You create your own luck when you take chancesI posted the following on my Facebook page:People always say, “You are so lucky. ” I don’t quite understand how making the conscious decision to step out on faith, asking for help when needed, going several nights without sleep, replacing “fun” things to do with strategic business planning and sacrificing, and investing every dime in a dream is seen as luck. Many people say they want something but are not willing to give up half of what it takes to give it a true shot. Well, this status update received an overwhelming response and, I must admit, it felt great to express myself. Since opening my first brick-and-mortar boutique, Stylish Consignments in Lilburn, Georgia, last fall, an extraordinary amount of women have told me how lucky I am. Some go on to complain about all the bills and lack of time that they have and how “if only I had waited to have children” or “if only I had more money. ” Other times, I hear, “If I only had a husband (or a family) to help me,” or “If I just had the contacts that you have, then maybe I would. . . “I explain that I was not handed this business. I am growing it myself with seeds I planted. I was not given anything; I am earning it and yes, it was a conscious decision I made when I felt the timing was right. I have had an entrepreneurial spirit since I was a child. My mom and step dad were my initial “investors”. They went to Sam’s Club and purchased candy for me. I soon discovered that the neighborhood kids would pay double the cost for the convenience of a candy shop anytime they wanted. And I could also enjoy all that I wanted. We had a back patio with a window and screen that slid from side to side. It was the perfect little shop. I even taped a price list to the window. Even with that little business venture, I learned a few lessons. If you eat your stock, you may not profit or even break even. Sometimes, I invested in candy that nobody wanted to buy. And since I didn’t take the time to do a regular inventory, it took months for me to discover that my little sister was sneaking bubble gum! It was fun, but I learned that there was more to it than I originally imagined. I went on to start a babysitters club after reading the fun book series. I learned about leadership and getting others to want to pay a membership. At that age, five dollars a month was a lot. Those that weren’t getting babysitting assignments wanted their money back. I soon got frustrated with starting these little gigs and not getting the return I wanted. By the time I was able to get a “real” job, I had reached the dream. A paycheck with my name on it! It felt great at 15. It felt even better at 20 when the value of a dollar started to mean so much more. I was hit with real world concerns of student loans, books, housing. . . basically, life. My love for fashion and a stylish wardrobe led me to start a gift basket company, Gift Creations. I created my first set of business cards. Boy, did I feel special! I was official now! Well, not quite. I headed downtown to get a business license and started to understand the basic logistics of how it all tied together. I asked tons of questions, spent hours shopping for the materials, made a few prototypes and began to take preorders. When I was not in class, I spent my nights and days making these beautiful baskets. I paid a friend to sell them on commission and she hooked me up with a barbershop so men could order baskets for their wives. I also paid the barbers to help me spray paint 50 baskets at a time. I gave the shop owner free baskets for his wife-hence, my booth rent. Home run! I had started a small business while in college. But I still worked part time at a local department store to support myself. It seems I was not calculating my time, my gas and the other variable expenses that we can forget to think about. I discovered that I still needed hands-on business training. I graduated from college with a degree in fashion merchandising and landed a corporate job with Macy’s buying office. I was finally able to earn a real salary with benefits in the field I loved-fashion. It was another dream come true for me. After a few years, my desire to take bigger risks started to grow again. I started a family with my very supportive husband. Together with my corporate job, they provided me with that sense of stability and security we all hope for in life. My friends and family reminded me of how blessed I was to have reached my goal of working in the fashion industry and how cool the buying trips to New York would be. Deep down inside, I still wanted more. I met great people who blew my mind with their talent, sat in on meetings and business deals, and began to understand how big successful businesses operate. I soaked up all of this knowledge and knew I was ready for more responsibility. Eagerly, I asked for promotion after promotion. It could have been a combination of the thoughts and emotions that come with pregnancy and the true dreams you have for your life and family, but I knew it was time to branch out. Well, guess what? It was all confirmed when my company announced a mass layoff while I was on maternity leave with my second child. Everyone was scared-we were in the middle of a recession-but I knew that this was my chance. I had everything to lose, but I knew I had to take my shot. I immediately enrolled in the SBA, a website that gives small business advice, and The Entrepreneur School. I reconnected with my alma mater, the University of Georgia, to see what resources it provided for alumni who wanted to start their own business. My husband and I took several courses together, stayed up countless nights to develop a solid plan and researched the business model that was right for me. I quickly found out that you work much harder for yourself than you ever will for anyone else. You will not let yourself down like others may. If you don’t have an answer, you find it, especially when your livelihood is on the line. I also found out who my true friends were and began redefining several relationships in my life. I became extremely focused on my leap of faith. As soon as I knew that I wanted a storefront, I purchased fixtures on Craigslist from someone who was going out of business. I bought their whole lot for $500 dollars and then resold unneeded items later. I estimated that the store fixtures were worth over $3,000 dollars, so that was a great deal, and reduced my upfront costs dramatically. I rode around for hours and must have called dozens of realtors looking for just the right commercial space location. I met with one realtor who said he could take over the hunt for me, but soon learned that I was a better negotiator than he was! Maybe I just had more fire in my belly? I also met a developer who owned several shopping plazas. We connected instantly. While I couldn’t afford any of his available space, he gave me the advice I needed to keep going. He said to picture the search as if I were combing through the clearance rack at Macy’s: If you look hard enough and long enough, you will find the deal you want. Since he was a multimillionaire in the industry and had 25 years of experience, I felt good about following his advice. When I found the space I wanted, I sent him my lease to look over. We rewrote it to match my wish list and what was realistic to my budget. Then I decided to take a short vacation to make sure this is what I really wanted. (Thanks to a sinking economy and the state of the commercial real estate business, there was time to sit it out. ) When I came back, I signed the lease and grabbed the keys to my new store. I even managed to score a couple of months of free rent in the deal. I never knew anyone would agree to something like that. But what I learned is that all of the fear, procrastination and false assumptions we make out of our naivete can hurt us. If you just go for it, things have a way of working out. Looking back, the only thing I would do differently is set up the store quicker. We took way too long-two months-trying to get the store ready for our grand opening. Of course, I wanted everything to be perfect. Industry experts actually advise three to four weeks maximum because you want to start making money before the rent kicks in. During that time, however, I acquired inventory on consignment from a failed store and my circle of family and friends, so my boutique would open fully stocked. I bought a URL, had a website built, began marketing and planned a grand opening party with local celebrities to attract media attention. In total, the bare basics to get going totaled about $6,000 dollars. That included my security deposit, fixtures, utilities, build out and software. I quickly realized that the more my wish list grew, the more money I needed to invest and add to my budget. I can honestly say that it has been the most fulfilling business decision that I have ever made. The sleepless nights, the days when you are almost overwhelmed because you don’t know what to do next, the hours that you spend isolated from the “fun” things were all worth it. I don’t refer to my decision to pursue entrepreneurship as luck; It’s and always has been a conscious decision to work hard and then step out on faith. I make mistakes and learn from them-quickly. I ask a lot of questions. I stay surrounded by motivating people who also put action behind their dreams and constantly tell myself that taking it slow will allow me to be there for my family and enjoy the journey along the way. When the clouds start to turn grey and other women tell me they want to, but they are so afraid, I remind them that every successful corporation began with someone making a brave decision to give him or herself a shot. And, you know what? So can you!I would love to hear your questions or comments. Please contact me at contact@stylishconsignments. com.
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