Some Days Are Like That

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I just have to blog tonight before bed…it’s been a great and a bit of a challenging day for us.

The day started at 6:30 am after 4 1/2 hours sleep. I was up finishing the final version of my latest Business Plan so my Board of Advisors would have a few days before our meeting next week to review it and see our new strategy. My generous husband helped me with the formating (again) and was up late as well.

I met this morning with University Mall to negotiate our kiosk lease for the holidays, my broker, Jim McGuire came as well. I had to impress them with our concept so we could get the best location, the best rates, etc. and it worked. He significantly dropped the deposit down for us and is helping us to get the location we feel is best for Sweet & Charming. I learned a bit about retail leases today, if you are smart, you will put clauses like Bath & Body Works that forbids kiosks to be in front of their location. I’ll try to remember that in the future! Having Jim’s 20 years of experience on my side was 100% worth it and I feel that hiring a broker is very important to do for setting up commercial leases. He is the broker/ Director of Properties for Naartjie brand as well.

After the meeting I went to my Grandma’s to get the kids and while we were visiting, my son got bit by a yellow jacket 5 times under his shirt. It was very traumatic and stressful for him. We said a prayer to ask for healing and comfort and I taught him to breathe deeply (blow up a balloon) and it seemed to help as we were putting the baking soda paste on his wounds. Then I told him that we could go to lunch, his pick as a reward for his bravery and while we were at Carl’s, he was crawling in a tunnel and the kid in front of him kicked is foot into my son’s nose and again, another traumatic event persued with a bloody nose. So much for trying to make him feel better. Tonight when I put him to bed I asked him if he had any advice for other kids who have hard days and he said to “pray.” Smart kid.
On the way home tonight my husband went to get us a date night treat at the grocery store and got a flat tire in the process…so sad!

My house is finally looking a bit better after recovering from our recent trip and the tea party yesterday. Our date tonight consisted of doing dishes, watching 20 minutes of Failure to Launch (the end), and eating our Ben & Jerry’s from my husband’s trip to the store/flat tire sacrifice. Not the most romantic, but it was sweet that my husband would help out with dishes after the crazy day we both had.

Today’s Magic Wand: Make the best of it…whatever it is. Prayer works and ice cream always helps. My picks: Chubby Hubby and Neopolitan Dynamite

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Our First Cup of Tea: Networking Begins in PERSON

Today was our first official Networking Tea Party. It was a wonderful success, if I do say so myself. We had babysitters to tend the eight children who came with moms, and we had excellent brainstorming and idea sharing, plus our lunch was served on my seldom used great-grandmother’s china. We used our “tea cups” for yogurt parfaits with granola, fresh blueberries, and raspberries.
Start Up Princesses in attendance:

Nancy Cadjan, www.signbabies.com

Natalie Goddard, www.familylifeeducation.org

Marianne Rencher, Attorney

Liz Rosenbaum, www.scrapbooks.com

Marielen Christensen, Liz’s mom, www.scrapbooks.com/Founder of Keeping Memories Alive

Melissa Chappel, www.rawmelissa.com

Mary Chambers, emotional release therapist, “The Gentle Path to Healing”

and myself, Kelly King Anderson, Start Up Princess/ Sweet & Charming

We honored Marielen (she invented scrapbooking as we know it today) and Liz (current co-owner of the business) because they are celebrating 25 years in business this month, so they were awarded “The Glass Slipper” award. Liz’s husband even got in the act and came as “Prince Charming” and delivered one of the “glass slippers” and flowers!

We are anxious to have another event soon…if you are interested, please let us know. We are looking for people to start Networking Tea Parties in their areas. No need to have it on china, next time I think we’re heading for a shady park! The point is to get together, talk, share resources, and inspire one another, and have it be ok to bring children.

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Celebrating 2243 Views in the First Month!

