Helena Beard, Founder of China Travel Outbound: Validate your business idea

Tuesday, 12 March 2019

China Travel Outbound is a PR and representation agency which promotes global travel and tourism brands to the Chinese. I started the company in 2013 when I was 43 years old, but it was only after I was made redundant that I started working on it full time in late 2015. We started with nothing and are proud to say that the business now has 3 members of staff in the UK and a further 4 in Beiing. We work with over 20 clients, ranging from Portuguese hotels to London museums to train and sightseeing companies. I have worked in communications roles in travel and tourism for over 20 years, but had no previous experience of the Chinese market. I just saw an opportunity and have had to learn fast.

Helena's Top Tips

•  Validate your business idea before you do anything else. Go and ask people who might be your customers in the future. Use your network. Would they buy it? Would they buy it from you? How much would they pay? And is that sustainable.? But don’t ask your friends or family. Their feedback is invariably biased!
• It is really important to start paying yourself as soon as possible and at a decent level. It is vital for your own morale, but you also don’t really have a business until you’re paying everyone what they are worth. And that includes you.