In this article, we’ll get to know Samara better and gain insights into her approach to Amazon selling.
I’m thrilled to bring you an interview with someone I’ve admired for a long time, who has helped countless people succeed in the Amazon game. Meet Samara, also known as Amazon FBA Like A Boss. What makes her story so interesting is not only that she’s a successful Amazon seller on her own, but that she’s also generously shared her knowledge and expertise with others on their own online selling journeys.
Topic Rundown:
- Who is Samara?
- Where is she currently?
- What is the situation of the business she runs while coaching?
- What are the common mistakes and behaviors of beginners in Amazon?
- What is the ideal situation to start an Amazon FBA business?
- What does her coaching program teach about interest in loans?
- What would be her advice for mothers or family women that want to start their own Amazon FBA journey?
- What type of mindset helped her reached the heights that her career has gone?
Who is Samara?
Samara or also known as FBA Like A Boss, is a highly successful Amazon seller with nine years of experience in the e-commerce trade. In recent years, she has shifted her focus to coaching others in FBA, Arbitrage, and wholesale on Amazon, using her vast knowledge and expertise to help others succeed and reach the heights that she had once before.
Before pursuing her career in e-commerce, Samara worked as a housing manager for a local authority, where she developed important management skills that she still applies today. Samara’s passion for entrepreneurship led her to begin selling homemade items on eBay. Though she was netting £500 to £1,000, she knew that it wasn't enough to meet her financial goals. She realized that Amazon FBA offered greater opportunities for expanding her business. By taking advantage of FBA's order fulfillment services, Rachel could free up time to concentrate on product creation and sourcing. The result was a thriving e-commerce business that allowed Rachel to achieve the financial success she had been dreaming of.
Despite facing unique challenges as a neuro-diverse individual. Samara has demonstrated that with determination and hard work, no matter the obstacle, may it be external or internal, anything is possible, no matter your circumstances. Her business was a Phoenix out of the ashes, reborn and better than ever.
Where is she currently?
Samara’s journey as an entrepreneur has been a mix of triumphs and setbacks, though many of these were due to her own choices. At times, she felt it necessary to take a backseat and savor the benefits that financial independence brought her. It is very important to remember that constantly pursuing growth and scaling your business can become an addiction, it can run your whole life. It's essential to maintain balance in life and work.
Over eight years, Samara’s business achieved a turnover of £3,000,000. As she transitioned into coaching, she then realized she found the potential for even greater earnings in her coaching career. This is taboo to admit, but frankly, she has worked far harder in her coaching business than she ever did in her Amazon FBA business.
What is the situation of the business she runs while coaching?
Her efforts between the business and her coaching are mostly 50/50, but she does admit that there will be times when she’ll put more effort and money behind one over the other, depending on the seasonality.
She has a team running the business, and her husband runs the Amazon FBA operations, which allows her to step into her zone of expertise, which is coaching. It’s a family business, a family legacy business. Her husband comes from a corporate background and has helped tremendously in their business, though most of his time and energy is used to packaging because surprisingly, they do not use a prep center, her husband is their prep center.
She still finds time to source herself because she believes that it is important to stay abreast and ahead of any policy changes. She ensures that her skills are kept up to date and practiced, lest they lose their edge.
What are the common mistakes and behaviors of beginners in Amazon?
One of the most common behaviors she finds relates to mindset – specifically, the difference between a scarcity mindset and an abundant mindset. Right when she started coaching, she received over 2,000 direct messages in just one month. Many of these messages were from people who had been watching YouTube videos and listening to so-called gurus, who often claimed that FBA was over-saturated to make any real money. These types of messages reflect a scarcity mindset, which assumes that there are limited opportunities and resources available. In contrast, an abundant mindset recognizes that opportunities are abundant out there, and success is achievable for anyone willing to work hard and persevere. In her coaching sessions, she aims to instill individuals with a shift in their mindset towards one of abundance, which can ultimately lead to greater yields and fulfillment in their Amazon businesses.
She finds that beginners tend to focus on one product doing well, rather than what she hopes to teach, which is to create multiple mini-income streams, rather than one main one. It is better to have multiple fallbacks creating good returns than one income stream that might get over-saturated in time. Which isn’t good for any business.
What other mindset shifts are to be expected when wanting to become successful on Amazon?
If you don’t have a business background, it can be very easy to oversimplify Amazon FBA, thinking that it’s a golden egg that will convert you from zero to hero overnight. One of the common misconceptions about Amazon FBA is that it's a passive income source, which couldn't be further from the truth. While private labeling could become passive over time, Amazon FBA in any form, requires a significant amount of time and commitment. It's important to understand that building a successful Amazon FBA business is a business that requires a lot of effort and dedication. Many people underestimate the level of education and resources required to create a successful FBA business work.
