After 5 years of working in corporate America in the market research industry Sasha Matthews left her job, or as she would say “attempted to quit” May 2018 to take her entrepreneur endeavours from a side hustle to being a full time social entrepreneur.
“I attempted to “quit” and did… but they brought me back on in the capacity of an independent consultant. We negotiated that I stay on. So from time to time I take on projects from what was my corporate job when it suits my schedule, which does come in handy.”
In 2011, after a study abroad trip to Ghana Sarah and her best friend/business partner Michelle Blue were inspired to start their company with the initiative to help support educational initiatives for underserved communities and countries. Bene, which officially started in 2013, is a collection scarves made to pay homage to where they started, Ghana. What makes these scarves different from your regular scarf is that each scarf comes with embedded with a message from a the children they are helping in Ghana, and other underserved communities. Sasha tells us;
“Bene is associated with Non-Profits that focus on education for underserved communities/countries. Education was a huge ticket in both my journey and my partner’s. We both were awarded scholarships that provided the financial support that neither one of our parents would have comfortably been able to provide. Knowing how much we’ve been blessed we felt we had a responsibility to pay it forward”
Sasha Matthews is currently based in Jamaica where she runs her coaching business and is an active officer of Bene from there. While, her business partner Michelle Blue actively operates the company from the company’s original home Atlanta, GA. She describes her office space as “Location independent”
“I am primarily location independent but my business are based/ registered in Atlanta. I have systems in place that manages things while I’m away so in general, as long as I have wifi, I’m in business!”
What makes the dynamic of business relationship work is that they have also been best friends since middle school. Sasha describes herself as the analytical person in the partnership and her partner Michelle Blue as the visionary.
“Doing business on your own is tough and whether you have a partner or not it’s always good to have some type of support system. It’s great that we work together so well that even when we have individual ventures we still actively support each other.”
Being located in a different country building more than one business can be a huge challenge. But, the benefits of being “location independent” is what she enjoys the most. Even though her coaching business is at a fresh start she explained how she focuses on being present for her clients;
“Whatever your message is or whatever route you’ve taken whether you rely more heavily on in-person events or being online, just keep showing up. This is a field that depends on being able to connect with people so the more you can show up and make them feel like they can be comfortable with you, the sooner things will happen. It also helps to be very clear on who you’re helping and what exactly you’re helping them to achieve.”
To see the rest of the interview we did with Sasha Matthews see Below..
What had been the biggest challenge you have faced when it comes to growing your business?
Our biggest challenge has been manufacturing. It’s more difficult to find companies that accommodate minimums as a small/medium sizes business so the same people that could accommodate you at a 10 piece minimum order may not be able to accommodate you at a 100 piece min order.
The next challenge is just knowing how to grow. Thankfully we’ve had mentors we can pull from and now a days there are several business coaches you can easily find and hire which are all very helpful because “you don’t know what you don’t know”.
Does your business allow you to express yourself creatively?
IT DEFINITELY DOES.
The initial creation of a product or serviceis a creative one. You have to constantly think of ways you can set yourself a part. For ex. Our core product for Bene is scarves. Just about every year we did something a little different to refine the product until we landed on what we are now. Now we custom design our patterns then have a quote from one o f the girls we support incorporated on the design. Small, creative touches like that really stand out to consumers.
On another note, business is filled with ups and downs. You have to remain nimble and know how to roll with the punches and make the best out of situations when something doesn’t go as planned. We’re always finding creative ways to get our message out, to get our foot in the door, to connect with our consumers and to grow ourselves as entrepreneurs.
Because you have many facets of skills that you bring to your business how do you balance everything?
Everything that I do speaks to me as a person in some way shape or form so I see them as different branches coming from the same tree. So when it comes to my Life Coaching, I can pull from those experiences to motivate others by example and it gives me a lot of content to share that people find interesting because it’s real.
In a more literal sense of balancing, prioritizing is key then time blocking.
How does one grow a life coach business?
Keep showing up. Whatever your message is or whatever route you’ve taken whether you rely more heavily on in-person events or being online, just keep showing up. This is a field that depends on being able to connect with people so the more you can show up and make them feel like they can be comfortable with you, the sooner things will happen. It also helps to be very clear on who you’re helping and what exactly you’re helping them to achieve. “Life” is very broad and there are a million aspects of it you can focus on. Narrowing down helps you to not get lost in the crowd.
Do you enjoy being a entrepreneur? What do you enjoy the most about it?
I absolutely do. I’m multi passionate so it’s allowed me the room to act out on multiple avenues and gifts (think back to the branches on the tree from an earlier question). It’s also allowed me to be location independent which was really important to me. Of course all this freedom comes with its fair share of challenges but I appreciate what I’ve learned about myself through this process. It constantly stretches you. I also love the people and conversations I get to interact with along the way.
Why did you decide to become a entrepreneur and not go the traditional route?
I honestly did both. I launched my first business Bene 2 weeks after college graduation in 2013 and I already had a corporate job lined up that I started a month or 2 later. I still wanted to gain some experience in the workforce, I needed money to invest in the business and I wanted to allow the business time to grow without me having to depend on it so I did both. It wasn’t until May 2018 that I transitioned to full time Entrepreneur. I think there are benefits either way, whether you decide to go traditional first, or do them simultaneously or go full time out of the gate. It really depends on you, your resources and what your goals are. You can definitely make the traditional route work for you, just don’t be afraid to move on once it’s served its purpose.
What has been the biggest lesson you have learned in your entrepreneurial journey?
People are your most valuable resource. There’s no way we would even have a business without the support of others. From the people who help you build on the backend to the customers you ultimately connect with for your product or service. Never forget that who you serve is most important and the people who have served you should never be taken for granted.
Bonus: Do it your way. Not every business venture is going to be a good fit for you. Don’t be afraid to try, don’t be afraid to fail, and don’t be afraid to say “that’s not for me”. When your business comes from an authentic place, people feel that.
