Ellie Horvath
Oshoma Zekeri of Vendoir.
Tell us about yourself?
MSc holder, Executive MBA at Aston Business School (distinction). Held senior leadership roles with corporate experience previously consulting at Barclays, Refinitiv, Thomson Reuters, and has hosted events for years.
What lessons has being an entrepreneur taught you?
Being an entrepreneur has thought me to believe in myself, never give up because self-doubt can hold me back and prevent me from achieving my full potential.
If you could go back in time to when you first started your business, what piece of advice would you give yourself?
I would have told myself a couple of things. First, don’t listen to the people who say “no you can’t do it” all the time, and don’t let them slow you down or change your vision.
Also, you don’t always need money to start, you just need encouragement, self belief, and strategic advise to help propel you on your journey and get started.
A lot of entrepreneurs find it difficult to balance their work and personal lives. How have you found that?
Every entrepreneur needs to have the mentality that is needed to grow a company. This includes perseverance, motivation, and commitment to move the needle forward.
This will help you overcome setbacks enabling you to achieve your dreams. Having a hustle culture is what will keep you going but also need to find a way to stay driven and enjoy the things you love to do and spend time with loved ones.
I create boundaries by setting personal times and keeping to them and I don’t have a hard time saying no to things that could impact my personal life. Planning your time by prioritising your work activities will surely leave time for you to balance both work and personal lives.
Give us a bit of an insight into the influences behind the company?
Some of the influences behind the Vendoir is Trust, the ability to consumers to move from old habit and use technology to source and book vendors.
Sometimes you simply must take a risk to move forward. With all the other factors solidly established, and it is key for us to constantly forecast and predict success.
What do you think is your magic sauce? What sets you apart from the competitors?
Sourcing event vendors as an organiser can be a nightmare, the process of consolidating, booking & receiving payment as a vendor is outdated and can be stressful, time-consuming, & daunting.
As the quote that says, “time is money”, people don’t want to waste so much time to try and buy or book something. They want to do this in their own comfort zone, at any time by using a device.
This is practically saying goodbye to the days of looking for an event vendor via Facebook or google which is a daunting, stressful, and time-consuming process that has no payment protection.
Currently, 85% of adults in the UK own a smartphone and on average a UK person spends 148 minutes on a smartphone daily. Therefore, we are building a modern mobile digital app targeted at Millennials and Gen Z but also can be used by any age group. Vendoir will solve today various challenges people are facing such as:
- We have developed an on-demand platform that will enable anyone, anywhere to source and book event vendors in minutes.
- Due to marketing fees paid by vendors on various platforms like Instagram, Facebook etc.; there is limited transparency in vendors pricing and a limited number of vendors choices. We have created a platform that is 100% free to showcase your service with an easy onboarding process
- Time is money! The majority of vendors today struggle with consolidating and scheduling appointments, receiving payment and liaising with customers all in one place. This process can be very time consuming and inefficient. The features in the app will help optimise the processes to drive efficiency and productivity.
- Currently, most popular social media platforms do not require vendors to go through a vetting process or the ability to capture reviews & ratings. This is an important part to enable customers to make decisions with transparency when sourcing for vendors.
Our app will give customers the ability to view reviews & ratings, see content and vendors on our platform go through an identity verification process before they can list their service.
How have you found sales so far? Do you have any lessons you could pass on to other founders in the same market as you just starting out?
We are at the early stage of our marketing and our key focus now is converting event vendors, support them through the process and then we can channel our focus to event organisers who will visit our platform to book this vendors.
We are building Vendoir with the community and constantly speaking to vendors and organisers to understand their pain-points. This will help boost revenue in the long run and ensure we have addressed the gaps many are facing today.
What is the biggest challenge you have faced so far in your business, and how did you overcome it?
One of the biggest work challenges I’ve overcome was during our pre-seed round as this was our first and no one in the team had previous experience. The good news is we learnt so fast, stayed positive and focused and raised over 200% or our target.
This experience taught me a lot in terms of Commitment and problem solving, and I think I’m even better prepared for the next challenge I’ll face since I overcame that previous obstacle despite it feeling hopeless initially.
What do you find are the advantages of operating your business in London?
As event planners you know exactly what you require from many places or event vendors local to you can meet these requirements.
Yet to take your event to the next level and ensure it has a genuine impact, it all comes down to the little extras, the above-and-beyond, and those wow-factor moments, London is the location for it and below are some of the reasons:
It has great transport: London’s transport system is rightly recognised as one of the best in the world, with a wide variety of options designed to help busy Londoners and visitors alike get around with ease.
Top Accommodations: Not only is the city noted for its range of transport options, but the accommodation is just as flexible. From hostels through to lavish hotels, there are lots of places where guests at the meeting can stay.
High Technology: London’s reputation as a high-tech city is also noted, and this is reflected in many of the locations most prominent meeting venues. If you need state of the art equipment to run your meeting or event, then there is no better place to select. Great Connection -London is an ideal place and perfect spot to host a well-connected meeting perfect spot.
The city’s business scene is thriving, with some of the most significant companies in the world based within London. Tourist Attraction – Just as delegates might want to let off some steam after the meeting, they may also be interested in getting to know the area around them after the event is concluded.
This is where London’s sightseeing and tourist attractions really offer something special!
Are there any issues with having a London based business? Have you experienced these?
London is full of opportunities and with proper planning you will be able to execute your strategy and achieve your goals. However, no matter the location you will always be phased with issues and challenges but with the right plan in place, you will scale through any hurdle.
How has the higher than UK average cost of living impacted your ability to work and live in London and how has this also impacted your ability as an employer?
The cost of living is having an impact on businesses and staff such as increase in operational cost.
We have acknowledged the situation and had open conversations with our staff about financial wellbeing and remuneration. Majority of our staff work from home, and we are constantly working with them to support them where necessary.
If you had to relocate your business to another city in the UK, which one would it be and why?
It will be Birmingham as it is Britain’s second-largest city and has transformed itself into a major international business destination.
Among professional events planners, it is the most popular destination after London for hosting conferences, corporate & private events and meetings, according to the British Meetings and Events Industry Survey.
How has BREXIT impacted your business (if at all)?
Brexit wont have a major impact in our business but Regulation, Intellectual Property, and work force will have a small effect on the way we would operate once we do a European expansion.
What is your vision for your company in the next 5 years?
Our organisation’s long-term goal is to have a one-stop-super on-demand app for event planning, and this includes enabling anyone, anywhere and anytime, to source and book event vendors with just a few taps!
Today, we are helping Photographers, Videographers, DJs, Live bands, and many more vendors solve technical challenges by consolidating and managing all their bookings in one place and making any event organiser’s life easier with key features such as e-payment, service verification via reviews and ratings, time management, payment protection, and reduction of carbon footprint
And finally, if people want to get involved and learn more about your business, how should they do that?
To learn more about Vendoir, kindly join our vibrant community by visiting https://community.vendoir.com/ or our website https://www.vendoir.com/
