Launching his business during the height of the last recession,
Dale Parr has had a busy three years. “We have two new
eCommerce platforms due to launch, along with in-house clothing
lines and new collaborations,” he says, “it’s an
exciting time, but draining on resources”.
His business, SoleHeaven, specialises in trainers, headwear and
luggage influenced by street culture, contemporary art and
fashion design. Inspired by a trip to New York, Parr was
determined to bring the colourful “sneakers” he saw
there to the UK, where he had not seen such a range of colours
and brands.
Now in its third financial year, SoleHeaven, 80 per cent owned by
Parr and 20 per cent by business partner Paul Norman, is
profitable and projects sales of £220,000, up from
£110,000 last year. The growth, says Parr, is driven by
expanding the product choice, using recognisable brands like Nike
and Vans, but in colourways, the high street is “scared
of”.
Growth has also been generated through social media and so-called
“guerrilla tactics”. SoleHeaven has secured
endorsements by DJs, breakdancers and other prominent street
culture figures who “only want free trainers in return;
we’ve tapped into their love of streetwear,” says Parr. And
as it doesn’t have the budget or expertise to run PPC, affiliate
or other online marketing campaigns, SoleHeaven courts prominent
bloggers in its target market and seeks DJ collaborations to
spread the word. This month, for example, SoleHeaven is
partnering with a rapper to produce a music video. The rapper
will receive a fee for his performance and the track-a remix of a
1980s classic-will be available from the SoleHeaven
website.
The next item on Parr’s list is further international expansion,
with a strong push into the US. Already generating 15 per cent of
sales from overseas, SoleHeaven partnered with FedEx this year to
facilitate three-day shipping to the US east coast and five-day
shipping to the west coast. Again, international growth
“will be driven by how much we can spend on
marketing,” says Parr. Aside from the US, the business also
sees demand from Australia, the Netherlands, France and
Germany.
“We’ve been doing a solid job so far,” he says but
acknowledges that the business needs a retailer to steer it in
the right direction. SoleHeaven needs cash to facilitate online
and international expansion and someone with the right experience
to know what to do with the money, explains Parr.
While ideally, Parr would like to sell a minority equity stake and
continue working, selling the business completely is also an
option. “There is an exit strategy in place,” he
says.
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