Designers work hard, very hard. Coming out with a new collection, designing it, sewing it, promoting it and then selling it. But unless they are a renowned, it is very hard for them to make it in this profession. Most of them are bartenders and deigners, journalists and designers. Few of them have the good fortune of being simply designers.
But Cercle came about the change this and help designers make a living doing what they love most. Cercle is a crowdfunding app for aspiring designers who allow their own customers to fund and promote the projects they love most. Curious? Let’s let Ayala Meromi Keinan, Co-Founder and CPO of Cercle tell us more about it.
What is the project about?
Cercle brings designers and their communities closer. It gives designers a platform to share the vision of their upcoming collection, giving its clients the opportunity to collaborate helping fund the collection. In return, they receive credit upto twice as much the contribution, and a early peak into the creation process.
How did the idea come about?
More than 10 years ago I established my own brand, GUSTA. Designing and producing is one side of the designer’s world. The other ,and maybe the mostchallenging side, is marketing and making an effort to grow the business from season to season.
Five years ago, when Rothschild Boulevard in Tel Aviv was full of tents and people were protesting, asking for social justice, I started thinking a lot about our community and about the designers role in it . Then, I realized that in order to be a sustainable community and to have sustainable businesses the designers have to work closer with their customers. At that point, Uri Keinan, (co-founder) and me, started developing Cercle.
What is the next step?
We are up and running since July 2016. We have many designers already on board launching in the next couple of months.
CERCLE had so far 3 huge success stories and we are working closely with the designers to create many more. We are now working on our next investment round in order to be able to market this on a larger scale.
3 things you would have liked to know before starting your own business
Starting your business it like jumping into the ocean. You better do it with a lot of enthusiastic and without checking the water too much.
3 tools that help your business and you think every entrepreneur should know about
I think people can help you more than tools. I recommend to flow intelligent, experience and good hearted entrepreneurs, to be part of the ecosystem and to find yourself good mentors.
I really love listening to the podcast “haShavua” , I learn so mach from it.
Your motivating quote
“When you have two alternatives, the first thing you have to do is to look for the third that you didn’t think about, that doesn’t exist.” Shimon Peres