How to build a photography business to sell with Kim Hamblin

Premium Members, click here to access this interview in the premium area.

Kim Hamblin, previously of www.theportraitstudio.co.nz and now www.kimmarie.co of is a newborn, maternity and family photographer based in Christchurch, New Zealand, who recently sold her photography business after achieving a $500k revenue!

Her work is studio-based, adorable, clean, bright, beautifully lit and focussed on her subjects, mostly smiling faces.

Her website is structured to lead potential clients to purchase wall art and albums.

She has a small team working for her, and she's been a solo mum since her son was 15 months old. She's built her successful business without a partner supporting her financially, with child care, home repayments and more.

Looking back through the emails we've exchanged – they go back to 2013, where she wrote saying…

I'm a full-time photographer in Christchurch, this is still my first full year in business, and I love doing what I do but have a long way to go to reach my goals.

In this interview, learn what Kim has done to reach her audacious goals to build a hugely successful photography business with an exit plan to step away after selling her working studio to continue successfully with new owners driving it forward.

Here's some more of what we cover in the interview:

What it was like for Kim to start a new photography business with little financial support
Is full-time photography a sustainable and viable income source today
What Kim would do differently if she were to start over in her photography business
The vital importance of outsourcing if you want to grow your business
How successful is Kim's business today
Hitting a $500k turnover during the pandemic
How to find clients interested in buying your photography business
At what point did Kim think about selling her business
Should you have an exit strategy for your business
Why you need to consider renaming your business name
Should you expect a downturn when changing your business name
Why Kim believes clients don't come to your business for you or your brand
Kim's photography team – what are their roles
Putting a monthly amount aside as a buffer
Kim's role in her photography business
Finding a broker to help sell your business
Determining if your business is a saleable asset
What systems should you implement to have a saleable business
Discussing profit and loss when assessing photography business profitability
Having a broker to market and advertise your business
Broker fees
The finer details of selling a photography business
Dealing with lease arrangements
Biggest fears of potential business buyers and addressing them
Contracts and settlement dates
Non-compete clauses
The usual driving force to buy a photography business
Can you set up any kind of business and build it to sell
Kim's advice for building a photography business to sell
Is it vital to remove the photographer from the business to make it saleable
What's next for Kim and her career

What’s on Offer for Premium Members

If you’re a premium member, you should have received an email with links to your version of this interview – the full length and more revealing version where you hear the absolute best tips and advice from every guest.

If you’re on the fence about becoming a premium member, join with the $1 trial today and get access to the FULL interviews each week, get access to an amazing back catalogue of interviews and ALL future interviews delivered automatically to your phone or tablet.

Plus special member-only interviews.

The success is not in the numbers though. Yes, they're amazing for me to think about, but it was my team who are the biggest success, because, they did it. – Kim Hamblin

You'll also receive access to the members-only Secret Facebook Group where you can connect with other Premium Members and interview guests to help, support and motivate you to take ideas you hear in each episode and put them into action. There are also FB live video tutorials, role-play interviews and special live interviews happening in the group. You will not find more friendly, more motivated, caring and sharing photographers online.

Seriously, that's not all.

In addition to everything above, you'll get access to and instructions on forming or joining a MasterMind Group with other premium members. These groups are super motivating, make you accountable and build friendships with other pro photographers with similar motives to you – to build a more successful photography business.

What is your big takeaway?

Following this interview, I’d love to know if you're taking anything away from what Kim shared. Is there something you heard that excited or motivated you to the point where you thought, yeah, I'm going to do that! If so, let me know by leaving your thoughts in the comments below, let me know what your takeaways were, what you plan to implement in your business as a result of what you heard in today's episode.

People do not go to a portrait studio because of you. They go because of them. They want something meaningful for themselves. – Kim Hamblin

If you have any questions that I missed, a specific question you’d like to ask Kim or if you just want to say thanks for coming on the show, feel free to add them in the comments area below.

iTunes Reviews and Shout-outs

Each week I check for any new iTunes reviews and it's always a buzz to receive these… for a couple of reasons.

Firstly, it's confirmation that I'm on the right track with the interviews and that they really are helping you improve your photography business. That's awesome!

Secondly, iTunes is the biggest search engine when it comes to podcasts and it's your reviews and ratings that help other photographers find PhotoBizX. More listeners mean more interviews and ultimately a better show.

If you have left a review in the past, thank you! If you haven't and you'd like to, head to https://photobizx.com/itunes and you can leave some honest feedback and a rating which will help both me and the show and I'll be sure to thank you on the show and add a link to your website or blog if you let me know the URL of your website and your name.

Any extra income that comes in the business I'll generally hire someone. Because my time is more important than increasing my income. – Kim Hamblin

Alternatively, if you've left a review for PhotoBizX and are looking for more backlinks to help your SEO, leave a review for the new Photography Xperiment Podcast and email me your keywords or keyword phrase and where you'd like me to link to.

Another great way to get a backlink to your site is to send a video testimonial. It doesn't need to be fancy and your phone will be perfect. Click record and tell me how PhotoBizX has made a difference to you and your photography business.

Links to people, places and things mentioned in this episode:

Kim Hamblin Website

Kim Hamblin on Facebook

Kim Hamblin on Instagram

The Portrait Studio Website

Profit First: Transform Your Business from a Cash-Eating Monster to a Money-Making Machine

For anyone who wants to hire a person, create the systems. Do it once and you don't have to redo it over and over. And then a new person can come in and they can learn it. – Kim Hamblin

Thank you!

Thanks again for listening and thanks to Kim for coming on to share her thoughts, ideas and experience on what's it's like to build an incredibly successful photography business and sell it as a going concern to a new, non-photographer owner.

I really do believe that every business should have an exit plan and why not have it built to sell. – Kim Hamblin

If you have any suggestions, comments or questions about this episode, please be sure to leave them below in the comment section of this post, and if you liked the episode, please share it using the social media buttons you see at the bottom of the post!

That’s it for me this week, hope everything is going well for you in life and business!

Thanks and speak soon
Andrew