Ooh La Laa

We’ll find out what made them decide to start their own business, how they got it off the ground, the obstacles they’ve overcome and the barriers they still face. We’ll look at their hopes and aspirations for the future, and then, in six months time, we’ll go back and find out how they’re getting on.

Our first profile could hardly be any more recent: Elena Souto’s Ooh La Laa is just one week old.

Name: Elena Souto
Age: 26
Business: Ooh La Laa
Type of business: Lingerie for the bigger busted lady
Start date: September 2002

When did you decide to start your own business?
When I left Enfield County School 10 years ago, I knew I wanted to start my business. I was determined to work for myself and set my own challenges. It was just a case of finding the right idea and getting the necessary skills.

Tell us about Ooh La Laa
Ooh La Laa provides quality top brand lingerie for the bigger busted lady. Our products are available by mail order from our catalogue or via our website (www.oohlalaa.com). We also offer a gift service so that people can buy our goods as presents for other people.

Was it your first business idea?
No, I’m half-Spanish and thought of using my bilingual skills to start up in translation. I also looked at opening a coffee shop, but my heart wasn’t fully in it, so it never happened.

So how did you get the idea for Ooh La Laa?
As someone with big boobs I know how hard it can be get pretty lingerie in big sizes. The deciding moment was probably when I went to Mexico and saw all these women bursting out of their underwear. I realised this was a huge problem, both at home and abroad, so I thought, yeah, why not?

I then went to my local business link in Enfield and enrolled for a number of courses. I did an introductory business course to see if I was suited to running a business, then one on sales and advertising, and one on writing a business plan.

The courses were really helpful, and at just £10 each, were great value. But I found the people I met just as useful as the courses themselves; everybody is in the same boat and you can share advice and use each other for inspiration. My friends have all been really supportive, but only people going through the same thing can fully appreciate your concerns.

I also spoke to other businesses for advice and joined a number of online forums to meet fellow entrepreneurs.

What did you do next?
The next step was to write a business plan. A session with one of the Business Link advisors helped with this and I also bought a copy of Palo Alto’s Business Plan software.

How did you raise the startup costs?
I got a £5000 interest free loan from Business Link , I sold my car, used my savings and borrowed some money of my mum. My husband is also continuing to work full-time to help support me.

What about the banks?
I got rejected for a business loan by one major bank. They didn’t seem interested in me and didn’t believe in the business. But there was no way that was going to deter me, as I’d already done my research by then and had the backing of Business Link who’d took the time to listen to my idea properly.

Being rejected by the bank isn’t the end of the world and didn’t make me change a thing.

What other help did you get?
None really. I joined the Business Link mentoring service as part of securing the loan and simply researched anything else I needed to know, myself.

I registered Ooh La Laa as a limited company myself to save money. I didn’t know how to do it, but just read up and taught myself. It’s totally unnecessary to pay anyone to do this for you.