This Woman's Business Start-Up Journey

Always have a Plan B

One of the pieces of advice you get over and over again when reading books, articles and blogs about starting a business is to build your team of professionals.  Every bit of advice ends with the disclaimer "ask your accountant" or "check with your attorney", etc.  I fully understand why this is necessary.

What I have found, however, is that the professionals that you turn to can only help you to the degree that YOU can ask the right questions of them.  Which puts you and I in a Catch-22 subplot.  When we are embarking on a new journey and doing things for the first time, we don't know what we don't know.  And therefore, don't always know  how to formulate questions to get the vital information we need. 

Here is my current version of this paradox.  I chose an architect based on the fact that he had worked in the City of Torrance for many years, and knew the players in the planning and building departments well.  I assumed that having been through the process many times, on many different projects with these people, that he could avoid some of the delays and pitfalls that may plague an outsider.  It remains to be seen whether my theory will prove true.

I also assumed that this architect could give me clear information on the process he has participated in so many times and that I am new to.  That part of the assumption has by no means played out thus far.  I felt like I was pulling teeth to get information from him every step of the way.

For anyone in Torrance, CA who may be thinking of opening a retail business, here is some information which may help you form a realistic expectation and help you ask the right questions of the "professionals".

There are two distinct pieces of the process. 

• getting your use approved by the city
• getting your building permit (assuming you will need to do tenant improvements at the location).

In my situation, I needed to apply for an Administrative Action first.  This appears to be the simplest of two options for this stage.  The filing fee was $521 compared with $2434 for a Conditional Use Permit.  My architect had to submit 5 copies of the plot plan and floor plan at this stage.  My expense so far to my architect is $1500.  This was done on April 10, 2008.

According to the planning department, we should have comments from them by May 1.  Apparently, each city department (Building & Safety, Fire Regulations, Planning, and ?) will review the submission and make notes or comments.  I still don't have a clear understanding of what these comments will entail, but I am guessing they will note if special exit doors will be necessary, whether they feel there is sufficient parking available, whether they have concerns about additional traffic in the area, whether the building is currently up to code, etc.  Assuming no major issues, the planning department will then write their official report and I would have approval for my use by mid-May. 

Once the use is approved, then the architect submits plans for plan check.  Again, I am not clear all that happens in this stage, I just know I've been told to allow 6-8 weeks for this process.  At the end of this process, I would be issued the building permit and be able to start with the TI's.  Since that puts us to mid-July, I realistically won't be open in the permanent space until mid to end of August.  That's a far cry from what I originally thought I understood, which was that the city approval process takes 4-6 weeks.

So, I am pursuing a temporary space.  Luckily, there is an empty space two doors down from my permanent space.  It is 1005 sq ft, but would suffice as a temporary space from June through August, and allow me to get started before school gets out, which is critical to me.

Through it all, I remain confident that I made a good decision and that all will be worth it in the end.  That is if I don't strangle my architect in the process!

Another first for me

Yesterday was a great day.  It was my first experience being an exhibitor at an event...specifically the What's Up for Kids Expo in Torrance, CA.  I was very pleased with the amount of exposure I got.  I knew going in that the crowd would be heavy on families with very young children (7 and under) and I was right.  That is alright, though, since anything that I can do to get the Huntington Learning Center name out in my area is helpful.

I was also pleased that people signed up for my raffle.  I am beginning to build my internal list.  Here's my cute little table: 

It was also nice to have some more practice explaining in the most clear, concise and appealing way what we do at Huntington.  I also did a second interview for the assistant director position while at the fair!  Interviewing and hiring employees is a unique experience.  As a small business owner, the stakes are even higher than when hiring as a manager for a larger company.  Mainly because in this instance, they will be working ONLY WITH ME in the beginning!  So they better like me and I better like them, or we'll both be miserable.  But, hiring someone has to be about more than just liking the person, so it's a fine line here.

All in all, I think the most value to yesterday's event is that it felt like a step forward, and I am in need of more steps forward. 

