SPEAKERS
Tony skinner, Tara
Tony skinner 00:02
Hi and welcome to the podcast channel, www.podcastmybusiness.com.au and today we have Tara from little Succers. That is www.littlesuccers.com.au. And Tara, what are little suckers?
Tara 00:22
little suckers little suckers is a online business selling succulents and cactus gifts. And we also help people build their dream terrarium. So, succulents, it’s a it’s a slang word for succulents, which is a plant Ah, for anyone who doesn’t know. Yeah. 
Tony skinner 00:42
Are they are they the ones I used to make tequila?
Tara 00:46
Yes, yes, I believe so. Okay, cacti makes tequila doesn’t that are got Alka you got me there. I don’t know anything about
Tony skinner 00:55
the yellow is the one with a woman and you swallow the worm and it’s most entertaining, but Anyway, yes, yes.
Tara 01:01
Yes, that variety.
Tony skinner 01:05
So what I liked about little suckers is is a great story because why did you start doing and launching little suckers?
Tara 01:13
Yeah, well, I actually have another business called dream and do and dream and do is a creative agency for startups. So I kind of like seven years ago saw there was a little agency gap out there in developing like a really good quality brand for startups. And yeah, so I was, you know, working day in day out working on other people’s businesses and trying to offer a really good brand to them. But at the back of my mind, I always wanted to have another business that was quite clever in its branding approach, so that I could on sell that those ideas and that risk appetite for risk taking to my clients. So I was I’m a I love business. So I’m always thinking of different businesses. But this one came up just a bit of a bit of banter at the desk with a few colleagues. One of my colleagues was trying to find succulents for her house at home and she just couldn’t find any online. And she just said, Oh, we really should start a succulent business online. And I joked around and said, haha, how funny if we call that little suckers because flowers die. And the reason behind that, and I apologize to the owners of little flowers in advance, but little flowers was the key delivery flower delivery business at the time. So my joke was a bit of a rebellious piss take against that. And so by saying little suckers, because that was die, and it was basically just the idea was rough. Literally replacing the idea of giving flowers with succulents because they’re just as beautiful. They last like As long as you can neglect them really. And in terms of business, it was a brilliant idea because with flower businesses, you have to go to the flower market every morning like super early you you lose stock if you don’t sell it forecasting is really hard. And succulents. We could literally just buy them and keep them at our little office while the orders came through so yeah, we we just thought that like the business model made a lot of sense and their little niche that we found nobody was doing it so yeah, we were really quick to get that one to market and it turned out really well.
Tony skinner 03:38
Excellent and talking about a piss take. There’s that wonderful image on the About Us page. Maybe you can tell
Tara 03:45
that everything.
Tony skinner 03:49
The one the one that say big I’m just gonna say a big
Tara 03:53
prayer you can say prick as much as you like, when you’re working at little suckers. That’s why I secretly love it. Yeah, so yep, we you know, we we do take the piece we love all the ponds that we can do with sock sock specifically like 2020 socks. Yeah, I’m needing to get that on a T shirt ASAP. Yeah, and you know brick so like he’s a brick wall after brick. We love bricks. So we just like making people giggle with that and just not taking life too seriously, which is definitely something that we all need more and more. Yeah, so we just I like to I like to shock people and in a safe way
Tony skinner 04:43
Well, I don’t know putting your hand on a cacti is a cacti
Tara 04:48
is Cat. Cat cactus is is plural like more than one and cat size one? Yeah. Great.
Tony skinner 04:57
One. There you go. Yes. So I don’t know whether I want to grab cacti not that one in particular. That’s good life for definitely sack. Yeah And yeah, well on truly. Yeah. So when, how long ago did you launch little Succers? 
Tara 05:15
We launched that in about three years ago now. Right? Yeah.
