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Progress Report

Progress Report

Creating Maffi's exfoliating mask has been a very rewarding and exciting endeavor. It has been very gratifying hearing the mothers at my daycare rave about how smooth, soft and younger they feel their face looks and I love hearing that this product has improved their self esteem. Using my daycare as a work site has probably been the best idea because after doing my budget report I am overwhelmed by how many expenses I have saved. Not having to pay to rent a space, and not having to pay manufacturing products to make my product a reality has saved me greatly. I am able to basically be two places at one time, still working my full time job as supervisor and owner of a daycare, and creating my product during down times, which I use every opportunity to work on my product. At first, I thought I gave myself too much of a workload, but as the weeks have progressed I have gotten into a routine that works for me. The hardest part about making the product was that I experienced a hiccup in that my containers came late and I had made a large quantity of product that had already been mixed and I sadly had to throw it out which threw me for a loop because I had spent so much time making it and it was money thrown down the drain. I didn't realize how time consuming making this product would be, in my head it all seemed so simple but when actually making the mask it is a lot harder as everything needs to be measured out exactly so that each product is the exact same as the next. All in all, the business element of Maffi's exfoliating mask seems to be going good, my product is being marketed at a level that I am satisfied with; word of mouth travels fast when you get a bunch of women together. I am learning that running a business is a lot harder then it seems and nothing comes easy. When running a business you cannot rush things or rush sales, you have to go with the flow otherwise you will overwhelm and stress yourself out and possibly burn out. Running a business, I have learned that I work well under pressure, as the orders come in at a fast pace I am able to still produce in a timely manner. I have also learned that I am a great at  multitasking and that talking to women and selling my product comes easy because I feel so deeply about helping these women feel great about the skin that they are in by using an affordable and easy to use product made for busy moms.

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Business Operations Plan

Choosing a location to market and sell Maffis exfoliating mask comes easily since I interact and see my target market on a daily basis. This saves me the hassle of having to buy or lease a space and even having to work from home. I will be promoting and selling my product in a spare office that is located at my daycare. One of the many benefits of using this as a site, is that I don't have to worry about any legal and zoning issues. Using this location to sell my product is perfect for me because I am in my natural environment and in the company of parents and colleagues. I will be motivated by this as working with only women you hear daily about everyone's insecurities and worries about aging and my goal is to help women feel better about themselves.

Now that I have my selling space of my business figured out, my next step is to think about the materials that I will need for set up. I already have spare tables and chairs in my daycare and a huge room with amazing lighting. After doing research I have decided to us Amazon as my manufacturing source. It is free shipping so that my $50 will be able to stretch even further and they offer my ingredients of Shea butter and sea salt in bulk for really cheap. Sea salt is easily available from many places such as all grocery stores, bulk barn and even the dollar store; when these places have sea salt on sale I will be buying it in bulk. I will also be buying visually appealing 50ml containers to put the concoctions into that are small and compact so that if customers are going away for the night the face mask won't take up too much space in their makeup bags. I already own a label maker that I use for my job and will enjoy making my own labels to put onto the container in order to save even more money. I have a good friend who is a professional baker and she has offered to gift me her old mixers so that I can easily blend the ingredients together in our fully equipped kitchen. Mixing these products in our daycare kitchen does not go against any health and safety rules since the ingredients are natural and  do not contain any toxic chemical ingredients.

I am excited to begin selling my exfoliating mask product and to bring my overall vision to life. My parents at my work are also excited to buy this product and see results like they see on me. I already have a line up of women that are eager to try the mask out. Word of mouth will bring me even more customers and as the holidays approach I can introduce a flash sale or promotion as Maffi's exfoliating mask will make a perfect gift for loved ones. In addition, I can make a sign of my product and hang it in my office, so when I give tours and bring potential clients into my office they will see the product which might bring curiosity to them.

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Local Competition

After doing my research on various face masks, it is clear that Maffi's Exfoliating Mask has many competitors. Three of the many include Kiehl's, Glamglow and Zelens. Each company varies in their website experience, market positioning, reviews, pricing, advertisements, as well as varying in strengths and weaknesses. Below I will be discussing the strengths and weaknesses of each competitor as well as other traits of each company to better position my company within all the competitors that are out there.  

