Author: Igor

  • What We’ve Learnt About Growing A Business Brand

    A successful business relies on a variety of different elements. However, nothing else you do in business will count for anything if people can’t buy into your brand. If you cannot perfect this area, then your company simply isn’t ready.

    Here are five crucial requirements that will help you handle this task like a pro. Incorporate them immediately, and your hopes of success will soar.

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    You Need Passion

    When you’ve interviewed as many entrepreneurs as we have, you quickly pick up on a few shared qualities. A raw passion for business is undoubtedly top of that list. Whether it’s artistic innovations or providing IT support, you must feel strongly about the cause.

    Even the greatest businesses have encountered difficult moment along their journeys. In all honesty, your company will be no different. Without a genuine love for your ideas, overcoming those early obstacles will become impossible. Besides, consumers can tell whether your venture is built on a foundation of passion. If it is, they’ll be far more likely to buy into those concepts.

    You Need A Niche

    It goes without saying that every business needs a customer base. However, the big mistake that many entrepreneurs fall for is trying to please everyone. Sadly, cutting yourself too thin will only alienate the people that may have been interested.

    Trying to appeal to people that aren’t going to buy your products is futile anyway. Find your place in the market at the earliest stage possible, and increasing your conversion rates will become far easier.

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    You Need Character

    Knowing your audience is one thing, but attracting their interest is another altogether. Of course, tailoring products and marketing tools to their preferences will serve you well. But your competitors will be doing the same. You need to do something that sets your business aside from the others.

    Organising a special promotional event is a great way to make your company stand out from the crowd. Hiring a special act through a professional booking agent will spice up any launch event or hosted evening. And when you create those unforgettable experiences, your company becomes unforgettable too. Once customers are thinking about it on a regular basis, the regularity of sales should increase too.

    You Need Presence

    No business can make its mark if people aren’t aware of its existence, though. Visibility is a crucial factor for obvious reasons, but it also verifies the professionalism of the venture too.

    In today’s market, online activities provide the perfect opportunity to pass this test with flying colours. A well-designed website supported by great SEO and social media streams will become one of your greatest marketing tools. Let’s face it; customers are constantly using the internet to research companies before completing a sale. If your online presence paints a positive picture, the overall perceptions will be greatly improved.

    You Need Support

    As an entrepreneur, you should know that you can’t do everything alone. For starters, employees can have a huge influence on productivity while their ideas may also help with branding and marketing. Perhaps the biggest asset at your disposal, however, is the customer.

    Nobody knows what they want better than the customer. Interacting with them will allow you to fine-tune those ideas. It also encourages them to participate in the growth of your business too. Moreover, customer testimonials inject an added sense of trust that can make a big difference to recruiting new clients.

    These five elements won’t suddenly guarantee overnight success, but they will define the brand. If nothing else, that should make the road ahead far less bumpy.

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  • Hidden Gems – Independent Restaurants and Cafes in Liverpool

    Liverpool is a city home to the Baltic Triangle, a world-famous independently-run street food and drink market located at the edge of the city centre. While the Baltic Triangle is a hugely popular area for locals and tourists to enjoy, there are many other hidden gems across the city too. Various restaurants and cafes in Liverpool have been able to create a name for themselves in the industry as unique and delicious. 

    Whether you’re a Liverpool regular, a one-off visitor or someone who is curious, we’ve collated the top hidden gems in Liverpool for you to read over and possibly visit yourself.

    Below is a list of five deliciously unique restaurants and cafes that we love. 

    Down the Hatch

    Also known as Seitan’s Basement, Down the Hatch (DTH) is a vegan and vegetarian restaurant that encourages its customers to fill up their boots and stuff their faces as their portion sizes are enormous. It gets almost all 5-star reviews from foodies who eat there since it offers food that’s a little different to the rest. Primarily, Down the Hatch offers customers veggie and vegan junk food that is sure to impress – plus as the name implies, this hidden gem is located underground. While we can’t promise the food will taste better considering the location – it’s a place not be missed when visiting Liverpool. From pulled-jackfruit burgers to loaded mac and cheese – you ultimately can’t go wrong with a meal from DTH!

