We spoke to Class of 2019 graduate Zhimin Zhang (Co-Founder of Veeego) about her start-up and advice for others interested in starting a business.
Can you tell us about your current role at Veeego?
Veeego (trading as ShuMei) is a Liverpool-based start-up providing sustainable solutions to grocery delivery. We work with local businesses to offer community group-buying services for their products and services.
We offer lower prices, achieved by helping people living in the same community/neighbourhood buy in bulk together and saving delivery trips by delivering to collection points rather than individual homes.
ShuMei started by targeting Chinese and Asian students and residents who live in the UK before we expand to other groups. At this stage, customers place their orders individually or collectively through our WeChat Mini Program (Mini Program is a ‘sub-application’ within the WeChat ecosystem).
In the future, a full app will be developed to make ShuMei more accessible to a wider group of users.
In November 2020, ShuMei won the Young Innovator Award 2020/21, granted by Innovate UK. Under the mentorship of Innovate UK, ShuMei started trading in February 2021 and has generated £100K+ in revenue for its first year of launch. We have also been supported by the University of Liverpool and Santander University.
How did the idea for your business come about?
The idea of ShuMei derives from my and my cofounder’s experiences as international graduates during COVID-19. When the pandemic first hit the UK, we lost access to fresh produce. It was very challenging for us to purchase oriental ingredients.
To tackle this problem, ShuMei aims to help international students and residents access familiar fresh produce, bring them the taste of home and create a more convenient purchase process.
How was the process of securing a start-up visa? Do you have any advice for others going through this process?
The process of securing a start-up visa is very straightforward and the university website provides a clear timeline here. I would suggest preparing as soon as possible - start conducting your market research, talk to your friends, professors and even potential customers about your business idea and look for local business support.
How do you market your business and which tactics have been most successful?
Our business model allows us to recruit the most suitable candidates to be our community representatives and use their connections to market our platform. ShuMei also partners with local businesses (who are our collection points and business customers) to promote among their customers.
At this stage, we mainly use WeChat to market ourselves, for example, posting news, campaigns and products on our official page. However, the most effective method has been offline campaigns, such as the Halloween pumpkin carving competition and free cake giveaway for International Women’s Day.
What advice would you give to students of graduates who would like to become entrepreneurs?
Don’t be afraid to look for support and advice. Anyone who has been on this journey knows how hard it is to get it started - people will be more than happy to help out. For example, when I first had the idea of starting my business, I participated in the University’s Sticky Campus’ Competition and got in touch with The Women's Organisation to get some mentorship and support.
You could also join University societies focused on entrepreneurship. Get your first minimum viable product out quickly and see how the market reacts to it - gather as much customer feedback as possible and continue experimenting.