What Is A Lifestyle Boutique Consultancy?

Have you ever felt like the traditional route of building and growing a consulting business isn't a fit for you? If yes, you're not alone. Maybe what you really want is to lead a lifestyle boutique consultancy.

A lifestyle boutique consulting firm is a small, specialized business that is optimized for the founders' flexibility, fun, and fulfillment. The vision for such founders is to achieve the best of two worlds: Build a sustainably profitable consultancy that both funds and supports their preferred lifestyle.

Lifestyle boutiques can be found in various consulting niches. They use different approaches to bring their offerings to the market and deliver value to clients. But there are some key characteristics and commonalities as well, and they lead them to face similar challenges.

These are the kind of consultancies I've been working with during the last few years. Unfortunately, there is very little helpful, in-depth information about lifestyle boutique consulting firms (despite the growing interest in the topic). Most content we can find is focused on:

• Freelancing: Solo independent consultants who work on a project-by-project basis, often with little support and scarce time and resources. Many work as subcontractors, with their income going to zero if they take time off.
• Traditional boutique consultancies: These are firms that maintain a decent level of specialization but with a more traditional corporate structure. There's little to no flexibility in terms of what, when, and where to work, and the end goal of founders and partners is often to sell the business.
• Consulting for large firms as salaried: There's a lot of content on how to consult - methodologies, case studies, and so on. But these are salaried consultants who work as employees, so that's not what we're looking for.

This is not helpful for most of the readers here. That's why I will be exploring this topic in a series of blog posts. From common challenges to strategies for success, I'll be answering all of your questions about this exciting and fulfilling career path.

Feel free to reach out with any questions or topics you'd like me to address.