    Bar Bodega

    Liverpool’s long-standing and well-loved cocktail basement bar and restaurant is a hit with Liverpool locals and visitors. It’s located beneath a new city centre development from RWinvest, L1 Boutique. The beautifully designed building is home to the unique bar as well as countless apartments that house students and residents of the city. Bar Bodega regularly hosts cocktail masterclasses and can host events too. It’s great to start your night out or go for a late-night party venue. Plus, it’s available for private hire if you want to have your birthday bash here or anniversary get together. 

    Mother Espresso

    Home to some of Liverpool’s best coffee, Mother is a known name across the city since it does yummy lattes and food too. Open seven days a week and offering veggie and vegan options, the café is a great spot for students looking for a quirky place to study or even friends wanting a place to have a chat. Often, small business events and talks are hosted here. If the delicious coffee isn’t enough to convince you to go, their toasties and full English breakfast should. It’s a must-visit if you’re in Liverpool for a few days.

    Yard and Coop

    Chicken lovers unite for Yard and Coop, an underground restaurant dedicated to fried chicken and waffles. Sitting right in the city centre, not too far from your retail therapy, Yard and Coop is a unique yet affordable place to try. The restaurant is a late-night spot offering cocktails and drinks but also offers mouth-watering desserts and meals too. If you’re someone who loves to indulge in junk food, Yard and Coop is the place to be. 

    Lovelocks

    An independently-owned and run coffee shop, Lovelocks offers customers freshly ground coffee, food and various vegan options. They source all of their food from local farmers and certainly know how to bake a beautifully tasting cake. Any chocolate lover would dream of indulging in their chocolate fudge cake. However, there are countless soups, breakfasts and lunches on offer too. It’s the perfect spot after you’ve shopped till you drop, or even for a quick bite to eat with your work friends while on lunch. Don’t pass up the opportunity to visit a real café run by real people that is homely and good value for money!

  • Stay: Tune Hotel Liverpool St London

    Stay: Tune Hotel Liverpool St London

    Last weekend one of the members of the Future Positive team travelled to London to meet some people and find inspiration for the website. Whilst planning the trip and looking for accommodation, Tune Hotels kindly offered us a discounted stay at their Liverpool St hotel. Scroll down to find out more about Igor’s stay at the hotel.

    For those of you who haven’t heard about Tune Hotels before, they are a chain of hotels offering a great night’s sleep at a good price. They have several hotels in Asia and have recently expanded to the UK with hotels in London and Edinburgh.

    Tune Hotel Liverpool Stis located in the heart of London’s East End, just under 5 minutes walk to Brick Lane. Despite its name, the hotel is actually not located on Liverpool St but on Folgate St, just off Commercial St (don’t forget to visit The Commercial Tavern) and 5 minutes away from Liverpool St Station. This is actually an advantage as you can avoid all the noise from the main streets and have a good night’s sleep.

    The room had a really comfortable double bed and didn’t feel tiny as in other budget hotels. That was also the case with the bathroom which had a great shower and enough space to move around. The windows were facing the hotel’s patio which looked great for having an outdoors breakfast if you’re staying during summer.

    The stay was great and it’s hard to find something similar in the area for a better price, considering how close it is to the East End’s main attractions. If you’re planning a trip to London and looking for a good value accommodation, definitely consider having a look at the four Tune hotels in the city!

  • 4 Practical Garage Conversion Ideas

    If you have a garage you no longer using, you are not alone. In fact, according to a recent study by US households, only 15 percent of homeowners with a garage use it to park a car. For the remaining 85% of homeowners who have a garage, the most common use is storing things they no longer have need.

    Intentionally repurposing your garage for better use can make your home more comfortable and valuable.

    Of course, a garage conversion is different for everyone, but most successful garage conversions are spare bedrooms, home offices, home gymnasiums, movie lounge, and apartments.

    If you don’t have a car or prefer to park it in the driveway, you can easily turn a cluttered garage into stylish space.

