Nik Mirkovic and Alex Tomic are the co-founders of HiSmile, an ecommerce Oral Cosmetics brand. Launching in December 2014 with just $20,000 in start-up capital, the HiSmile brand
recorded its biggest week in sales and racked in approximately $2 million dollars in
December.
To date, HiSmile has achieved a turnover exceeding $50 million and has plans to reach $100 million by the ending of 2018. The evolution of the brands success can be attributed to its targeted social media marketing
strategy and focus on influencers, getting the tick of approval from some of the biggest
names in Hollywood such as Kylie Jenner and Connor McGregor. This customer centric approach is what sets the business apart from its main competitors
and over the years has seen the same customers coming back. Nik and Alex told me that their passion is to challenge expectations and they follow this passion through everything that they do.
I am glad to have interviewed them and share their story with you.
1. Humble Beginnings
Q: How did you get started and what or who inspired and empowered you to?
We launched in December 2014, with $20,000 AUD saved up. We went to market with our teeth whitening kit and decided to send our kit to Australian based influencers to promote our product and brand. We were inspired by our passion of challenging expectations and we felt that the Oral Cosmetic Industry lacked change and was the perfect challenge for us.
Q: What unique and creative strategies if any did you use when you were first getting started?
We aggressively tackled influencer marketing, as we felt that was the place to secure under-priced attention. With no budget for marketing to start out it was important that we were as tactical and resourceful as possible.
2. Mindset
Q: What mindset distinguished you from others who were doing the same thing? How did you develop it?
We’ve always had the mindset that we are running a marathon not a sprint which meant that we’d always play for the long term. Short term gain is good however we’ve always made decisions for the long term as we felt it was a more sustainable strategy especially when looking to build a brand rather than just a business. A lot of people early on try to look for the quick sale as opposed to building a brand that people care about.
3. What is your definition of success?
Success for us is always having something to strive for. The moment you lose a purpose or aim for what you are doing is the moment you feel unfulfilled and unsuccessful.
4. Failure
Q: What do you think is the main reason why some people face failure when going after their vision?
They either don’t have the skills required to reach their vision, or they get complacent with where they’re at.
5. What is the best piece of advice you have received or came across and would like to share with everyone?
Don’t learn from just one person, instead broaden your horizon and learn from everyone, everything and every experience. If you just learn from the one person you’ll only become the second best version of that person, rather than the best version of yourself.
To view their work, visit https://us.hismileteeth.com
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