Sheena Cameron and Louise Dempsey, S & L Publishing Ltd

Sheena Cameron and Louise Dempsey, S & L Publishing Ltd

Teachers turned publishers create a thriving business out of books.

Sheena Cameron and Louise Dempsey are experienced teachers with a passion for literacy. They saw a gap in the market for an expert guide to support primary and middle school teachers in planning and delivering an effective writing programme. The result was The Writing Book. It was self-published – and an immediate success. Now what?

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The challenge

Sheena and Louise set up a company – S & L Publishing. At the

same time, they were busy running workshops to train teachers

in their methods. Their baby business had already expanded to

Australia but they were starting to feel stretched.

The overall venture rapidly became very complex with

offshore printing, international logistics and the associated

complications of tax. They faced the classic founder’s dilemma,

where an initial burst of success takes the entrepreneur away

from what he or she loves doing (and is good at).

They talked to Frank, and our advisers saw two opportunities:

1. Monetise the different aspects of their business.

2. Focus on the aspects that drive the most value.

The goal: To create a business model that would enable Sheena

and Louise to focus on what they enjoy (i.e. improving literacy

outcomes) without worrying about the money.