to our business’ success. Our customers demographic would do all their shopping and commerce online if given the chance, and they have high expectations for the level of functionality and quality of the online service. Our business has harnessed this expectation with our clean and easy to use website and digital presence on www.gowntown.com.au
- What are your goals for the next few years?
Our goals are for an expansion of our products and service offering in Australia, as well as geographic expansion to the UK and US.
- What advice would you give someone wanting to grow their business?
Make sure you understand what your customers want, how to talk to them, and how to deliver it to them. If you can find a scalable way to satisfy your customers’ needs and wants, the growth will follow.
About the Author
Dinesh de Silva is Founder & CEO of www.netstripes.com; an Aussie tech startup that is disrupting the way small businesses build their digital presence.
Dinesh is driven by his passion to change the course of small business in Australia by helping nearly 100% to get digitally engaged. This he believes will help businesses to grow, fuel economic growth and help resolve unemployment in our country