When we started TVM in 2008, we never imagined that the seemingly small idea of starting a market, dreamed up on the back of our redundancies, would become a full blown business. Now with a tribe of 100K+ and having welcomed over 2,000 stall holders to our community, we couldn't be prouder of our achievements.
Almost 10 years on with a few awards under our belt, we'd love to share our knowledge with you, with our new eBook - How to Launch Your Startup.
Our Journey
We launched The Village Markets on MySpace, fired up our website and got busy! The first market was just nine stalls... yep nine (we now have 100+). Using our marketing backgrounds we canvassed potential stall holders, drafted up a business plan, secured a venue and kicked off in October 2008. It took a few years of working full-time and juggling the markets before we made the jump to working on TVM full-time. When we did, it was the best thing we ever did! Our business grew and we added a second monthly event.
Since then, we've built an amazing community of 2,000+ stall holders and a tribe of 110K+ followers across Facebook and Instagram. This wasn't by chance... passion and experience combined with hardwork have been the foundation of our business.
We've encountered challenges and with determination, always worked our way through them.
Our ethos is 'When our community succeeds, we succeed' and we've been lucky enough to help launch internationally acclaimed brands including Peony Swimwear, Kivari, Violet Gray and Molly & Polly, plus hosted thousands more.
Late last year we we're nominated as finalists for Cosmopolitan Magazine's Women of the Year in the Entrepreneurs of the Year category and most recently awarded the International Women's Day Patrons Ambassador Award.
How to Launch Your Startup is the guide we wish we had when starting out and it's been created to help make your journey into business easier, filled with 10 years of practical business knowledge.
Our Achievements
2018: Recipients of the International Womens Day Patrons Ambassador Award
2017: Gold Coast Young Entrepreneurs of the Year finalists
2017: Griffith University Outstanding Alumnus of the Year
August 2017: Cosmo's Women of the Year Finalists - Entrepreneur of the Year Finalists
July 2016: Gold Coast Business Excellence Awards - Tourism, Hospitality and Events Category
March 2015: Gold Coast's Best Market - Gold Coast Bulletin Best of Poll
October 2014: Gold Coast Young Entrepreneurs of the Year finalists
July 2014: Gold Coast Business Excellence Awards - Retail, Wholesale & Distribution Category
May 2013: Gold Coast Business Excellence Awards - Retail, Wholesale & Distribution Category
About the Authors
Marissa and Sarah both hold Business Degrees, majoring in marketing, along with extensive practical events, marketing and PR knowledge from years of working across various industries. We've been in business for 10 years and have the credentials to prove our business strategies work.
What's in the book?
It guides you through building a business with:
- A simple and easy to follow starter checklist on launching
- Insights from us and successful stall holders on running and succeeding in business
- A marketing strategy guide
- Lessons from our journey and;
- A highlight, the Startup Toolkit - a total list of tools essential for any new business, as tried and tested by us.
Contents
Page 4 - Foreword By Amy Mills
Page 5 - Founders, How We Achieved Success
Page 7 - Background To The Village Markets
Page 9 - Business Insights From The Last Nine Years
Page 10 - Business Insights From TVM Stall Holders
Page 12 - New Business Start Up Checklist
Page 14 - Your Marketing Strategy
Page 16 - Our Top Marketing Tools
Page 17 - Learn From Our Journey - What We Wish We New
Page 18 - Featured Contributors
Page 19 - Startup Toolkit
Page 20 - Connect With Us
Frequently Asked Questions
WHO IS THIS EBOOK FOR?
This eBook is for anyone in business, or thinking about starting a business. It’s useful, been-there, done-that advice, that’s inspiring, insightful and the kind of thing we wish was around when we started out. It’s a combination of business acumen, experience and knowledge all rolled into one.
WHAT HAPPENS WHEN I BUY THIS EBOOK?
You’ll receive an email or two confirming your order, with a link to download your eBook. You’ll have 5 goes and 60 days to download your eBook.
HOW CAN I READ THE EBOOK?
After downloading the eBook you’ll have a handy PDF document, that you can easily read on any PDF compatible device.