Upon opening Kiehl's website, a huge sale sign pops up allowing customers to receive 15% off any order as well as free shipping on orders of over $60. In addition, Kiehl's offers customers the choice of subscribing to their newsletter about new products and promotions. Kiehl's  clearly is a well established company with multiple masks claiming to be best sellers. Prices range from $20-$40 and $40-60 depending on size and type. Average customer ratings are 4.5/5 stars based on effect, performance, value and texture. It is clear that this company has many strengths with their exceptional customer reviews. They promote their products using social media marketing through Facebook, twitter, Instagram, Pinterest and YouTube. After reviewing their website, one of their weaknesses can be that they have such a variety of products where as Maffi's exfoliating mask focuses on one product to make it the best it can possibly. Scrolling through their website can be quiet overwhelming with so many products claiming to do so much.

Zelens is a company created by a plastic and reconstructive doctor who specifies in the field of skin aging and skin cancer. One of the strengths of this company is that he has deep knowledge of skincare with his advanced clinical research and published medical journals. Competing with such a knowledgeable person in this field can be quiet intimidating but being a women myself with skin issues I feel like Maffi's exfoliating mask has been created with woman's needs in mind. Zelens website can be a little underwhelming scrolling through their webpage, in addition they do not have social media accounts which prevents them from advertising their products to a large demographic. Their product is very expensive, over $200 for a single container. So although their product is backed up with scientific evidence the reality is that most people will not be able to afford this product, and a product claiming to help boost peoples self confidence should not make people feel guilty for buying their product. 

Upon opening Glamglow's website customers can get 15% off their total purchase. Like Kiehl's, Glamglow markets their product through many social media networks such as Facebook, twitter, Instagram, Pinterest and YouTube. Their website is pleasing to the eye and has a great easy to browse format. Facemask range from $59-$69, and unlike Zelens this is a reasonable price. Glamglow seems to be luxury company which is available in 86 countries and has one many product awards. One of the disadvantages of their face mask is that it needs to be kept on for a long period of time for results to be the most effective. Maffi's exfoliating mask is super fast, easy to use and effective without taking up important time during ones day.

After looking at these three major competitors, I know have a better idea on how to market my product. Maffi's exfoliating mask only cost $59.00, not too expensive and not too cheap. Even though I do not have clinical studies done on my product, many client reviews rave about this cheap product that is easy to use, fast and effective. Marketing this product will be key and with the many social media outlets that are now available, this will not be a problem. One of the benefits of owning a daycare is that I will always be able to promote my product to mothers and will first hand get to see the magical results that this product creates. In addition, having promotions and flash sales will encourage people to buy more of my facemask.

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strengths & weaknesses

Talking about ones strengths and weaknesses can be one of the most difficult parts for a person to analyze about themselves, myself included. Listed below are some of the strengths and weaknesses that I believe have shaped me into the business women, wife and mother that I am today.

One of my strengths is that I work great under pressure. Being part owner/ supervisor of a day care you never know what scenarios might be thrown at you, I am able to analyze any problem logically and solve it rationally  allowing me to solve problems in a time efficient way. In addition to being able to work well under pressure, I am very self motivated and have a positive attitude with my career and life. In my field of work it is very important to be a team leader, hardworking and carry self confidence so that these characteristics are reflected onto my staff. Happy environments make for happy staff! Another one of my strengths is that I am a very organized individual. Enrolling multiple families a day and managing a center full of staff requires organizational skills, and in turn this keeps stress levels minimized.

One of my weaknesses is that I take things to heart and get disappointed when things are done the wrong way. Being a sensitive person, I want to make sure that everyone in my workplace is happy and content with their jobs, which as a result can make me become too helpful in where I cross limits while helping teammates.  Another one of my weaknesses is that sometimes I take on too much work because I don't like having other people do things for me. I tend to have to overshadow what tasks are being done by other people making sure that they are being done correctly. In the future, I plan on having more trust in the tasks that I allow other people to do and have the confidence that it will be done correctly.