If you could go back in time,....

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KeepFraming

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...to when you first started your business...

Is there anything that stands out in your mind, that you can say, "Boy, I wish I had just done this..., "If only I never..."??
 
Spending marketing dollars very differently.

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Timberwoman
AL
I cut the mat, I pet the =^..^= cat.
 
Gone to get a small business loan instead of closing store. Now I work for someone else.
 
Is it typical for a frameshop to start up with only personal funding? If it is, how much would be expected to have on hand?
 
Growth, in my opinion, is directly proportional to the amount of capital available for growth. Managing debt is like any other expense. If you limit yourself to very little capital, you'll likely have have very little growth. A commercial loan, in most cases, is a necessity
 
Very few young people can qualify for a commercial or any other kind of loan when they first start. I had a total of $250.00 when I started my business 25 years ago. When I opened my door I had $35.00 to my name.
I would not change a thing, I built my business from scratch with no money at all.
I'm proud of that. It's like surviving a car wreck or running a marathon, your glad you did it the way you did it.
I have to admit there where many times I wished I had more capital. The key is don't quit, no matter what. Perseverance is what builds a business, not money. Money can be as big a hindrance as it can be a helper.
Unless you have a background in business administration and a good education to back it up. Starting small is the best way to go.
Starting part time is not, you have to be fully committed to the business with nothing to fall back on. Nothing builds a business better than fear. The wimps quit when the going get tough, that is why there are so many failures.
John
 
One thing I would do again is make most of my mistakes all over, I've learned sooooo much this way!
smile.gif
 
I would have liked to have had a person with the experience of starting a business from scratch and growing it explain to me the transitions I would go through over 20 plus years. At the beginning cutting mats seemed important. Then location, leases, stock, buying, advertising, taxes, competition, insurance, workers comp, pricing, etc gradually changed me from a framer into a business person. Somewhere in the middle I, like many others, tried to do everything. Now I do little framing and am mostly a business manager. If I had understood the transitions I would have put more time into finding GREAT EMPLOYEES to leave me the parts of the job that I prefer. By doing this I'm sure I could have grown faster and made more money sooner. But then again maybe it wouldn't have been as much fun!!
 
Len Aaron once said to me after I sat in his office for almost an hour as he answerd phone calls, signed papers, delt with interuptions.
" I'm so darn busy working, I don't have any time to make any money "
John
 
My daughter was born when I was three years into my business. I wasn't able to spend as much time with her as I should have. I have a great relationship with her, but looking back, I wish I spent less time working and more time with her. Time has passed much too quickly.
 
Pamela - I was 9 years old when my family started our store, 6 years ago my daughter was born. She came to work with me everyday since she was two weeks old. When she was four years old, she was helping in the frame shop. She is probably the only first grader in her school, that can tell you the difference between acid free mat board, and paper mats.

I would not change a moment of that experience.

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Sue May :)
"Everyone is born right-handed, only the greatest can over come it!"
 
I also will agree with jrb, Money is secondary to commitment. The question should be what will you do to win and at what cost. Looking back in the early 70's I was the wiseguy of picture framing. What did I get "DIVORCED" and 20 years of grief.

Well I hope I've learn from past mistakes. The new business was started with 1/2 the money I spent in the 70's (adjusted for inflation). My skin in thicker and I know how to say "NO" and not look back. I think what I lacked in the 70's was a real game plan, direction, and focus to where I wanted to go. Maybe a package to market is a better way to say it. Having certain equipment and supplies are important but how you present your business and yourself is more important.

Everyone have a good season,

framer
 
Susan, You are fortunate you were able to bring your daughter to work with you. I just don't feel the workplace is a place for children, especially a frame shop with all the potential dangers. Even though I regret not being able to have spent the amount of time with her I would have liked, she did develop a close relationship with both sets of grandarents who were her "day care". So, my loss was their gain, and happily so, in their eyes.
 
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