Wednesday, January 29, 2014

Moving along

Super exciting news in the world of small business action.

I think I finally have my logo. It still needs a bit of tweaking but here it is. My header logo followed by my more square type logo. It is amazing how long it took me to come to this point using photoshop. I think I still want my ampersand to be more bold so I need to work on thickening that to match my type. Otherwise I am pretty happy with what I have started.




Other exciting news is applying for another spot. Learning from our hesitation on space last time we made the move on a letter of intent pretty quickly. They aren't lying when they say that life is coming at you fast! I have my fingers crossed this will work out. It is a space that is entirely too large for where we wanted to start and over our original intended budget. On the plus side this is a space that we expect to grow into fully and the location is near perfect and accommodates everything I was looking for in a space:

  • Bus line access
  • Walking distance from home
  • Street and dedicated parking
  • Part of a neighborhood
  • Other successful businesses in close proximity
  • Handicap access
  • Potential for a small kitchen/dye area
  • Open floor plan
We have only just started the process so I don't want to jump the gun but it's a good start.

I did apply for my first vendor and was granted an account which is also exciting. They are one of my first picks for needle and crochet hook vendors. One down and more than a dozen more to go. But I am going to take it in stride till the brick and mortar is secure. I have been dabbling with the idea of just launching an e-commerce site to get the ball rolling and make some social media marketing and income to assist. I also need to order business cards that at least have the logo, email and website.

Going through this process has also forced me to work on putting my business plan all together and in writing in one place. I can talk it big but to have something physical to send in replacement of me being a spokesperson is entirely different. I actually get a bit of sick pleasure working on it the same way I do for my work at the Ohio Art League writing grants. It is very interesting how closely both grant writing and business plan writing are similar. You are basically trying to win someone over to your side with clear, precise writing, stating facts, projections and puffing your feathers a bit. 

Lord, I never thought I would want to own a business. All this administrative work is just not fun, or so I thought. There is also a sick pleasure with the idea of being incredibly successful because of your own endeavors. Even working on the projected expenses, income, and startup budget I find exciting. I know what I am good at and this store will use my personal potential to the fullest. 

I am an enabler so I make a fantastic sales rep.
I am a helper so I love to educate people and see that "A HA" moment hit them
I am a hard worker, so I will put all my energy and love into this business
I am a talented seamstress, so I know the addition of alterations will be a good profitable decision.

AND NOW FOR SOMETHING COMPLETELY DIFFERENT!
This past weekend was Ohayocon and I had the pleasure of my friend Vinh taking some professional photos of me in my Lolita regalia!


I am completely in love with these pictures and wish I had more places and excuses to use them in things.  I am very tempted to change my Linkedin profile picture to the one below. 

Outfit Details:
Blouse - Fanplus Friend
Skirt - Enchantlic Enchantilly 
Socks - Enchantlic Enchantilly
Shoes- Uggs
Locket - Toronto Craft Vendor
Makeup foundation - Too faced Glitter Glue, Benefit Plush foundation, Shiseido powder
Blush - MAC Dainty mineralize and Lazy Sunday creme blush
Eyes - MAC white frost/parrot/shroomed/holographic glitter pigment, Limecrime Elf
Eyeliner - Urban Decay 24/7 black liquid liner
Lashes - some cheap fancy ones from a Korean cosmetic store
Brows - Faceshop
Lips - MAC pervette, MAC baby sparks lip glass


It is a very strange thing to look at your own face and be like WOW that is stunning! Not to be a total narcissist but the curls were just right, my hair color is spot on with my makeup and the blush was done well for once! Everything in this picture just worked right and I still can't believe that this is me. I think this is also one of the few pictures where I see the huge difference that my Muay Thai has made in my life and body.

Anyways that is all for now..... people really shouldn't be blogging at 3am in the morning anyways..
Cheers!