A Small Business Interview with Mark Sarpa from Frecklebox
March 3rd, 2010 | Featured,Interviews,Online & Small Business Resources,Small Business,Small Business Tips | No Comments »
Mark Sarpa from Frecklebox took a few minutes out of his busy day to share his thoughts on focused marketing, Dr. Seuss books, and what makes him passionate about what he does everyday. Mark is the CEO of Frecklebox.com, a small business that sells personalized gifts for children.
Tell us about Frecklebox and who you focus on serving?
We are focused on parents and grandparents with children between the ages of one and 10.
How did you get your started selling online?
We are part of a digital printing company which was looking to diversify its business from the fine stationery and corporate marketplace. We had the tools and developed the products to take advantage of what we do well for others.
Where will Frecklebox focus most of its energy in 2010?
Growing the market will be our primary focus in 2010 and we plan on adding more books and additional products in the children’s educational marketplace.
If you had 2 lessons learned from your business that you could pass on to others about selling online, what are those?
The first lesson would be to study more marketing. We think we have great products but sometimes it is tough (and can be expensive) to get your message out there. The second lesson would be to focus on a specific marketplace. I believe the more focused you are the more successful you will be.
What do you see as 2 new trends in your business this year?
The first trend would be more competitors (which is a good thing). Our market is fairly new and still small. As more competitors enter there will be growth for us all. The second trend would be more powerful customization tools. Later in the year we hope to add much more sophisticated tools where people can actually edit the story.
If your business/store could be any movie or movie character, what movie/movie character would it be and why?
That is a tough question. I would say Aladdin because he started out as a street urchin and became a prince. Not to say that a corporate printing company is a low form but if we can transform into a company which changes children’s lives I would think we might have become a prince.
If Frecklebox could have a dream spokesperson for your company who would it be and why?
It would have to be Dr Seuss. He was a pioneer in children’s books and paved the way for the rest of us in the children’s book market. Our HipHopHowie book was actually modeled after many of the Dr Seuss classics.
How do the folks at Frecklebox let loose after a busy day working?
All of us have families so playing with children and making them do their homework makes up our wild and crazy nights.
Do you have any parting thoughts for our readers and the small business community?
In my opinion the most important ingredient in a business’s success is the passion of the person or people running it. When I receive an email from someone that thanks me for helping their child learn how to spell their name it gives me that warm feeling that we all strive for and makes me passionate about bringing better things to the market to make children and parents smile.