Thanks to everyone who is spreading the word about this site for women entrepreneurs, it’s working! Thanks to technorati, yahoo, google, friends, family, and other entrepreneurs, this little site is growing and we’re averaging 60-100 views daily. We’re thrilled to have so many friends and we hope to make many more every day. Please comment on the site and help us create an online community of brainstorming and idea sharing for women in start up companies!

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Leaving Las Vegas ASD Trade Show

I write this sitting in the closet area of our hotel in Vegas while my husband and baby sleep. We’re leaving soon to go home and I wanted to take a moment to reflect on the past five days of our little adventure to the ASD Wholesale Trade Show. Overall the trip was excellent, I met some wonderful people and found exciting products for Sweet & Charming. There were a few child-related bumps in the road, but we dealt with it and everything has been nice for my husband and I to spend some time together.

The bumps in the road:

ASD Trade Show no longer allows infants or any other children under age 16 to come to the show. Previously you could bring a baby if you carried the baby in a carrier (baby bjorn type). This year they were very firm on their rule to not allow any children, regardless of age into the show because of their insurance coverage (only for adults). Apparently last year a child grabbed a knife and as a result, there was a law suit of some sort. So, needless to say, we were surprised and we had to take turns with the baby outside of the show. It worked out because we were able to rest and make calls, etc. that needed to be done, Bella and I also made quite a few new friends at Starbucks drinking herbal tea.

Very difficult to find a place to nurse and change the baby. Most of the time I had to just stand up in a bathroom stall or change her in her stroller. Kudos to Venetian food court and Hilton Convention center for having family bathrooms, but neither one had a chair! Mirage had a baby changing center in the handicapped stall, but if I didn’t open it, I wouldn’t have known. They should have put a sign on the outside of the stall (baby changing center inside) sort of thing.

Also, the day we left for our trip, our cousin/babysitter (that was set up for three months) called and said that she thought her baby had chicken pox. Yikes! So, we had to quickly make other arrangements for our children who were staying home. Bless the friends and family who helped out!

The highlights of the trip:

Meeting Josh Kelly, 17 year old High School Senior (although he is home schooling this year so he can go to all the trade shows and to China again this year). I met Josh at Starbucks while he was waiting for his mom to pick him up after the show. I thought that he was there to help with his mom’s booth because he was 17 and allowed to be in the show. However, it was the other way around, his mom was helping HIM! She was running his booth at the Sands Hotel while he did the one at the Hilton. He invested $10,000 in booth rental fees for the shows to have 2 booths for his two year old company, Light Up Toys. www.lightuptoys.com. Josh’s parents have been importing for 15 years and he started helping them sell toys at fairs when he was 10 years old and he saved $50k and then his parents added $30k and he started his business two years ago, officially. He has a 4.3 GPA, already negotiating the big deals, and is handsome to boot, so watch out for Josh Kelly! I asked him if he wanted to invest in my company and he laughed at me. I was serious!

Meeting the amazing, talented designer of Alex Carol Jewelry, Jennifer. She’s agreed to a interview later, so watch for that.

New Products:
Anything Swavorski Crystal is still HOT. Hair gems galore. Bling. I loved it all. Fun things for little girls, I will be featuring a lot of this sort of thing…so princessy!

Found the new jewelry line, “What’s in Your Heart?” created by the same talented mom entrepreneurs who invented the Italian Charms (or so they say). They worked on this concept for the past 2 years and it is just amazing! I never really got into the Italian charms, but these I could really get into. Wait. I am into it already. I have one on right now. Mine is “What’s in Your Soul?” a round sterling silver and glass pendant that has a lid that can screw on/off, you put your pick of charms or stones, whatever. There are already some knock offs, so beware and the quality is much lower. My pick, a pink crown charm with a purple crystal heart, since I’m a Start Up Princess. ☺ I will be selling these for Sweet & Charming. They are for girls as well as adults. So cool! I’m sure they will be very popular on my mall kiosk. If you want one, I can order anything you want. I’m all set up as a distributor now. Yippee.

