#14: "If I knew then what I know now I'd do it differently!" with Claire Mitchell

In this episode I speak with Claire Mitchell - the brutally honest Founder and CEO of Mimi and Mago (formerly Chillipeeps)!   I had the pleasure of meeting Claire at an event in Leeds where we were both sharing our entrepreneurial story. What blew me away with Claire's presentation is how openly she spoke about the challenges she'd faced, the amount of time it took to get her product to market, the huge costs involved, and all the other hurdles along the way.    Now about 10 years into the journey, Claire has overcome a huge amount to get Mimi and Mago where it is. She recalls the time she sobbed all the way through her first major presentation, missed out on an order for 1million units, and battling with Trading Standards (only later to get them on her side.   This podcast goes into all the above and more and is an absolute must listen for anyone looking to start a business in the product sector.   In this episode we discuss: Patenting, prototyping, and testing your product Understanding manufacturing Creating your fanbase and marketing from day one Pitching for investment  Selling to the 'big boys' The challenges of running a company on your own The power of social media Selling overseas And as always, so much more...   Links from this episode:   Mimi and Mago website Mimi and Mago Twitter Mimi and Mago Instagram Mimi and Mago Facebook