Happy 1st birthday, WeScale!

THE START ??

When I started one year ago, I was alone, a freelancer with nothing but a vision of what I want to build in the future.

I knew that I didn't want to stay a freelancer, an adviser, or a coach for some other company. The only thing that felt right for me was to become a leader again and build a team that could help other companies scale.

But I wanted to do something different, something to combine my four-year performance agency experience with being a CMO in one of the fastest-growing eCommerce companies in the region and setting up the whole marketing ecosystem from 0 to mid-8-figures in less than four years.

I researched how to create a vision, business model, and workflows for the company that would be a perfect fit for my experiences and passions.

I found an interesting concept in the US market called a boutique agency, and the moment I read that the first blog post and found the first competitor, I knew that this was the right concept for me.

I quickly found the right name for the company - WeScale, and it was time to transform my freelance project into strong eCommerce partners that we would scale.

The first year's goal was to create a team of passionate eCommerce specialists that would help carefully selected eCommerce clients grow to 7 and 8 figures.

THE PROCESS ??

It sounded good when I was explaining to everyone that I want to build an agency that would work with only up to 5 clients, and those clients will sell products that are:

? great quality

? with awesome reviews

? have a high retention rate

? with huge growth potential

? lead by a visionary entrepreneur

But okay, let's be real, how do you find them, and how you build a team that could support it?

For me, it all started with three small clients that were making 5-20 K/month and one employee.

I hired my team member on 15th January 2020 with no idea what his exact tasks would be; I just love his mindset, work ethic, and he was the first one who believed in my vision.

We worked in a coworking space, 10-13 hours per day, with one command goal, finding the right partners to scale.??

We added some freelancers to our team to help us create creatives and run Influencer marketing campaigns, and soon we found the first two potentials for growth - for us, this was the belief that we can help them reach 100K € revenue/month. If I remember correctly, this was within the first two months.

Then the COVID-19 came, and in eCommerce, nothing was ever the same.??

We quickly adapt to the current situation, and we decided that we want to focus on these two projects and see if we can get them to the 300K/month mark.

We grow our team and focus on the main areas of the business: media buying, creatives, Influencer marketing, email marketing, product launches, opening new countries, and some growth hacking techniques to boost profitability and sales.

The time was going super fast for us, we were working remote, having our daily calls to discuss strategy, and after six months, we were ready for our first office.??

We found the right place for us in Ljubljana, and that was a huge step for us because we became an even more connected, proactive, and simply better-performing team.

Fun fact = we created our website three months after launching the company ??

Then I hired the first coworker to lead the team, and the timing couldn't be better.

Q3, we focus on growing our three main clients and create a strong internal process for Q4 + onboard two new partners to see if there is a potential for Q4 collaboration. Having countless internal meetings, listening to courses, get involved in masterminds, and talking to mentors. All that we one goal, to be ready for our first Q4.

The last three months of our first year were intense for the whole team, and I'm grateful for all the effort each team member put in during that time.

We faced a tough challenge before Q4:

Our main three projects were growing super fast, and we had high goals for Q4; on the other hand, the word got out about our agency, and we got five grate eCommerce waiting at our door for our greenlight.

I was thinking about hiring and outsourcing aggressively for Q4 to increase our agency revenue.

We decided that we won't onboard anyone and focus on working with our current partners.

Looking back, I think this was one of the best decisions we made because it enables us to finish 2020 with really huge numbers, and our relationships with our partners are stronger than ever.??

It was a bumpy ride, but I enjoyed the process.

Now it's time to drink a glass of my favorite champagne.

THE BIGGEST WINS ??

In the first year, we were able to ...

?? Build a strong 12 people team with the common goal

*This one is the one that I'm most proud of :)

?? Grow four businesses to 7 figures

Our biggest win is from 4 figures to 1,5 MM €/month revenue in 12 months.

?? Set up a strong media buying & content team

In our first year, we focused on FB & IG media buying, email marketing, content creation with influencers, CRO, and direct response creatives.

?? Project management

In the first year, we were dealing with many project management issues with our partners and internally. It's a pleasure to say that we have made tremendous progress in our internal and external processes and planning in the last three months.

?? Have fun on the journey

I will always remember the right vibe in our office and during the meetings during Q4. We were working very long hours, dealing with many internal challenges, making last-minute changes to the sales offers, and having meetings during the weekend. Still, somehow someway, we were able to maintain a great vibe and support within our team.

THE NEXT STEPS ??

After opening a bottle of champaign and celebrate a great year with our team, we started asking ourselves:

"What's next?"

Here are our top 5:

??Stay boutique - We want to continue to operate as a boutique agency with a maximum of 5 clients that we believe in.

??The team always comes first - we know that we will be only as strong as our team, so we want to continue to work on our tea culture, knowledge, collaboration, internal processes, and all other fun things;

??Strong departments - the goal is to upgrade our Media buying, retention, content, and Influencer marketing department to provide even better services for our partners and create a strong connection within our teams and

??Keep scaling - We already set up some high & challenging goals for 2021, and we can't too see what we will learn in the upcoming years when we continue to pursue the 7-, 8-, and maybe even 9- figures revenue marks;

??Always learning - this was the primary mindset from day one, and we want to upgrade our eCommerce, business knowledge even higher so we provide real premium services and help our partners beyond marketing.

I WANT TO THANK ...????

?? The dream team - without you, there is no scaling in WeScale,

??Our partners - thank you for believing in us and give us a chance to co-create amazing stories and introduce great products to the world;

?? My fiancee Simona - for believing in me and supporting my crazy idea;

?? Family - mom, dad, sister, and her husband for always listening to my challenges and help me see the bigger pictures;

?? Mentors - for showing me the path and help me overcome all the challenges;

?? Therapist - to start exploring and improving my mental health, be more present at the moment, be grateful and become a better person;

?? Personal trainer - to take care of my body and give me the energy to lead, create and enjoy the process;

?? Followers - for being curious and give me challenges that help me to become better every day;

?? The Present - I'm grateful to be living in these times. Although 2020 was through for all of us, for me, this was the best year so far.

?? Internet & Social media - to allow me to learn (excess to courses, podcasts, blogs, mentors, FB groups, etc.) and create my entrepreneurial story from my home and office in our beloved country Slovenia.????

I can't wait to see what the second year will bring. ??

If you have any questions about my journey, please feel free to write them in the comments.

Otherwise, thank you for staying with me until the end.??

Now, back to work!

#lovetheprocess #year1