I turned my teen side hustle into an £8 million fortune aged 27 – here’s my top free tip & 5 expensive mistakes to avoid
SHE may be just 27 but Grace Beverley has a net worth of over £8million thanks to her multiple businesses.
But now the Tala and Shreddy founder, who started doing side hustles as a teenager, has opened up about the errors she has made along the way.
In a transparent post, the CEO revealed some ways that she wasted money as a young entrepreneur, to help other people keen to start their own businesses.
In addition to her businesses, she has also launched a book and podcast – both called Working Hard, Hardly Working, and was featured on the Forbes 30 under 30 Europe list in 2020.
Expensive influencers
However, she admitted that she spent too much on social media stars at the beginning.
In a TikTok video, she explained: “I shouldn’t have spent so much money on influencers – until you’re established, work with 80 per cent ‘converting’ influencers and MAX 20 per cent ‘brand building’ (cool) influencers.
“Converting influencers will actually drive sales rather than just add brand value (which is so important but not as important as staying afloat early on). “Ask to see their affiliate link data before going ahead to ensure they can actually sell!
“Tbh I would avoid using influencers altogether until a few launches in and focus on gifting instead.”
‘Done’ is best
Her next tip was to not spend so much money sampling products before releasing them, and advised “done is better than perfect.”
She said you can get feedback from people after you have launched which you will learn “so much” from.
‘Vanity project’ influencer events
Grace said that she held events “WAY too early” to be necessary.
She explained: “Events are a vanity project and good for building ‘brand’, but you can’t afford to focus on truly building brand until you have some cash.
“So skip the events and put that money into ad spend until you have stronger cash flow.”
Events with purpose
The businesswoman said you should only invite influencers who convert and give them a discount code to walk away with for their followers.
She added that events should be able educating them on the brand and not just getting a “meaningless tag” on Instagram.
Social media reliance
Grace said she should have avoided relying so much on social media and instead focused more on email marketing.
She explained: “Automated email marketing will make you money IN YOUR SLEEP.
“You will have customers come to your site, add something to their basket and then get distracted before checking out; automated CRM flows will remind that customer via email that they left something in their basket.
“So many other flows too.
“Think how many people you follow on ig and tt whose posts you never see – email is far far more effective and relies less on algorithms.”
Get names early
Another tip she had for new businesses is to secure all social media handles as soon as you know the name.
Grace Beverley's seven-figure millionaire brand
RUNNING your own company is a monumental feat, but Grace Beverley has multiple on the go.
The entrepreneur has a net worth of a whopping £8million.
Shreddy
Thanks to her loyal fan base following her fitness videos, Grace launched an app while at university.
The fitness app Shreddy is filled with recipes, workouts, and a built-in community.
Tala
Grace added to her empire by creating a sustainable activewear brand, which she started in 2019 at 22.
In its first year, she made £6million in sales.
In 2022, she received £4.5million in investment to expand the business, and it now has 469,000 followers on Instagram
The Productivity Method
Skilled at time management, Grace started another hustle, selling planners.
Her business flogs physical planners for £36, while her digital planners rise to £42.
The website states: “Quite simply, we got fed up with planners that ask us how many sh**s we’ve had a day while not actually helping us to improve our productivity… so we set out to make productivity tools that *actually*, *genuinely* work!”
Book
On top of all this, Grace launched a book called Working Hard, Hardly Working in 2022.
It “offers a fresh take on how to create your own balance, be more productive and feel fulfilled.”
Grace’s book has proved to be a huge success and is a Sunday Times bestseller.
Grace launched Shreddy, a fitness app while studying at the University of Oxford.
Speaking to CEO Today Magazine, the businesswoman said: “I wanted to help simplify people’s fitness journeys and create products that helped make what can be a daunting, confusing process a lot easier.
“I was in my first year at university, so I didn’t start in the same way I’d start a business now.
“I released a digital product at first, then went into physical products after we spotted a gap in the market for accessible, cute gym accessories that made your gym experience that much better, whilst allowing you to create an affordable portable gym.”
Grace added “she’d be lying” if she said starting a business at a young age hadn’t come with “challenges”, but she claimed the key was to hire “a powerhouse of young women from all different backgrounds.”
But Grace didn’t stop there.
In 2019 when she was 22, the entrepreneur decided to launch another business – an activewear brand called Tala.
The Instagram star was already making a name for herself as a fitness influencer with her @GracefitUK account.
In its first year, Grace made a whopping £6million in sales.
However, she counts the real launch of the business in April 2021, after she severed ties with her initial manufacturing partner and licenser.
She revealed to Vogue: “I haven’t talked about this much because at the time it was sensitive but having to rip it all down and start from scratch in order to build a brand with [longevity] was incredibly hard, it was incredibly expensive and incredibly tough emotionally.
“It required a huge amount of conviction.”
The previous business partners had wanted Tala to be an influencer brand, with sales driven by Grace’s account and “viral drops”.
However, she hoped to build a long-lasting business model and invest in product innovation.
She added: “Being an influencer merch brand is fine and it has its value. But capping the brand’s growth at myself and my own reach, where being an influencer actually isn’t even what I want to do, wasn’t what I wanted for my future or for the brand.”
The relaunch paid off, as she received a £4.5million investment in 2022.