Growing to Profitability

Originally sent out: 20/03/25

T.E.A Break – 028

**Get this content earlier than it’s published on our blog via our T.E.A Break newsletter. Sign up now.**I’ve got something a little different for you this week.

Next month the government brings in a raft of measures that are going to hit small businesses hard.

Two stand-out updates for most business owners that I speak to are:

National Insurance Contributions (NICs) rising to 15%(up from 13.8%) with a lower threshold of just £5,000 (currently £9,100).

National Living Wage(NLW) increasing to £12.21 for those aged 21 and over. This will hit retail particularly hard.

Add to this the overall cost of employing people with rising wage bills and it’s tough. Really tough.

There were some positives in the autumn statement for sure, but I’m seeing business owners take matters into their own hands.

Growing to profitability is the answer for most.

Growing through increasing costs.

Growing just to standstill.

Growing to profitability.

It’s certainly what our clients are doing.

I’m talking to more prospective clients than ever before and their hunger for growth is insatiable.

That good old British mentality of just getting on with it with grit and determination is clear to see.

So, this week, I thought I’d share a few ideas and suggestions that I’ve discussed with numerous businesses in the past week.

Business first, marketing second:

• Get super clear on your numbers
• Know your customer acquisition cost (CAC)
• Know your lifetime value (LTV)
• Know your average order value (AOV)
• Know your marketing budgets
• Know your channel reliance (BEAR)
• Know your year-on-year trends
• Know your overall ROI requirements

You need many strings to your marketing bow:

• Don’t just rely on 1-2 sales/lead sources
• Combine paid search and paid social ads with offline and in-person marketing (when combined properly it can be a thing of beauty)
• Leverage email marketing
• Reignite referral partners
• Get out and about networking and meeting new people
• Run special events outside of the mainstay events everyone does

Collect, own and leverage the data:

• Collect as much customer data as possible
• Prioritise platforms you own and control
• Leverage your data through retargeting
• Gather data from offline marketing touch points for online use

Think long term:

• What will be will be
• Those who think, plan, budget and forecast for the months and years ahead will outperform and outlast those who live solely in the moment
• Look at performance over a period of months to spot trends within the day-to-day volatility
• A bad day, week or month doesn’t mean your marketing no longer works, it means it’s just a slow period (and what follows a slow period is often a rush)
• Invest in growth as many won’t, particularly when it’s tough out there

Lastly, slip a few quid under the mattress for a rainy day!

Pound for pound, 2025 is shaping up to be betterfor many businesses when compared to 2024 and 2023, even if it doesn’t feel like it right now.

In our sector of home, garden and lifestyle brands, there is most definitely a collective sense that 2023-24 were really hard, 2025 is showing glimmers of hope, and 2026 is looking like it could be a good’un.

What I say is: Look back in recent history; economic highs and lows generally work on a 5-year cycle.

2020-2021 was peak Covid trading and bumper sales for many home, garden and lifestyle brands.

Then we had the inevitable downturn in this sector, but skip forward 5 years and we’re on the cusp of the good times once more.

Bring it on, I say, and I’m sure you’re with me.

The sun has come out, it’s warming up, and for those of us in the home, garden and lifestyle space, I’d say we’ve got a lot to smile about on the quiet.

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