Welcome!
Welcome to this e-commerce business case study! Today, we had the pleasure of interviewing Norman Teo of BOVEM. I can tell you honestly that our conversation was quite interesting! We hope you enjoy it, and find this inspiring as you seek to start or grow your own online brand.
Interview with Norman Teo
Thank you for joining us for this e-commerce business success story! We’d like to start by getting an understanding of your backstory. How did you come to own your business?
BOVEM was founded by Lydon Ong and Norman Teo, who started the company with the insight that a large proportion of men were using improper grooming tools to groom below the waist. In the first six months of its inception, the brand was dedicated to solving that problem exclusively. Since then, BOVEM identified more importance in uncovering opportunities from the grooming status quo. This inspired a “balls up” strategy to take on different niches within men’s grooming — beyond just the waist — to offer precision-grade products from the beard to the nose.
Terrific! Now, this article is about profiling successful e-commerce businesses. So – can you share your top 3 keys to running a successful online brand?
- Continuously innovating and expanding product lines to cater to different niches within the target market.
- Engaging and educating customers through social media platforms such as Instagram and TikTok.
- Ensuring sustainable business practices and partnering with initiatives that align with the brand’s values, such as planting trees with One Tree Planted and delivering with carbon-neutral shipping methods with Shippit.
Excellent. Now, I’m sure it hasn’t always been that easy. Can you tell a story about one challenge, setback, or mistake that you’ve had to overcome on the road to success? How can others learn from your mistakes?
One challenge that BOVEM faced was logistical and advertising issues when expanding into different regions. The team had to immerse themselves into the habits and values of consumers in the market to understand their spending patterns and refine their advertising messages. Other businesses looking to expand into different regions can benefit from taking the time to understand the culture and demographic of consumers in those areas to better tailor their messaging.
Thanks for that. Now – we want to know what’s next! What new initiatives are you rolling out at your business and what results are you hoping to see?
BOVEM is focused on expanding its brand presence globally, mainly in the US and Canada, where personal grooming is more openly discussed and adopted. The company also aims to continue catering to and double down in the men’s grooming niche, which could extend to other innovative verticals and complementary products being offered in the near future.
Sounds exciting! Any final words of advice for our readers?
We founders believe that there is still room to grow within the nascent category of men’s grooming, and advise other businesses to continuously innovate and expand their product lines, engage and educate customers through social media platforms, and ensure sustainable business practices.
Brilliant! We want to thank you for participating in today’s interview. Hopefully our readers agree that there is a lot to be learned from your brand’s story. What links can our readers use to follow along with your journey?
Readers can visit BOVEM’s website at https://bovem.co and follow the brand on social media platforms such as Instagram and TikTok.
