An entrepreneur has turned £10 into a successful business on track to make £1million, in just four years.
Laura Schmidt, 29, founded her journal business in 2020 during lockdown after discovering the benefits of journaling for managing mental health.
Journaling consistently during that time helped her improve her sleeping habits and feel more productive and self-aware.
She wanted to create her own journals that didn’t look clinical or childish, which could help other people struggling with their mental health.
Starting with just £10, she didn’t have the money to make a bulk order so instead she would print the journals as orders came in.
Schmidt told GB News: “I started making journals on PowerPoint and that’s how it started. I was learning on the go.
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“I created the Wellbeing and the Self Love journals in a couple of days as I wasn’t working because of the pandemic.
“To print both samples cost me £10, and I used these for all the photography and videos on my social media posts and for the website.
“I had no experience in business I just did it as I was fulfilling one of my needs. To my surprise I got my first sale within two weeks, and it all came at once.
“By day 14 or 15, I posted a TikTok which got like 2,000 views and 16 orders came through. I was like, ‘Oh wow, people do want this. What's happening?’”
After graduating with a BSC in Psychology and a MSC in Forensic Mental Health at university, Schmidt always knew she wanted to help people with their mental health.
She wanted to create a product that wasn’t clinical, but instead something “pretty and pink”, that would fit into her lifestyle.
She started off with a very basic paper book, although it didn’t look exactly how she wanted it to as that's all she could afford at the time.
As the business started to grow, the entrepreneur was able to reinvest her profits into making the hardback book that she wanted.
The wellness brand Lovendu was born, and Schmidt credits social media as having a big help when it came to its growth.
She said: “We could get 16 orders a day and if we put a video on social media, we could get 20 or 30 orders.
“Within the first three months I had made £1,000 which was amazing. It was unbelievable what was happening. By Christmas we were getting close to £10,000, but I knew the products weren’t the way I wanted.
“I put all that money I made back in the business so I could get the manufacturer that I wanted and make the journals exactly how I envisioned them.
“By the end of my first year, I did £53,000 in revenue. It just kept going up up. By the end of year two we had doubled to £100,000 and the products had upgraded.
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“By year three we had just turned over £500,000. We’ve managed to double and keep doubling our sales and now we are on track for £1million.”
During lockdown, Laura’s mental health hit “rock bottom” and she was looking for a practical way to solve it.
Since starting the business, she is in a much better place and aims to continue to help others with their mental health with her journals.
Not only has her mental health improved, but the financial aspect has been rewarding too. She said: “Life is definitely a lot easier, as I can afford things now.”
Speaking to aspiring entrepreneurs, she concluded: “Don’t be scared or embarrassed about starting something new.
“Be proud and stand in front and centre of your business. People buy from people not from businesses.”
