How I Became a Business Scaler — and What It Means for Your Company

For many years, I dreamed of being my own boss. What seemed like a pipe dream for so long finally became a reality a few years ago. Now, as a female entrepreneur, I’m the happiest I’ve ever been professionally because I get to define what are my job responsibilities. Some titles my job includes are business consultant, human resource consultant, real estate manager, and sales consultant.

One major aspect of my job you’ve probably never heard of is as a business scaler. You may not know why this title matters to your company, but it’s critical to growing companies. My journey started more than a decade ago, and every step of the way has led me to this unique professional career path — and taught me valuable sales lessons.

How I Got My Start in Sales

My career started innocently enough — in high school, I took a part-time retail job with Banana Republic. I figured if I was going to be at the mall anyway, I might as well make money helping people find the perfect outfit instead of spending cash. This first job, though, wasn’t just about having money to spend at the food court or hanging out with my friends. In fact, it taught me a professional lesson I’ll never forget — how to market yourself so someone else sees value in you.

A year later, Saks Fifth Avenue’s HR director recruited me to sell contemporary clothes. Again, this is another instance where I became cognizant of how your skills make you attractive to others. I worked with tailors and learned how to pin suit pants, so this knowledge allowed me to stand out in the workforce. Once I worked for Saks Fifth Avenue, I became obsessed with the world of luxury brands and retail.

The Next Chapter — High-End Sales

My time at Saks Fifth Avenue allowed me to gain experience selling high-end and contemporary merchandise for various retailers like Barneys, Neiman Marcus, Saks Fifth Avenue, Vince, and many more. Within six months, I was the top sales rep, and in one year I built a $2 million book. (Interestingly, $2 million became a lucky number for me, but more on that later.)

The key to my success wasn’t just pushing big-ticketed products on everyone. Instead, I developed empathy and was able to understand what my clients needed and found clothes that truly captured elements of my clients’ personality.

After a brief stint working in B2B and in consulting, I was offered a position in Bloomingdales’ Theory department. I jumped at the chance to work for the top Theory store in the US at the time. Within six months, I broke a company record by selling $50,000 in Theory suits!

But, one thing I learned about retail was that there’s so much more to it than money. I loved the diverse group of people — between my coworkers and clients — I interacted with. We became a multi-ethnic Brady Bunch!

A New Opportunity — Real Estate

It’s so true about how opportunities present themself when you least expect it. While I was working at Bloomingdales, I was invited to a cocktail party where I met someone who was renting out a room in their apartment through AirBnB. The person was making a self-described “killing,” and I figured it was worth a shot to do the same.

So, I listed a room in my New York City apartment on AirBnB. I did so well that I saved all the money I made and invested in other leases too. In two years, I was managing 225 properties! Needless to say, it was stressful, but rewarding personally and professionally. Besides making more than $20 million in gross revenue, I became involved in luxury real estate. The real estate industry took what I love about my retail career — interacting with diverse people, and sales — and enabled me to hone my sales skills in a new industry. In fact, it was through my real estate portfolio that I developed — pun intended — my lead generation strategies to help me close deals.

Back to B2B

After new restrictions on AirBnB in New York City went into effect, I was looking for my next venture. The next step on my career path emerged — I was offered a role as the VP of Business Development for a retail and real estate startup! It was the perfect role for me based on my professional career.

Remember how I said $2 million is a lucky number for me? Well, I helped them generate $2 million in revenue in seven months using my lead gen strategies. I thrived in this position, but I needed a new challenge.

Next, I worked as a business consultant using my lead gen strategies with multiple companies. I generated $2 million for a medical device sales rep in three months, and then helped a recruiting firm generate $200,000 in placement fees. It was time for me to do something in my career I had dreamed about, but was always nervous to do — branch out on my own and become an entrepreneur.

A Business Scaler

Now, as a business scaler, I’m dedicated to the following for all my clients:

• Taking businesses to the next level using proven — and cost-effective — lead gen strategies
• Helping real estate owners and HR departments use lead gen to fill vacancies and open jobs
• Improving diversity at-scale for infancy-stage startups

Throughout my career, I’ve been blessed with tremendous opportunities in luxury retail and real estate that led to exponential professional growth for me. Now, as a business scaler, I’m ready to grow?your?business.

@rebeccashamtoob?

Rebecca Shamtoob