Nikki Pretorius is the Founder of Whiskey & Tea, which is a Sydney-based company providing logos, branding, and web design.
Helping small business owners since 2018, Whiskey & Tea’s mission is for their clients to stand out from their competition with on-point branding and websites that are super intuitive and well-designed.
To learn more about Whiskey & Tea, visit their website here.
Here we sit down with Nikki, to know a bit more about her journey as an entrepreneur.
Q. What inspired you to become an entrepreneur?
Nikki: Designing for big-name brands for an agency in the USA, I realized that there were a lot of small businesses who needed professional help; however, most businesses couldn’t afford the big agency asking price. I understood that not all businesses need a complex full suite solution for their marketing and design needs. They needed help to take their business to the next step on a modest budget. This is the space that Whiskey & Tea operates in, the in-between before a company hits the big times.
Q. How did you get started?
Nikki: Coming from the land of bourbon and ice tea in South Carolina, my dad would make hot toddies, which is hot tea with a shot of whiskey, to fix what ails you. It was those fond childhood memories that inspired me to come up with the name Whiskey & Tea. I want to fix what ails people in the design world.
To get my business started, I approached my friends and acquaintances who owned businesses and asked them to give me a chance to design for them at a heavily discounted price. The moment I delivered my product successfully, I asked for referrals which they were more than happy to give. Word of mouth took care of the rest.
Q. What was your biggest startup challenge? What steps did you take to overcome it? What did you learn?
Nikki: The biggest challenge was learning to let go, as I can’t do everything myself. It’s good to find the resources for when you might need help and practical shortcuts. For example, it is easy to spend hours designing social media posts each week; however, by using templates and reusing content helped me to save time through my work week.
Q. What is the Most Memorable Thing You’ve Done Since you Started your Business?
Nikki: I remember this event like it was yesterday. I designed a website for a window cleaning business, and the very week it launched, they had enquiries come in immediately and have been booked out since.
Q. What are your top 3 favourite online apps, tools, or resources and what do you love about them?
Nikki: I think Canva is a great free tool for business owners, especially for designing social media campaigns if you don’t have the budget to hire a designer. Their templates include a branding toolkit with your logo, colors, and fonts so all your social media looks consistent and matches your brand.
Snapseed is my favorite photo editing app with outstanding features to make your photos really pop and consistent on your social media platform. Also, I love using Later for scheduling social media posts. It’s super easy and keeps me organized.
Q. In terms of legacy, what is the mark you’d like to leave on the world?
Nikki: I’m known for being super friendly and for my big smile. I enjoy laughing and making others laugh. Therefore, this quote from Jim Stengel sums up what I would want my legacy to be: “Our legacy is how we spend our time and who we spend it with.” My friends and family are super important to me, and I would love for them to look back at the memories we shared.
Q. In one sentence, what’s the best advice you’d give to someone just starting out on their entrepreneurial journey?
Nikki: Have confidence and know you will make mistakes because all you can do is learn, move on and not repeat the same mistake twice.
To keep up to date with Nikki and her journey, connect with her on Instagram.