Tony skinner 05:23
I’m just having a look at your website suckers and bricks There we go. Gotta love it. And so yeah, so I guess would and I’m gonna switch around a little bit so this would be in the way of ambush marketing perhaps yeah
Tara 05:37
I guess you could call it I don’t know I just like to challenge challenge ideas and challenge industries and also challenge the way that something is perceived and branded so just with all my work I look at what everyone’s doing and my first point to coming up with an idea is What if we did the opposite? So it’s not really it’s not completely ambushing flowers. But, you know, they’ve been around for a very long time and we take that gift giving general gesture for granted. It’s just what we do. So I like coming up with something that challenges that. And also just so way, way more sustainable way to give as well like it last. I think it’s about 60% of flowers are actually imported, which is insane. So, you know, growing our own succulent drought resistant, you know, don’t leave don’t need much border at all in Australia, and yeah, you can create some beautiful floral arrangements that just look just as good as flowers. So, yep, you could call it ambush marketing. Go for it.
Tony skinner 06:53
Yeah, I can. I’m gonna ambush you on it. So there you go. All right. And I like this one. The ISO sucks. But unfortunately but looks like you can make your own
Tara 07:06
you can decorate a pot. Yeah, So that is sold out because I saw really does stop so you can see which is the most popular product. They’re going to Melbourne right now. I’m constantly getting messages Wednesdays back in stock because it’s just it’s a good gift to send people in lockdown. You know, a mindful activity, they can customize their own pot plant their own succulent, and yeah, but add a little family member to their household.
Tony skinner 07:40
Well, that’s right, or I can I’m just thinking I can see employees giving one of these to their boss and going Hey, go have this. Yeah, A little subtle dig so to speak.
Tara 07:52
Yeah, yeah, we actually had um, we one thing I love is because it’s a gifting business. I get to read all The messages that people write. And like the they just have so much fun with the puns and like they’re just as creative as we are really. So that’s awesome. But one lady actually contacted me and she said, I want to send the biggest, most ugly prick to a nursing home that really mistreated my grandma recently. And I want it to be anonymous. And I wanted to say this, which was really varied. But oh, I can you know, I didn’t. I just think it’s so cool. All the different people black all the different ways that we can do they can engage with succulents like good and bad and all the like language that goes around it. So yeah, you can send like those glitter bombs, right, but just people send glitter in envelopes to just piss people off. Basically. You know, maybe you want to send like a hate mail kind of gift at this time and it could be a really big prick. 
Tony skinner 09:07
Yeah. Why not? Indeed, from one big prick to another big print?
Tara 09:14
Exactly.
Tony skinner 09:16
Yeah, I love the idea. And yet right cacti and cactuses or cactus. Bloody hard to kill if you just want them every few months. I reckon they’ll last forever.
Tara 09:27
Yeah, that’s right. Actually, if you water that yet, you’ve got to be careful with the water because that’s how they die is if you love them too much and give them too much to drink.
Tony skinner 09:38
But yeah, they’re amazing. Cool. All right. Anything else you’d like to add? Oh,
Tara 09:45
no, no, no, just I’m happy to be here and answer all your questions about precontact.
Tony skinner 09:57
I’m gonna have fun coming up with the title for this one. So I like that’s how I have my phone as I try to be creative the names of podcasts where I can. That’s cool. All right. And look, it’s good to have a successful business that sucks is all that I can say,
Tara 10:16
huh? That’s true. You can have something that’s so successful. Yeah. Yep. haven’t used that one yet. That
Tony skinner 10:28
Oh, thank you very much. Succ cessful um there’s just there’s too many things in my head. I can’t say have any of them. I’m not gonna say anything. All right, look. Thanks very much. Tara is great to have a chat with you. I like I said, I love the business idea. little suckers and I reckon These are great gift ideas. Seriously, I mean, sending out a cactus is so awesome to say sit on this or something like sit on this shipwreck or something. spend all day.
Tara 11:02
I’ll send you a discount code. You can get happy with that.
Tony skinner 11:07
Okay, cool, I think of someone to send it to. All right. Thanks very much, Tara. You’re welcome.
Tara 11:12
All right. See you later.