Venturing into your own business can be very daunting and challenging, but at the end of the day, having your own business can be truly rewarding.

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Susan Hadisurya, entrepreneur and owner of online store Alluring Sense, is the epitomy of hard work, perseverance, and resilience. She believed in following her dreams, and worked her way into creating a successful online empire.

This is her story.

Tell us about you and your business/career, and what you were doing before. What inspired you to start your own business?
I am the owner of the online retail store Alluring Sense. Alluring Sense is the online retail store and distributor of Rose & Co – their products consist of natural bath and body soaps, hand cream, bath melts, body lotions, and other skincare products like lip balm.  These products are imported directly from the UK, whereRose & Co is quite a popular brand not only with the high quality of the ingredients but also with the unique vintage packaging and marketing.

One day, out of the blue, I was asking my friend in the UK if she’d be keen to join MLM. Instead of recruiting her, she came across a very nice picture of bath bombs and she asked me if there were such unique products in Singapore. When I saw the pictures of lovely, sweet and delicious looking bath and body products, I was captivated instantly. Then suddenly, I thought of selling those products in Singapore since there had been good reviews from the internet. So I plucked up the courage to contact a sales manager and state my intentions.The rest is history!

I worked in the IT industry for 10 years. After a while, I felt so tired of working as an employee. After the passing of my father last year, I decided to take three month break from work. To pass the time, I would google for products on eBay or Amazon to see if there were products that could be sold. It was when I got to know Rose & Co that I knew which products I could sell – online and offline.

I believe entrepreneurship is in my blood. My grandpa was an entrepreneur. So is the rest of my family, including my parents.

Find Losses Rather Than Profit
I know the journey to entrepreneurship does not come easy – especially for first timers like myself, as I have not done this before. Even before I embarked in this venture, I expected to face a lot of obstacles in the journey. I believe that with every obstacle I faced, I learn a lot in the process. I was inspired by this Indonesian businessman, Bob Sadino. He mentioned that it is good to actually find a lot of losses rather than profit in the business, which sounds very unconventional to most people. I believe failure does not hinder one’s success in the journey. Without risk taking, there will be no rewards.

Always Cultivate Resilience.
I have a strong urge to promote the products and the concepts I sell. I just want people to fall in love with the products I bring, though many people are unaware of the brand in Singapore. I have a burning desire in me. I know working alone can be very overwhelming; therefore, it is good to take a break and rest when you really need to. It is easy for one to feel very discouraged, especially when one experiences tiredness or burnout or some disappointments. When this happens, instead of calling it quits, think back to what brought you to your business in the first place. Always cultivate resilience. Without resilience, the tendency is to just give up while you are on your journey

Being In A Small Business Means Playing A Lot Of Roles
Being in a small business, you don’t have much capital for other things. So I have to budget a lot for the business. It is no surprise that I, and others in similar situations as well, have to play so many roles: sales manager, marketer, customer service, and even accountant. I understand these things can be very draining. My advise is this: Look for someone with experience that you can look up to as your mentor, or better yet, someone you can partner with.

Word Of Mouth Helps
My greatest joy and excitement? I finally managed to bring brand new beauty items with unique concepts in Singapore, and being able to sell and promote these products to bloggers, friends, and other family members. I believe word-of-mouth can be very effective and powerful in the marketing world. Without word-of-mouth or other forms of marketing, no one will know about you or the business that you are in.

Hard Work And Perseverance Are What Matter Most
My biggest failure is that I did not start in my early 20s. Instead, I opted to go the traditional way in my career. Unlike other entrepreneurs, they started young – in their 20s. For me, I only started in my  early 30s. I used to hear people say, ‘study hard and get good grades in order to have good jobs.’ After a while, I began to feel this is not the path to success after all. I know education is important but for me, grades  are  not the only determining factor for you to succeedas an entrepreneur. Hard work and perseverance are what matter most.

Mistakes Guide Us Along The Way
If there was a time machine, I would turn back time and go back to my early 20s. However, the past is just the past. Whatever mistakes we made along the way, there’s no point in living in the past. Mistakes are there to guide us along the way, together with failures you face in your present. So if you are experiencing failure, I would say that you are on the right track towards a successful journey.

A Quote To Live By:
Be unique, be different, be who you are. You don’t have to follow the crowd.

Get To Know Her Products!

• Provide a link to any upcoming event or offer you would like us to promote.

• Provide 3-5 photos of you – ideally a high resolution ‘action shot’ or editorial style photograph.

Alluring Sense proudly brings you the creations of Patricia and Caroline Rose from Haworth, Yorkshire. Be enchanted as you explore our range of bath and body products  inspired by vintage art and bygone eras.

_{Edited by Michelle Sarthou 
Image credit:Cosmetic bottle container with green herbal leaves in small organic cotton bag on wooden background from Shutterstock}

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