    Here are some solid ideas that will stir your creativity:

    Home Office

    Transforming a garage into a home office is one of the easiest conversion options.

    The complexity or simplicity of the office depends on the desired atmosphere and the type of work performed. Basically, you need electrical outlets and an internet connection.

    If you have an expensive laptop with important files and you need to spend countless there, the garage door must be properly insulated from cold and moisture.

    You will need to install an insulated garage door if you don’t already have one. Not only do you save unnecessary electricity costs, but you can also make your home office more convenient.

    Noise is another important factor to consider. Of course, you want your home office to be as quiet as possible. To accomplish this you need a garage door opener installer.

    You should also include space-saving storage solutions to improve your organization.

    If you can’t get more natural light in your garage, you should install garage doors with transparent door panels.

    Playroom

    As your family grows, your house will become more crowded.

    If your garage is suitable, you can turn it into a children’s space, where they can play, paint, and basically have fun without disturbing the rest of the family.

    The main thing is to make the room as child-friendly as possible, which means that you need to update the garage door opener. If you use the garage as a playroom, it is important that children cannot open the garage door.

    Don’t forget to cover your floors with high-quality rugs so that your little ones can safely play on.

    Spare Bedroom

    If you like to party but do not have enough room for guests to spend the night, you can convert your garage into a guest room.

    Before decorating, make sure the room is insulated to keep guests warm.

    You also want to make sure it doesn’t contain pests.

    Depending on the room, you may only need a lick of paint and a comfortable bed to make guests feel at home, or you may need to invest in a rug.

    Home Gym

    If you lead an extremely busy life it can be difficult to spare time to go to the gym. Most people want to stay in shape, but the distance to the gym and membership fee discourage them.

    If this sounds like you or you just want to exercise privately, you can turn your garage into a gym.

    Converting your garage into a gym can be as simple as just getting a few weights, setting up a punching bag, and maybe add an exercise bike.

    As with a home office, the simplicity or complexity of a home gym depends on your budget and fitness goals.

    You don’t necessarily have to have all the expensive machines to start with, the main thing is to have a separate exercise room.

    All in all, there is a lot you can do with an unused garage. So, why let the place go to waste when you can make it a vital part of your home?

  • 4 reasons why turntables are making a comeback this year

    In 2020, vinyl sales were the highest since the early nineties with over 4 million vinyl LPs purchased. With the rise of music streaming in the last decade, it’s fair to say that this resurgence in “physical music” is surprising. Here are four reasons why we think turntables are so popular amongst the younger generation. 

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    It’s something you can touch and collect

    A vinyl can be shared, traded, gifted, put on the wall as a decoration, passed over to your kids or grandkids, there is something special about that. The artwork on the cover is large and gives you a familiar feeling that we all used to have when we bought records, tapes or CDs back in the day. Also, once you own your vinyl, it’s yours to keep. Streaming music is only yours as long as the platform you’re streaming your music from is up and running. 

    It’s an experience

    Buying a record in a store is a special experience in itself. Hunting through hundreds of records to find the one that makes you feel happy and excited is a feeling you don’t have when streaming music, it’s similar to doing a scavenger hunt with your friends when you’re younger. The listening part once you get home, it’s also something unique. Opening the record, looking at the artwork, rediscovering the lyrics and the artist credits, laying the record on your turntable and simply enjoying the music, there is something special about that. 

    It brings us together

    Vinyl is a passion that can be shared across all generations, from your jazz fanatic grandma to your metal addict dad, this hobby brings people of all ages together for the love of music. In fact, we see more and more parents buying their children a Crosley record player, they’re colourful, appealing to kids they look fun and they’re super easy to set up. It’s actually a great thing you can share with your children and it could definitely bring you closer together. 

    It’s valuable!

    Having a decent record collection could be a good investment as they can be resold at a high price later on. Retro LPs such as Elvis Presley or The Clash can be sold for hundreds of pounds across marketplaces so it’s definitely something to keep in mind when you start collecting records.