Josh Raynor - Cassette Creative Ltd

This case study will be of particular interest to entrepreneurs in their early stages of development. It shines a light on the value of receiving mentor support to work out and refine your plan and strategy for success.

Josh Raynor is a young entrepreneur positively fizzing with ideas.  He was recommended, and approached, Dorset Business Mentors in 2019 as a pre-start. Following an initial assessment the team approached Mentor Ross Nichols who volunteers some of his time through our programme. Ross was in the Royal Engineers for 26 years and his passion is helping entrepreneurs succeed. You can read his LinkedIn profile here.

Since 2019 Josh has worked hard and diligently with Ross’ support and guidance. Indeed Ross was so impressed with Josh’s Cap Pac design that he encouraged Josh to consider submitting it for awards. The result? We are delighted to share the news that the Internationally recognised Muse Creative Awards awarded Gold and a Silver to CAP PAC in the Marketing & Promotional categories.

So how did this come about? Read on to discover the story direct from Josh and his mentor Ross:

Josh, please introduce us to your enterprise

Cassette Creative Ltd is a multi-international award-winning creative design and marketing company. We specialise in interactive and sustainable design, creating and innovating products, packaging and finding new and exciting applications for eco-friendly materials and processes. We are constantly looking at ways to improve the event-goers experience, with useful and exciting products that are great branded promotional tools and help make events ever more vibrant and colourful.  We specialise in second use packaging, as we believe in delivering a product inside a product.

I developed the CAP PAC in the early part of 2019 whilst in the first C-19 lockdown. I originally had planned to launch our DUNK CHAIR product, an eco-friendly, recyclable and biodegradable cardboard pop up chair, which had been designed for festivals and events, but obviously due to Covid we had to put this on hold. Given the time, I set myself the challenge of creating a promotional product what had multiple uses, produced out of a flat piece of card, cheap to produce and deliver, and fundamentally sustainable. The outcome from this was the CAP PAC product, designed to raise brand awareness at events, whilst offering multiple fun, interactive and useful products for the consumer. It is a Sign which aides cheering for your team with two detachable Sun Visors so you don’t miss out on any of the action! The sign also has a second use of being a two drink carrier, helping you to get a round more easily. We also have an option with removable coaster which can be used as coupons. Each product fits around each other, ensuring no material is wasted, which in turn helps with reducing production waste and lowering unit cost. Offering various uses for the product increases the uptake, as different event goers may be interested in different elements, in turn widening the appeal and giving brands a bigger visual impact at the event and beyond. 

Josh, what inspired you to become an entrepreneur? 

I want to create, to have the freedom to design and work on projects I genuinely believe in. That I feel do some level of good, which I can look back at with pride. More than anything I hope that becoming an entrepreneur to build a work life around life. A work life that facilitates travel and exploration. More recently I wish to help contribute to the global efforts of creating a more sustainable future. Not only do I wish my product and services to be focused on being eco-friendly, but I would also like them to be enjoyed. I am driven by the notion that it is possible to create products that are not just fundamentally sustainable, but ones that do more and bring joy. Whether that more for a business, more for the consumer or more for our environment.

At what point did you seek the support of a mentor?

I originally sought support when I was looking to develop and launch a utility backpack tailored to the travelling market. At this point I had little insight into how to start or run a business. Back then it was difficult to even know where to start and what needed to be done.

How has your mentor supported you?

 Having Ross as my mentor, and the support he has given, has been vital in the evolution and realisation of my business. When I originally began the process of being mentored, I approached Dorset Business Mentors which a much different project in mind. Being able to meet with Ross every so often really helped ground me and establish what my USP was, opposed to what my brand, business and products UPS were, which in turn gave me the focus I needed to develop my new and more original products. In one our first meeting he said to “this might be the product that turns into a business but if it’s not, you’ll learn so much along the way and be ready for the next one” and he could not have been more right. He has assisted me through the whole process for protecting my ideas all the way to advertising and bring the product to market and the help is still on going.

With my initial backpack project, looking back now I can see how naïve I was, but Ross’s guidance allowed me to pursue the backpack idea and work through the steps of bringing a new product to market. Despite nothing coming from that project, it gave me the opportunity to organically learn the process. Ross has been brilliant at asking me the difficult questions and putting me on the spot, which has been challenging and sobering at time but has forced me find the answers which in turn has helped me form a much more rounded idea, that I not only feel is a more original and feasible, but one that fits me and my skillset perfectly.”  

Over recent weeks to what area have you focussed your attention?

Over the course of about a month, we have put together a business plan. We had a zoom meeting to outline and discuss the business plan. After this I went away a completed as many sections as I could on my own. We then had a back and forth where Ross would make suggestions on what else should be included and what could be taken out, we polished my business idea and refined my plan of action and strategy. Ross sent me over some useful resources as well as talking me through how to do financial planning as I didn’t know where to start.

Ross, can you offer us your perspective on your mentor relationship with Josh? 

Josh is naturally creative and is employed as a professional designer – he is in the right career for him.  He is constantly coming up with new product design ideas.  His first idea was a modular backpack system to solve a problem he had experienced first-hand.  He realised the back-back design was a challenge too far at this stage so turned his attention to something smaller and more achievable.  He learned a lot from this ‘failure’, which has equipped him well to pursue other product designs.  He started with one new packaging product and developed an ever expanding range of products that make clever use of the packaging – this is his genius.  I was so impressed with Cap Pac that I suggested he enter a design competition.  I was thrilled, but not that surprised, when he won a Gold and Silver award at the Muse International Creative design awards.

If you are an entrepreneur in the early stages we hope this case study has offered an insight into the value of mentor support. All our Mentors are volunteers who are selected and trained to mentor in confidence, following the professional code of ethics. Our programme mission is to offer high quality and affordable mentoring to owners of business in Dorset at all stages of development, and we are able to do this thanks to funding and sponsorship and our mentors generously giving their time without charge. To learn more about the service we offer you please do visit our Home and Insights pages. To request a mentor please fill out the form on our enquiry form here and we will be in touch to explain the process and how we identify a mentor with the experience to benefit you and your business.