Profile No. 8: Janet
Janet Hiebert is the founder and CEO of samsara⚬ Cycle Inc., an athletic wear brand designed for indoor and outdoor cyclists. Their mission is to empower women by providing high quality gear that is beautiful and expressive, supporting the rider to feel confident and invincible. When Janet entered the workforce in her early twenties, she was a successful foreign exchange and equities trader in Toronto and NYC. She is kind of an ultimate woman: Intelligent, has a wicked sense of humor, speaks kindly to everyone, is naturally gorgeous and a champion of the arts. Janet genuinely loves to support artists; to learn about their work in a gallery or give performers her full focus while in the audience. I was thrilled to speak with Janet for Hussey Notes as her mind is that rare balance between finance/business and creativity/artistry. This profile resulted in Auntie Janet - did I mention she was my auntie? - lending truly helpful insight for entrepreneurial artists looking to take their next serious step.
My mum and I were reminiscing about how stylish you have always been and your continued adoration of fashion…
My mother reminded me recently that I used to draw fashion designs as a child. I don’t think I developed a sense of personal style until I was 30, but I would always buy Vogue and emulate what was in style, creating my own version of that on less of a budget. Fashion has always been so important to me as I care about self expression. I wouldn’t say I’m a victim of fashion, but I like to be current and I care about what I wear. I curate my outfit every day not to impress anybody, but to feel good.
What was the biggest factor in your decision to start samsara⚬?
It was definitely driven by the fact that I didn’t like what the clothing options were for my new pursuit, which was indoor cycling. I went to a high-end shop thinking I could find something stylish, but all I could find were these black shorts that had way too much padding — I felt really uncomfortable and unattractive in them. Then I found another pair, but only in one pattern with little padding. I was cycling every day so I was constantly washing them!
I wanted more shorts than the one pair I had and thought to myself, If I want this then maybe more women do too. Looking around the spin studios; people are wearing only leggings and getting sore butts, or full cycling kits covered in logos with loads of padding on the bums where you can see the stitch line on the chamois – and that wasn’t a look I want to emulate either!
At this point, in 2015, I had just moved back to Vancouver, and I have always had this need to create. So I created a little business plan. I wrote to Parsons and Ryerson asking if there were any promising recent grads who might be interested in the project. I was then introduced to a young woman who had just graduated from Kwantlen University with a degree in Fashion Design/Technology. She loved my idea and decided to join me.
Were you educated in athletic wear design and knowledgeable about fabrics or were you more business focused, looking for your partner to have that education?
I knew nothing about clothing design and manufacturing – other than knowing what I liked to wear. samsara⚬’s first designer advised me on the fabrics and construction techniques. I knew that I wanted to design unique patterns, as that was part of the whole concept, but I didn’t know how to actually do it. She educated me on “sublimation dying” which is an eco-friendly, water-free process of transferring artwork on to fabric in a way that is true to color matching and durable. Since the beginning I have learned so much about fabrics and dying and the entire manufacturing process.
I think those are important elements: Teamwork and collaboration. When starting a business or project, some can be very closed off — which can come from being ripped off in the past so very understandable! Wanting to keep your ideas close to heart. But there is power in asking for help and acknowledging what your skill set is, knowing that someone out there will be an asset to you to join forces and grow! How many are on your team now?
Five. Two in design and development, Chelsea is the lead. Stephanie is my COO - she is the real driver of the business. She is a serious cyclist and is the one who told us we needed outdoor gear for outdoor cyclists - and now we have it! She really makes things happen. When I first started the company, there were a lot of days where I didn’t know what to do next. But Steph and Chelsea know what to do next. So we have all this momentum and great things have happened and I give them both so much credit. Lucy recently joined the design team and Jonathan is our Shopify store manager.
Tell us the great news! What’s happening for samsara⚬ now?
Well - a friend sent me information on the Vancouver Magazine ‘Made In Vancouver’ awards and suggested we apply. So Steph completed our application which included sending in product samples and a detailed background of the company. I am happy to report that our Performance Jersey was selected Best in the Style Category. We are also now carried at Comor Sports at 4th and Burrard and Ladysport on 4th Avenue near Alma. The products have been very well received at both locations. We are moving into a new space on West 1st Avenue near the entrance to Granville Island on the bike route. That space will be an office, showroom and shop where customers can come in and try on our items there.
I’d love to go back to the beginning! Was there a lesson you learned that you did not foresee?
I think if someone wants to start a business and they don’t have another source of income, it’s critical to ensure there’s funding available to cover at least one year of expenses. Somebody very wise suggested to me while I was trying to raise capital, "Look to raise two years worth of cash flow.” I realize that’s hard for young people starting out. A more likely scenario would be to keep the job you have and work on your business in your off hours.
