Men’s grooming a winner for Will

A twist of fate and some wise words were all it took for young entrepreneur Will On to kick-start a business in retail distribution.

The 24-year-old stumbled across the product range ‘Every Man Jack’ while on holiday in the United States, and thought the dedicated men’s bathroom range would be the perfect match for the modern Australian male.

He is now the sole Australian distributor after striking a deal with David Jones.

Mr On juggles his new gig with a full-time management consultant position at Deloitte, working on his new business and often holding meetings with the San Francisco-based cosmetics company after hours.

“The time difference works out really well because it allows you to work at night.”

“It’s no fuss, what you need and nothing else,” he says of the modestly-priced product range that includes soaps, shampoo and shaving cream as well as facial wash and sun protection.

While the idea to bring the product to local shores was Mr On’s own, motivation from a close friend gave him the drive to take action. “He started up his own business doing distribution sourcing [for] bath and beauty products, so he provided me with the inspiration to look for something else outside of work,” he says.

Mr On’s co-workers at Deloitte also offered valuable advice. “Not everyone is going to have all the skills [to run a business],” he adds.

According to research group IBISWorld men in Australia are expected to spend $48.4 million on cosmetics in 2009-10, a jump of more than 20 per cent in spending since the early 1990s.

“The past decade has seen a huge change in the customer composition of Australia’s beauty and fashion industries, with men becoming an increasingly important audience,” IBISWorld General Manager (Australia) Robert Bryant says.

Mr On believes the Every Man Jack products are a “masculinised” version of the female products blokes have already been using behind closed bathroom doors for years.

“Guys use what has been given to them. They’re quite habitual so once they get their hands on something and go, ‘Yeah, this is good stuff,’ they’ll keep using it.”

Working full time and developing the business on the side has been tough, says Mr On, but he anticipates the long-term benefits will be worth it. “The return on investment in starting a business is so much higher in the long run than putting money in to property or the share market,” he adds.

Will’s advice to anyone thinking about starting a business is to choose an area they are passionate about. “From a career point of view, it definitely [helps] doing something that you like and what you’re good at.”

Visit www.everymanjack.com.au to find out more.