Make your suppliers your best friends

During our recent Lioness Lean In events in Maputo, Mozambique, we were hearing the inspirational stories of women entrepreneurs who had built successful businesses and a lot of the talk was on sharing the importance of building great supplier relationships. Each of the women we spoke to had encountered their fair share of challenges along their entrepreneurial journeys, but they all spoke about how vital it was to have an engaged supplier network on board. Working with great suppliers who understand the pressure points related to being a startup business is key to getting things done, especially when cash flow can be a challenge. Being able to pick up a phone, have a proactive conversation with a supplier when necessary on such issues as renegotiated payment terms, or quick turnaround on raw material deliveries, is key to success. As entrepreneurs, we always assume that our suppliers are simply interested in the dollars and cents, but often their focus is also on growing their businesses with clients who are with them for the long term too. It’s all about building mutually beneficial supplier partnerships and alliances, and in the world of entrepreneurship, you need all the friends you can get!