Green shoots or counter intuitive?

As I look at our business in 2009 I can see a definite slowing down of the high levels of growth we've seen every year since we started. Up until Nov 2008 we were always up over 100% on the same month the previous year. In Nov 08 growth slowed to 35%, Dec 08 was 65%, Jan was 17% and Feb looks to be along the same lines as Jan. As it happens not bad given the climate. But are we taking market share in a declining market or is the market not shrinking to the extent that media reports would have us believe?

I know, wearing a different hat, that market condition in Camden Town are better than expected for lots of businesses http://tinyurl.com/dfojvm and wonder if others have similar experiences?

The business of football and investment...

As I watch this season's English Premier League unfold I'm struck by the difference in the fortunes of two clubs who, until recently, were the only clubs really in contention for the title each season. Namely Manchester Utd and Arsenal who from the time the premiership began in 1992 to 2004 all but shared the title between them. Since 2004 however Arsenal have not won a single trophy whilst Man Utd have won two titles, as well as the Champions League, and are well placed to make it a third in succession. The other player in the field in this time has been Chelsea who seem to have taken over from Arsenal as Utd's main challengers. Liverpool have also risen from also-rans to title contenders for the first time in may years. The big and obvious difference between Arsenal and the other three clubs seems to be ownership and thereby investment. Now I'm not suggesting that football is an ideal candidate for study for those trying to draw lessons for business in other sectors. However it would appear that there is a compelling argument that had Arsenal allowed a single investor to take over the club, as has happened at the other three top four clubs, maybe they'd still be in contention rather than struggling to make the Champions League play offs.

What's got me thinking re this scenario, is investment levels in my own company. To date my partner and I have been very keen to avoid taking on debt or giving away equity as we want to remain in control of our own destiny and are fairly risk averse. And to date this strategy has served us well. We've grown from zero to £1.2m turnover in five years with only a very small amount of capital (from another business of mine, which has all been repaid) and bits and pieces from our own pockets. We've financed this by taking very little money out of the company so we can reinvest in our own growth.

So my question is, is now the time to consider taking on some sort of investment so that we can remain in contention or are we doing just fine as we are? Thoughts anyone?

So what is business all about then?

The longer my biz partner and I have run our company the more complicated, yet ultimatly simple, it seems to get. There are definitely difficult decisions to make on a daily basis regarding pricing, suppliers etc. But the thing that makes it hardest is people. Logic is not the first point of call it would seem when people interact with a business. Be it as customers, contractors, employees or suppliers. Yet dig a little below the surface and a sort of logic begins to reveal itself. From their position certain things do make sense, even if from the business's perspective, and thereby thier best interests ultimatly, they seem odd. Business is mainly about logic and people. But people and logic don't always seem to fit well. Hmm

In the begining.....

ASMP began life as Jam Sounds Music in 2004. We started selling download music of unsigned artists. But then iTunes came along and we moved into ringtones (not long before the crazy frog!) before settling on pro-audio equipment for a while. That expanded into Fitness Equipment and Table Tennis as well as a sites including Chilloutspace and Startsport.