Before starting an FBA business, it's essential to be aware of the level of commitment required and the amount of work that goes into it. There is so much that goes into the perfect recipe to create a perfect FBA model, outside of what most beginners think the necessities are for starting one
8 Things I learned from Samara Michael about Reselling on Amazon
Samara is a trailblazing Amazon seller in the Muslim community and is giving back with her mentoring services. We talk about her journey as a 7-figure seller and how she coaches Muslim professionals seeking a flexible business like hers.
What is the ideal situation to start an Amazon FBA business?
When talking about an ideal situation to start an Amazon business, it's important to understand the relationship between cash and results. Initially, when she first started to coach, she used to work with students and clients who had a minimum of a thousand pounds to invest. However, over time, we have brought that number down to 500 pounds, with the understanding that your results will be proportionate to the amount of cash you put into your business.
It's also important to note that when we talk about six-figure businesses, we're referring to revenue, not profit – a common mistake people make. To achieve 6 figures in the first year, you will undoubtedly need to invest a 5-figure sum, whether that's all at once or more commonly, through drip investing, reinvestment, and the compound effect. Investing a significant amount of money is essential to achieving the 6-figure goal in an Amazon FBA business.
The revenue that your business generates is related to how much you’re able to create from said business. The more you spend for your business, the more your business makes and returns to you. The more you put in, the more the business spits out.
What does her coaching program teach about interest in loans?
Samara’s coaching program for Amazon FBA takes an Islamic perspective, as she is a Muslim coach who adheres to the strict prohibition on interest in Islam. This can pose a challenge for Muslims who want to start a business, but I believe that with the right mindset and resourcefulness, we can overcome any obstacles. In her experience, though, the Muslim community values family and community, and she strives to provide coaching that helps them achieve success in their Amazon FBA businesses while remaining true to their faith. Whether it's working with individuals with poor credit scores or Muslims looking to start a business. Samara is committed to helping clients find alternative solutions to religious restrictions and helping them reach their goals.
One alternative that Muslims can explore in terms of starting a business and the funds correlated to starting one, you can start a business with family members. If all your siblings were to put a portion of their money, then that is legitimate and permissible in the Islamic faith.
Another avenue that Muslims can try, which is a grey area for most, but not really taboo is percent-interest credit cards. As long as you make sure that the payment is made in full monthly, there’s no judgment from Samara whatsoever, but it mostly depends on how observant you are of the Islamic faith.
What would be her advice for mothers or family women that want to start their own Amazon FBA journey?
When it comes to starting a business as a mother, the advice that is commonly thrown around is to hire a virtual assistant (VA) as your first hire but that is not the best option for their circumstances. Especially for those with families. Instead, the first hire should be someone to help with household chores, such as cooking, cleaning, or ironing, to free up time for business pursuits. Many mothers feel guilty about outsourcing these tasks, and this is particularly true in the Muslim community. However, there is no shame in seeking help and investing in yourself and your business. By freeing up time and reducing stress, mothers can focus on growing their businesses and achieving their goals.
What type of mindset helped her reached the heights that her career has gone?
As someone with ADHD, Samara has found that the Pomodoro technique can be incredibly helpful in improving her focus and attention to detail. Rather than accepting her challenges and feeling discouraged, she learned to lean into them and find ways to turn her difficulties into her superpower. The Pomodoro technique involves working in short, 25-minute bursts, followed by a brief break to do things like grab a coffee or scroll through social media for a few minutes. By breaking up my work into smaller chunks, Samara can hyper-focus and achieve more in less time.
By scheduling periods for growth and development, such as watching podcasts or reading books, I'm able to develop the CEO skills necessary for scaling my FBA business. Ultimately, the Pomodoro technique has been a game-changer for her, and she highly recommends it to anyone looking to improve their productivity and focus.
Time to grow your Amazon business like Samara!
Samara's journey as an Amazon seller and mentor is truly inspiring. Her willingness to share her knowledge and expertise has helped countless people succeed in the Amazon game. By learning from her experiences and insights, you too can adapt her strategies to your own Amazon business and take your online selling journey to the next level. So take what you've learned from Samara, put it into practice, and watch your Amazon business thrive!
If you want to contact Samara, it's best to do so in her Instagram account.
If you're eager to learn more from successful Amazon sellers, you're in luck! Check out our previous articles featuring Romer the Roamer, Raiken Profit, The Gravy Train, Scott Needham, Checkmate Flips, Fields of Profit, Gavin Sweeney, Jonny Smith, Flips4Miles, Clear The Shelf, Oliver Flips, Taylor Jones, 1000 ASINS, Soros, and FBA Makayla. These experts in online arbitrage have shared their Amazon journeys and valuable insights, providing you with a wealth of knowledge to draw from. Keep learning, keep growing, and keep crushing it on Amazon!