President of Love Cooking Company, Scott Nicholson, held a Consumer Products Workshop in which the Hofstra Alumnus detailed the process of bringing a product to market, from ideation to store shelves, as a part of the Innovation Lunch Series sponsored by Hofstra’s Center for Entrepreneurship on Wednesday, Oct. 5 in the Axinn Library. “Being an entrepreneur comes at a cost and a sacrifice. It requires extreme levels of risk tolerance and risk taking,” Nicholson’s said.
This heavy risk factor is often incentivized by the possibility of self-made success. On this Nicholson said, “Success is not about money. It’s not about fame, it’s not about power, it’s not about ego …You want a balance of success across all areas of your life.”
Mark Jason, a junior engineering major said, “The innovation lunch presentation was very informative and I believe that it has put me in the right direction to bring my ideas to life.”
Nicholson himself is behind the Perfect Brownie Pan, a baking pan with a false bottom and grid that provides consumers with a time saving option compared to regular baking pans. The small differentiation in style has led to sell-outs on QVC and branding by As Seen on TV.
Expanding on this, Nicholson conveyed the various avenues a product can take towards successful distinction in the market, from products that provide safety and comfort, to products that save time and allow consumers to be more organized.
Once an entrepreneur has an idea, it is critical to visualize it in corporeal form. “If it is not written down, drawn, laid out, it’s not a real idea,” Nicholson said.
Nicholson also offered insight from his own book ‘The Seeds of Achievement.’ He said, “I talk about this concept called the see-saw principle. Picture a see-saw with a fulcrum underneath. The bottom of the fulcrum is you, the right side is your career and the left side is your personal life.”
Moving on to the focus of the workshop, he said, “It’s very important that whatever product you want to get involved in, you must have a distinct advantage or differentiation to that product. It’s very hard to do.”
Nicholson explained that acquiring a customer base in the early stages of a product’s lifespan can be highly beneficial, “It is in this creation phase that the seeds of your product or service are planted and are in a position to begin growth.”
Michelle Romeo, a freshman undecided business major said, “What I took away from this was, how important it is to make sure that your product is valuable towards not only your customers but those you’re trying to sell to, the companies you’re trying to get to sell your product.”
Throughout the presentation the president often stressed the importance of patience, citing his earlier entrepreneurial failures. Patience, Nicholson stressed, allows the entrepreneur to avoid pitfalls and make clear and concise decisions for the benefit of their company, “You really got to make sure that you are patient with whatever it is you want to do.”