Most Impressive:
The Tao Restaurant at the Venetian is really a MUST SEE– they feature 6 rose petal filled fountains at the entrance and Vosages Haut Chocolate store at The Forum Shopppes (I’ll write more on this later, I am very interested in the Start Up Princess who created it). The architecture and design in general is amazing, everything may or may not be my style or taste but you have to hand it to the designers who push the limits with texture and materials to impress. The floral arrangements at The Mirage were so unique and inspiring; red roses shooting out of a red-painted wooden vase.

Time to drive home…six hours. Ugh!

Today’s Magic Wand: Plan to attend a trade show or conference for your industry!

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Great Tips for Mall Kiosk Success!

Tonight I met Heather Christensen who is a distributor of The Mod Bod modest t-shirts/tanks. She has a kiosk at Provo Town Center 801-494-6224. Heather was so wonderful to give me some tips for having a successful kiosk. Heather’s tips are awesome! Thanks so much!!
* Buy Credit Card Machine, $400; don’t rent!

* Purchase back up bags (in case you run out) for kiosk at XPEDX only $25 for 1000

* You need an internet site/ecommerce site because people want to know how to find your products again when they are from out of town

* Decorate for the holidays

* Offer Free Shipping

* 24 hour guarantee for products that are out of stock

* Make schedules 1 month out so people can make changes as they need

* Find good staff; They are required to work 1 Sunday a month and Friday/Saturday nights on occassion

* If they are late/miss their shift; the fine for closing kiosk is $50/hr. OUCH. Make it known to employees that it will come out of their shift.

* Plan to be there a lot during the holidays!

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www.bloglines.com

Thanks to Start Up Princess Janet Meiner’s profile (www.affiliateflash.com) on this site; I learned about www.bloglines.com and I really appreciated it! Who has time to keep track of all the blogs out there and visit everyone? Bloglines keeps you in touch with the latest blogs written in your industry and about your interests. I would call Bloglines a Web 2.0 company; is that accurate? I am still learning what Web 2.0 means, but from my guess it would be because Web 2.0 companies work like applications.

I signed up for bloglines and now I can visit one site and catch up on internet marketing, business news, entrepreneur news, etc.

Check it out!

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“But One Thing Is Needful”

I’ve been anxious and “troubled about many things” with my start up and the verse “but one thing is needful” came to my mind this morning, so I studied it for my morning inspiration. This is scripture, from Luke 10:41-42, King James Bible. In these verses Jesus is talking to Martha, a dear friend who has been busy preparing a meal for her guest and sister. Martha was “cumbered about with much serving”. She was too busy and stressed about her tasks and felt unsupported, and perhaps jealous that her sister was with her friend while she was in the kitchen over a hot fire. (Sound familiar?) She then asked Jesus to make her sister come help her because she was “serving alone.”

41 And Jesus answered, and said unto her, Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things:

42 But one thing is needful: and Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her.

Now insert my name (or yours, if you’re willing).

Kelly, Kelly, thou art careful and troubled about many things…But one thing is needful.

Ouch. It’s true! I am over-scheduled, stressed, and overly consumed with my to do list. The verse is also a gentle reminder that I don’t have “to do it all” or “be everything.” I have permission to stop trying.

It is very overwhelming at times to start a new business, to head up a new project, to feel like there is a never ending “to do list”, people to email, calls to return, family to feed…diapers to change! However, when I take a deep breath, slow down, and ask what is the “one needful thing” I am more at peace because I remember that I am only capable of accomplishing a few things, so I need to focus my attention on what is most important.

Today’s Magic Wand:

Consider what is the one needful thing on your “to do list”. Maybe it is that heaping pile of laundry you haven’t folded and put away, or maybe it’s returning a pressing phone call. Whatever it is, ask to know where your focus should be today and you’ll be at peace.

P.S. Gotta go, my toddler just got into my make up! I guess that is the “one needful thing” of the moment!

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Introducing Start Up Princess Erika Wilde

I had the privilege of meeting Erika Wilde recently through Start Up Princess Nancy Cadjan, www.signbabies.com. Erika “fairy godmothered” Nancy as she launched her website and started her business three years ago. Nancy spoke highly of this ambitious, successful mom entrepreneur and I was happy to meet her.

