Charles Moscoe

Charles Moscoe, an angel investor, writer, and entrepreneur, has seen a great deal of success in his business ventures.

With 17 years of experience as a venture capitalist, Charles has invested in fintech companies and has had a range of exits during his time as an investor.

Charles is also a marketing expert, with specific focus on media buys and SEO management, and provides his marketing knowledge and consulting services in particular to a beauty company located in Miami, Florida.

He earned his education through the Schulich School of Business at York University, where he studied on a full scholarship.

As a writer, Charles Moscoe focuses on the topics of health, beauty and business, and has had his writings featured in multiple high profile publications. He has been featured in Entrepreneur Inc., Huffington Post, and Forbes. He also regularly contributes his knowledge and opinions to Seeking Alpha and The Street.

Charles Moscoe is an avid golfer in his free time, who also previously won the Duke of Edinburgh Golf tournament.

Where did the idea for your career come from?

The company name originated from the initials of Cedar Valley, a town that I grew up in Southern Ontario.

What does your typical day look like and how do you make it productive?

I typically wake up at 7 a.m. and walk my dog, Mushroom – he’s an English Bulldog. And then take my daughter to school. I continue from there to the gym and then back home for breakfast and get down to work. Nothing comes easy in this world, but hard work pays off.

How do you bring ideas to life?

My specialty is finding the right people that can successfully execute on ideas. I quickly assemble a team, covering content marketing, product design and then source a manufacturer. You can never start marketing too early. I’ve invented countless products. My most successful was an eye serum that happened to be featured by Dr. Oz. Following that feature, sales took off and I never looked back. That was my first successful exit as well. Skin care business is great.

What’s one trend that excites you?

Work from home is the game changer trend and this will continue for the rest of our lifetimes. I see it only strengthening. In order to capitalize on this trend, it’s best to focus on creating products that enhance the work from home experience and home office productivity. Being on trend is the most important part of product invention.

What is one habit of yours that makes you more productive as an entrepreneur?

I’m a perfectionist. I also use my products myself and make sure they work well. I don’t sell anything that I can’t be a personal advocate of.

What advice would you give your younger self?

Patience. Don’t chase deals – follow trends. Make sure you’re in the right market, always. And when something is selling well, don’t get complacent. It’s nearly impossible to revive a dead product.

Tell us something that’s true that almost nobody agrees with you on.

Don’t pay attention to what others say about you. When you’re successful you draw detractors, just keep your head down and work.

As an entrepreneur, what is the one thing you do over and over and recommend everyone else do?

Follow market trends to make sure that I’m on the right trajectory and have the right product market fit.

What is one strategy that has helped you grow your business?

Making and keeping customers happy. Word of mouth and a great reputation is still the best marketing strategy.

What is one failure you had as an entrepreneur, and how did you overcome it?

I’ve had many failures as an entrepreneur. That’s part of the learning process. Mostly accepting that you will fail most of the time. Just make sure that your wins are big and that’s how you overcome the routine losses.

What is one business idea that you’re willing to give away to our readers?

People are spending more time at home, so any service that caters to them has a high probability of success. I think housekeeping is ripe for disruption. And somebody could make it into a compelling subscription type SaaS.

What is the best $100 you recently spent? What and why?

I just got some new basketball shoes and they are super comfortable. You can’t underestimate the importance of staying comfortable when you’re on your feet all day every day working.

What is one piece of software or a web service that helps you be productive?

iOS. I do most work on my iPhone as I’m nearly always on the road. Mobile technology leads me to be super productive wherever I am as I travel frequently for work.

What is the one book that you recommend our community should read and why?

Secrets of Closing the Sales by Zig Ziglar. Selling is the most important skill for an entrepreneur. So you better learn how to sell things. That means learning sales actions and language. This book is a great start.

What is your favorite quote?

“Compassion is the basis of morality.”
― Arthur Schopenhauer

Key Learnings:

• Focus on the customer. If you have happy customers, you will have no shortage of business. This is the cheapest and most effective form of marketing.
• Make sure that you follow trends closely. It’s almost impossible to have a successful business when your product is declining in demand. For instance, you cannot sell DVDs right now, no matter how great your store and service is. It’s just an uphill battle.
• Don’t underestimate marketing, and start early as content takes time to index. You can never start content marketing too early.