JPD Mom

I Will Survive

January 27, 2008.

How does the song go, "First I was afraid, I was petrified, just thinking how I could live without you by my side.......just thinking oh so many night of how you did me wrong" you get my drift right?  I will survive without the big and the small accounts that do not pay me, or um steal, or refuse to pay me.  I am not going any where.

Hang In There Baby !

Woah....that last post was good to get off my chest.  I am very thankful for all the support, well-wishes, karma, tweets, Facebook support and even that one person who was willing to beat up the people that aren't paying me.  No need, really - a black eye won't put money in my pocket.  It is good (and bad at the same time) to also hear that there are so many others that know what I am going through. I really wanted to keep up the positive attitude and to keep my chin up - but this is reality folks.  I am humbled and sad that so many entrepreneurs "get" what I am going through - at least I am not alone.

When the money stops at the top, it stops all the way down to those of us that own a  small business.  Anyone in the wholesale business understands that you never get paid by everyone on time, but when a lot of our top channels don't pay and sales are bad, I can not and will not be the bank.  I am in business to make money - not lend it.

As I have stated earlier, I am not going down without a fight - as long as people still want to purchase my products - I will still sell them.  Maybe off the back of my pick-up truck at the Flea Market....no gosh I hope not, I am kidding.  I have other options.  Here are some possible ideas for those of you (and for me) that are in my boat:

Show Me The Money

As of February 1, 2009 Jamie's Painting & Design will only ship products that are paid for.  We drop ship which works when people pay their bills, those days seem to be in the past.    We have carried companies for months until we were paid.  Not anymore - no wiggle room.  Best quote ever about selling wholesale came from Pamela Barsky, "If I dropped every company that did not pay on time I would not be in business" - it is just the nature of the beast.  In this Economy I am not willing to carry over $5000 for companies that may never pay me.  I can not wait 90, 120 or forever for Company X to send me a check....

Back to reality - if you use a credit card great I ship your product.  If you pay net 30 - tell your customer how long it will take and why.  That is it- I am done playing Mr. (Mrs.) Nice Guy - I am done.  The sales channels get the money up front, me I wait 30, or 60 days....or I never get paid.  My taxes this year....not pretty.*

I am usually not so hard on any one part of my business - I usually make exception, bend the rules.  Those days are over...when dealing with money that is.   

*Just so we are clear I would like to make it very clear that not ALL my channels do not pay.  Some I have been with since the beginning of time, some for a few months - and never had one problem.  I would say the majority have been fabulous....just like in life though a few bad apples can spoil the bunch.

Diversify Your Funds

Ya, ya I know this is not about funds but you could spread yourself (and business out).  Now is not the time for an ego or a  "um I am sorry I do not do that" - uh , yes you do.  My creative cap is on and I am entertaining lots of different products, ideas - even partnerships.  To stay alive now I need to Do It and do it well. 

• Do favors, take special orders, those companies that stayed alive in bad times tend to not only survive but succeed in the future. 
• Do not let your ego get in the way of making a buck.  I am not saying you should do things you do not believe in, or jeopardize what you and your company stands for - but do not get all uppity now.  Everyone is struggling.
• Do make the hard decisions now, before someone else forces your hand
• Do keep your head up and your eye on the ball or the money...whatever - stay focused
• Do stay positive

Call me crazy, call me optimistic but seriously if you can stick with it for what, 11 more months??  The latest report say that we should be out of this Recession in 3 months - that is not too long.

Where Can you Squeeze?

If you rent space (like me) you have the problem of paying rent (and probably employees).  Though it is not ideal we have considered renting out my front office - no, not my dream - but better than going out of business.  We are not ready for this - but it may become a way to keep money coming in when my channels are not paying.

• Do you have extra space? 
• Can you rent our warehouse space? 
• Can you share with another growing company?
• Can you re-negotiate your lease?  Can you get out of it?
• Can you move the business back in your house? 
• Can you cut back on office perks?  

Those of us that are small business owners get it - there is a reason we are small.  We are mostly lean mean machines - yet we survive, we are able to make it work.  However, when you are so lean you are already at your wits end - and then to have the trouble we have now.  It can be hard, but you have to prevail, you have to get by with less - no one ever said running a business was glamorous.  I do try to pretend it is though.

We have a huge warehouse in the back, where we do our shipping, make tiles, etc.  We moved things around - created some extra space - and rented it out.  Not ideal, sort of an eye soar.......but every time I see it all I think of is "cha-ching".     

Hate to Say it....Everyone can be Replaced

I found this out the hard way - as most of us do, I was replaced (more than once).   I have been on both sides of this fence, the one being let go and the one letting someone go.  I empathize with both - I understand how tough decisions need to be made.  And, well the big guy making the big bucks....no that is not describing me - but he makes the tough decisions.

I hate to write this down, but it must be said.  Companies large and small are laying off people - it happens.   We have all experienced it, either by watching a parent or ourselves, a friend or a spouse lose their job.  It is a blow to your ego that takes a while to get over. It is horrible, it sucks and I know from first hand experience and as a child watching my father get laid off.  It can suck all of the energy out of you and make you believe you are not worth of the career you chose.  However it means staying in business or closing up shop:

• Can you scale back your employees hours? 
• Is a pay cut out of the question?
• Can you combine two positions into one? 
• Can you find work for another employee? 
• Can you cut your pay back?
• Close business on Fridays?  Mandatory days off?

No fun jobs, tons of work - but do you want to be able to sleep at night.  Having empathy for your employee that is being laid off is key, and trying to help them through it is human.  If you can find a way to not do it - good, if you have to do it -be nice.  Remember we are all human and sometimes we all need to break up.