Erika Wilde has a very different and unique home-based business, and you could certainly say, she has found her “niche.” Erika owns www.stopdirt.com and www.garagestyle.com; both are high traffic industrial and residential floor mat sites. Erika has mastered internet sales and marketing and enjoys having a successful company that she can manage while chasing after her busy twin toddlers and elementary school student.

Erika never imagined in a million years that she would own a floor mat company, but it just kind of made sense, once she saw that it was an under-served market on the internet and she could use drop shippers to deliver product and service her customers. One thing that was interesting while we talked is how Erika mentioned that she generally gets only serious buyers on her sites, because people don’t “browse” for floor mats, they find her sites because they are ready and interested in purchasing her products. She offers all sizes and colors, as well as customizable floor mats (just add your logo!) for small and corporate businesses.

Erika also keeps busy as a mentor to Brigham Young University students in Provo, Utah. She helps assist other student entrepreneurs in finding a potentially successful niche internet industry to buy/sell with drop shippers. This is an ideal business for stay at home moms who want a lucrative income.

I was also impressed to learn that Erika is a professional writer and a triathlon athlete, she is currently training for another competition just two weeks away. She’s full of personality and wit too! Check out her Start Up Princess profile page www.stopdirt.com to learn more about Erika Wilde.

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Martha Stewart Steps Down From Her Own Board of Directors

USA Today Small Biz blog featured a very interesting blog today about Martha Stewart written by Jim Hopkins. Martha Stewart has decided to step down from her board; I cannot even imagine this very humbling, difficult decision. Regardless of your feelings about her, you have to feel sorry. She was a Start Up Princess just like us, she had an idea, formed a board, built it up to the empire it is today and now has restrictions on how she runs her company and is involved in major decisions. She will still be involved in the creative side of the company, but will not serve on the board.

A side note: Last summer I was interviewed by Martha’s ghost writer for her book about being an entrepreneur, called The Martha Rules. My friend, Dr. Brent Ridge knows Martha and recommended me to be interviewed. It was quite an honor, however, because I wouldn’t divulge much of my business model in the pre-launch phase, fearing that the world would run with my ideas, I was rather vague in the interview and I wasn’t featured. However, the book was a good read and I liked reading about the other entrepreneurs in the book who have already launched. Nevertheless, I guess it’s a strange “claim to fame.” I wish that the interview was actually with Martha herself. Maybe one day I can invite her to a networking tea party. I bet she would make really cute cookies for the event.

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Hot From the Oven: Young Chef’s Academy Franchises

If you’re looking for a new franchise concept, check out www.youngchefsacademy.com. My friend, Start Up Princess Julie Hundley Nutritional Counselor and Chef told me about this company, and I looked into it immediately. I’m anxious for one of these to open near me so my children can attend their cooking classes. This company has sold 90 franchises in the first year! They were very smart to team up with Gary Findley, former President of Curves International (ranked #1 fastest growing franchise by Entrepreneur magazine). I am certain that this concept will be the next Color Me Mine, Kindermusik, Little Gym…Currently there are no franchises in Utah, only 4 in California, there are lots of spaces available all over the US.

From their website:

Established in April 2003, Young Chef’s Academy offers cooking classes to children in a safe environment that encourages discovery and creativity. While learning food preparation skills is the main ingredient at YCA, each class adds a heap of kitchen safety, a scoop of etiquette, a handful of table setting, a pinch of menu planning, and laughter to taste.

Julie Fabing Burleson and Suzy Vinson Nettles, founders of YCA, believe this is the perfect recipe for showing children cooking is a lifelong skill that can be artistic, creative, and sometimes quite surprising. Suzy has commented, “this is the place where ‘what if’ collides with, ‘look at this!’” Their kid-friendly classroom provides a “real” setting so that the students can use what they learn in their own homes.

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