I don’t know whether this is personal to only me but I don’t think it is because a lot of entrepreneurs experience doubt along the way — I discovered the importance of really, really believing in my idea. Don’t listen to your doubts — because they will pop up. There are always hurdles along the way — maybe even signs that say this isn’t a good plan or whatever. But you need to silence those. If you really believe and are passionate, those will pass and something great will happen down the road. There’s always setbacks and then good things will happen. Remind yourself that when a set back occurs — that’s all it is. Deal with it, then keep going.
I’ve struggled with this — and I know I’m not alone— but when I get overwhelmed I sometimes reach a point where I can’t differentiate between my intuition and my head. So those doubts creep up and my head is shouting, “STOP! Go back! Danger!” And I have to sit down and ask myself, is this just my head or is this my gut telling me this is not the right thing at this time…
I think it’s a good idea to have an informal advisory board; a handful of people to be your sounding board. It’s hard not to get emotionally entwined, so if you have other people to advise you who aren’t as emotionally connected - that’s really helpful. Have a support network, people you can bounce ideas off of.
Focus groups are an age old marketing tool where you bring people together and show them your idea to receive feedback. When an organic dialogue gets going it provides insight into your audience. Sometimes it’s a subtle improvement you can make based on feedback. If you’re a photographer with an image you want to print and sell on a larger scale, show your “focus group” what your choices are; perhaps the same image in color versus black and white. In your head you might love the color but then you find 8 out of 10 people think the black and white is more powerful. It might go against what you thought, but you have to sell it at the end of the day!
You’re so right. I’ve done that for my headshots! On instagram, “Help me! 1, 2 or 3?” It’s so helpful! And that goes back to collaborating and being open.
One of the values of my company is living with an abundant mind set; there’s enough out there for everyone. We don’t look at our competitors as the enemy; we look at ways we can collaborate and lift each other up. That’s really important. But as you alluded to — there are some people out there who look to take advantage of each other and it’s important to have an NDA in place. Even if it’s somebody you feel you can wholeheartedly trust, it just protects everyone.
In regards to raising cash flow, with your experience of investors in a start up versus bank business loans — do you have a preference or recommendation? This can cross over to a variety of artists: Film makers, choreographers, painters, etc.
It will always depend on the individual's circumstance. In my case I had savings so didn’t need to borrow money to get started. But along the way as you grow, the expenses grow as well and it becomes riskier. Typically when you start up, if you’re borrowing money from the bank — unless your business has positive cash flow — they’re going to make you guarantee the loan personally. In my case I was borrowing from myself so I documented all of my transactions into my company. In regards to a film project — I’ve never done this — but crowd funding could be a great option.
It’s different for someone who is a dancer or painter or director. For me designing and making a product, my challenge is getting to market and finding our customer. Yours is being seen and heard in a crowded space. For my business I can buy instagram ads and Google ads and the success depends on people loving the product. Fortunately people are loving our product and we are receiving wonderful feedback. So that ad spend works for us. As an artist; how do you get yourself seen and heard? How do you finance that?
Myself included - many artists can feel uncomfortable asking for money. But that’s a mentality that needs to be overcome perhaps…
Again, it’s about believing in your idea - or “yourself” as you’re the artist and asset. From a crowd sourcing perspective, you only need a small amount of “investments” from a large crowd of people to raise the amount you need. It’s actually not a bad business idea now that I’m thinking about it! Anyone who is a lover of arts can’t imagine a world without art and they understand it’s expensive to make a film or piece of art. Once artists get to a certain level - they’re established. They generally have backers and funders so they can continue creating.
From a finance point of view, it’s really important to be honest with yourself about a realistic budget. There’s all sorts of free tools online to help you look at what you spend every month on a multitude of categories. If you break everything down and let's say you decide you need a budget of $25,000 to create your “art”; if 1,000 people donate $25 — you’re there! Again, I’ve never used it myself, but I have donated to others and it can be very powerful. There’s a lot of good people in the world who really do want to help! Whether it’s helping a person with an illness or helping an artist create work. If you explain your story, it doesn’t sound like a money grab, it’s a genuine ask for support.
Thank you so much for everything you have shared, there is so much gold in all of it! Is there anything else you’d like to add as we wrap this up?
I’d like to say a couple things about entrepreneurship in general… People have said to me, “Wow, you know you’ve worked so hard!”. That’s true and that’s a big part of it. But the main part is doing it. Not just talking about it. Because a lot of people have great ideas but never do anything with them.
Start small and don’t try to grow too quickly. I could have said at some point, “I need a retail space on 4th Avenue!”. That would have cost me seventy thousand dollars a year, whether I could afford it or not — it didn’t make sense at that stage of the business because we hadn’t proven ourselves yet! Be methodical. Don’t grow too quickly. Most businesses take a minimum of three to five years to get any traction. If you really believe in it and are passionate - do not give up. Sometimes it feels like one step forward and three steps back, but it’s the step forward you have to focus on.
Visit the Samsara shop and follow them on instagram. The stores mentioned in this article are located in Vancouver, BC. samsara⚬ is designed and manufactured in Vancouver. Subscribers to Hussey Notes receive a special discount!
