Fudge it all

Tanya had a brilliant idea for doubling our money from a combined total of R17 (my contribution being R9). We were going to be selling fudge. I'm not one for sweets, and selling them is quite daunting to me. The idea of being "those people" is just a tad unappealing.

How can one sell pieces of fudge for 50c and still be proud and self assured, that was the question. Our initial idea of selling to a group of hokey players that came to town for a clinic over the Easter weekend did not work out the way we planned, so on Saturday morning we took to the streets. We were selling fudge door to door. Guess what, people still like fudge, and our return on investment was way more than 100%

R9 was turned into R26.75

What I have learned is that people want to buy a packet of things (when it comes to sweets). Somehow paying 50c seems to be harder than paying R5. And if you will be selling, you will need to learn to deal with rejection quickly.

Barbra told Tanya:"In sales there is only two answers from the customer: yes and no. From the salesperson there is only one answer: thank you." This simple quote got new meaning for me this weekend. One lady made quite the spectacle of telling her husband how expensive our product seemed to her, even though we were selling our fudge at R2 less than the shops. This should be a case of so what, one person's ripoff is another person's bargain, and yet my initial reaction was to feel hurt and angry at the women for not wanting our fudge and being so rude about it. I'm beginning the realize that it is our reaction to people being really rude and unfriendly to us that determines how far you will go in sales. It's easy to stay motivated when every potential customer turns into a sale, it's a different kettle of fish if someone tells you to sod off.

Our fudge venture was so successful that we decided to try a tuck shop during the study break at the hostel where Tanya is staying. 30 Minutes every Wednesday. Only 3 products will be available: fudge, coke, and chips.