It’s true. It happens in garages.

12 years ago, I was sitting with my friend in a garage and that conversation would kick off my career from garage to JSE.

“There’s a new technology and it’s going to change everything,” he explained. We’ve heard that before but I listened.

The technology was called responsive web design and instead of building a mobile app and website separately now, you could build on one site that will cater for both.

“No way, we should start a business and call it Responsive.”

And that is how our business began. In a garage, building out Responsive websites that were some of the first in the country.

We paid our school fees. We started slow. One client led to another.

We grew organically. Unlike the stories of founders, we didn’t have a master plan. We delivered strong. We delivered value. Clients trusted us because we went the extra mile. It was simple but effective. They saw the intention, the value and that created our momentum.

I’m not an expert but an encourager. But if I have to share my pearls of wisdom it would be this:

Know your industry, get the skills, have the right people you can partner with. That’s the foundation before you reach complexity.

Find clients who trust you. Do that with a heap of value and a spoon of going the extra mile and you have a recipe you can work with.

We grew from there as we moved to more complex work. We got brave and were fortunate enough to get some great work with some great clients and an a JSE-listed company saw it.

It’s tempting to try everything, but rather find a niche that aligns with both your personal skills and market demands and then expand. Keep your presentations as refined as your strategy. Pitches should be tailored to each client and understanding them before pitching is a way to succeed.

Don’t go broad but also don’t expect to go big.

Often you need to start with smaller projects to build trust and engagement with clients. They aren’t as intimidated to start small. There is less risk for them but it’s your opportunity to show value.

Invest in visuals. Clients appreciate a visual experience. They want to see what they will get. Content isn’t enough to cross the line.

When they sign you in, the work begins. Start with cycles of small releases of tangible value then take that to clients and the market and iterate as you go. Big reveals lead to big surprises where clients can decide you missed the mark.

But this isn’t just the story of how we started in a garage. It’s the story that happens after you succeed.

Stories end when characters reach their goals. But the truth is that the story never ends. Neither does the learning.

Our investors invested because they saw the skills and the opportunity but mainly they saw the people.

They invest in people. After being acquired, we are still learning. It’s new world but this time, the work and learning isn’t happening in a garage. But the principle is the same.

12 years ago, I was caught by curiosity and focused on brilliant execution.

Be curious. Execute well. Be humble. Be prepared for grey hair.