How to Build a Billion-Dollar Business

CHAPTER 11THE CREDIT CRUNCH NO-ONE SAW COMING

The success of the Ricky Ponting campaign came with some unintended consequences. After all, it’s impossible to double your sales virtually overnight without it affecting other aspects of the business. The demand created by the campaign affected every area of the business: production, warehousing, logistics, finance, sales, marketing and merchandising. We were not unprepared, but we were taken aback by the success. We had to rapidly scale up to meet the demand, which required a significant financial investment. We were already investing everything we had in the growth of the business, and had always prioritised growth over profit, but this incredible demand for products put a strain on our cash flow.

The Global Financial Crisis (GFC) of 2007 didn't help matters. The GFC was a severe worldwide economic event triggered by the collapse of the US housing market. It led to a banking and credit crisis, widespread foreclosures, and a worldwide recession, which meant banks simply couldn't access money to loan their customers. Governments everywhere implemented large-scale interventions to stabilise financial markets and prevent further economic downturn.

The headlines in the news each day were terrifying:

• Financial Meltdown: Wall Street in Crisis as Lehman Brothers Collapse’
• Economic Tsunami: Global Markets Plunge’
• Stock Market Crash: Worst Crisis Since the Great Depression’.

I tried not to let these doomsday headlines get to me, so I ...