Nothing is easy

That was my mom talking..."nothing is ever easy".  Just about everything in life was a burden to my mother, and I believe that was because she was physically unhealthy and because she had very little joy in her life. 

What I learned from her life is that there is a direct relationship between joy and burden, and that no "burden" comes with a fixed weight.  Dropping a glass and having it shatter can be a huge burden and a near catastrophe.  Dropping a glass can also be a minor and temporary inconvenience.  The difference, of course, has nothing to do with the glass and everything to do with the glass dropper. 

I have chosen to live my life in such a way as to view broken glasses as minor and temporary inconveniences.  I have found that it is much easier to accomplish that when I have joy in my life.  Being raised primarily by a mother who had little joy, it has been a life-long journey to move away from that instinctual reaction to see things as disasters.  (Thank you, Maggie, for helping me on my journey).

I am at a frustrating stage of my business start-up now.  It has been a month since I signed the lease, and just last Thursday, my architect submitted the plans to the City of Torrance for review...a 4-6 week process.  Weeks just keep going by, and I feel no closer to opening this business than I did 2 months ago.  Glass dropped and shattered. 

Since I can't do anything to make this process move more quickly, I will focus on things that bring me joy.  Like writing in this blog and moving forward with my new blog.  My way of sweeping up the broken glass and moving on.

I recommend Google Alerts

One of my new favorite "toys" is Google Alerts.  I found out about it from my friends at The Blog Squad.  It is one of those painfully simple ideas that just makes so much sense you wonder why it took this long for it to come around.  Actually, I wouldn't be surprised to find out it's been around quite awhile...I am never on the cutting edge of technology.

Here is just how flippin' simple it is:

Create a Google Alert Enter the topic you wish to monitor. Search terms: Type: NewsBlogsWebComprehensiveVideoGroups How often: once a dayas-it-happensonce a week Your email:

So, I now have alerts set for the terms "tutoring", "Huntington Learning Center", "Torrance, CA" and "Redondo Beach, CA".  Once I become "Slightly Famous", I'll add my name.

Give it a try, and tell me what your alerts are.  I'll bet they are more interesting than mine!

New friends and mentors

I made some good progress last week working on my marketing plan.  I visited 3 local middle schools and 1 elementary school.  I also gathered information from an advertising rep for The Easy Reader. I will be doing some print advertising in that publication.

I am still working on my plan for my next blog and website.  I found a great woman through Start-Up Nation, Nikole Gipps.  We talked like old friends right from the beginning.  I think she will be the right person to help me design and set up my website on the Wordpress platform.

I am also VERY excited about a course I am taking online called Teaching Sells.  I kept coming across references to a site/blog called Copyblogger, so finally went there.  It is very well done, and I was very impressed with the bio for Brian Clark, it's founder.  Brian and another gentleman named Tony Clark (I assume they are gentlemen, although I can't speak to their character at this juncture) partnered to create the Teaching Sells program.  From what I have read and seen of them and their work so far, I am extremely impressed and on board with their philosophies, style and business model. 

I just today discovered Tony Clark's personal blog, SuccessfromtheNest.  I'll be doing some more reading there tonight.

Time flies when you're having fun

I can't believe it is 6 days since my last post.  I can definitely see why all the blogging experts recommend setting a posting schedule and sticking to it.  Plus, now too many different things have happened in the last 6 days, making for either two diferent posts, or one disjointed post.  I think I'll make it two separate posts.

One of the highlights of my week was that I printed my first checks with Quickbooks.  I know it may not sound very exciting, but it is akin to seeing your name in lights, I think.  It looks so official, so professional, and so important.

I am new to Quickbooks, but it seems to be fairly straight forward.  I had one of those big hurdles to jump just to make my first entry in it.  I worried about doing something wrong and making a big mess.  Then as I read the tutorials, I saw that it looked pretty easy to correct a mistake, but I didn't want evidence of my mistakes (my ego, you know).  Eventually, I made the first entry, and then things rolled along nicely. 

Now I just need to make sure that there is always enough money in the bank to cover these beautifully printed checks!