Know When to Fold Up

I hate to say this but uh....running a business is not for the weak of heart or anyone with a thin skin.  If you are not a 100% committed, now is the time to cut and ship bait - oh wait ship and cut bait?  Whatever the saying is, if you are not ready for this tough year ahead, or if your heart it is not in - worse if your family can not afford the sacrifice - don't do it.  Now is not the time to make everyone around you suffer.  I am not being negative - I am being realistic.  I would like to think I am a sarcastic realist, instead of a negative pessimist.  You have to be willing to make the tough choices, sacrifices and go without.  If your heart is half in it.........really, why bother?

Me Me Me & My Company

My heart is still in it - I still choose to fight.  I have other options.  I am going to do whatever it takes (legal people - give me some credit) to make sure Jamie's Painting & Design survives.  I will cut back, I will make more adjustments and I will have no problem with it.  I do not think now is the time for me to get all um, big headed or "Jamie don't do that" on ya'all - I can scrub a toilet, ship a package, call a sales rep, do a produt sketch, call a sales channel and empty the garbages in one hour.    At this time I will do anything to stay alive. 

Good luck to everyone - I hope my suggestions (and solutions for my business) help you out....anyone have any other ones....send 'em over please.   Pretty please... 

The Elephant in the Room

January 22, 2008.

We Need to Talk

Okay, so I have not really wanted to talk about it, I admit it.  I have been acting like a man, a boy, a dude - if I ignore it long enough maybe it will just go away.  I am guilty as charged, I have not addressed the problem head on.  I tried to....really I did.  The times I wanted to "talk" about it though you were always like talking about something else, or I could not put my emotions into words.  So, I have pulled or more like ripped the band aid off and I am here all naked............no wait I DID not mean that - I mean raw, or vulnerable....yes I am ready! 

My Background

On a side note I must say that this reminds me of the time I got dumped, and I mean dumped with a capital "D".  When I was in college I dated a boy ( he was so not a man) who had his heart stomped on and spit out by his ex-girlfriend.  He thought he was finally ready to date again, and he picked me......oh how I wish he picked someone else.  We dated for like 4 or 5 months, I was quite taken with him - he treated me super nice, was not hard on the eyes and well I thought I was in love. 

Fast forward to the end of the relationship when he seemed to have quite the wandering eye, enjoyed spending time with anyone else but me and I found him flirting with my friends on vacation.  So, while I was in some um, sorority meeting thing I get a voice mail message; "we need to talk...but not tonight, later maybe another day."  Me being me, Ms. Won't take no for an answer and insist we talk now - I needed to know what was going on.  I drove to his apartment and he sits me down on his couch and utters these now infamous words, "Remember when I said I loved you?  I lied."

Yep - try to swallow that one down.  What a painful pill that was to take.  Years later I have told that story multiple times to many women and I am actually able to laugh about it.  I mean it makes a great story, right?  Some friends from college will back me up and confirm that actually happened - I love me a good story, but I could not make that one up.

Accepting the Inevitable

Anyhoo.....not sure if that little incident brought me to where I am to day or not - but it does conjure up a few smiles - which I could use right now.  So, as I stated I am ready to talk.....we need to talk.  I will have to now address the Big Elephant that has been in the room for awhile.  I have hinted at it, I have pointed at it, I have even explained how it hurts me - but I have not been completely honest.  Times are tough, it is bad - and there does not seem to be an end in sight.

• Sales for 2008 were sluggish, it started in the beginning of the year.  We watched our sales month after month decline - but we thought that they would pick up over the Holiday Season. 
• We were smart, we did pay attention to sales - we did everything in our power to save money.   We got shipping breaks, we purchased in bulk, we cut back, we improvised - we did make those few dollars we got stretch.
• The end of September when the Stock Market-Financial Crisis-Credit-Mortgage-Crash Thing happened our sales stopped.  For the first time in the  history of my company we had no sales for days.  We have over 200 sales channels - and we had not one sale.  People were not shopping, and they were not using their credit cards on line.
• Christmas looked good - nothing like the past years, but we rallied, we did well.  We shipped, we did favors, we took orders right up until Christmas.  We worked hard and created a lot .(not a ton, just a lot) of product that we happily shipped to the customer.  The future  may not have looked bright, but it was looking up. *

*As a drop-shipper and as a little guy (or gal) that works with all sizes of business - we ship our product and then we bill be the sales channel.  No, no the ideal way to run a company, but it had worked in the past - and some of these stores had policies in place before I came along.

The Aftermath

Not long after Christmas we had some bad news.......um some really, really bad news. 

• First we found out one of our largest channels filed for bankruptcy.  We still do not know if we will ever get paid by them - the Bankruptcy courts protect them - ouch! 
• Next another new large account could would not pay their bills until they spoke with their investors (they had already re-structured years before)....this one hurt more.  We never thought one of the Big Guys would not pay us - never occurred to us - never say never, believe me, I KNOW! 
• Other accounts were behind, some not paying on time, some lost invoices, check is in the mail.....starting to sweat a little now.  
• Many sales channels seemed to have had their credit cards maxed out.......day, after day, after day we tried to run charges.  Now I am blowing into a paper bag so I do not pass out.
• One sales channel had a health emergency and we have yet to be paid by them.

 Those that actually answered or calls or emails had an excuse, some just ignored our calls all together.  Or my personal favorite......lied about it, and when the check was sent.  The fact is that each one alone did not amount to a lot of money (well no not true a few did amount to a lot of money).  Mesh them together, add the almost extinct sales for the Holiday Season + Slow January Sales = putting my company in a very, very bad place.

When I started Jamie's Painting & Design I was green, I was new - I was literally so happy to get an account I did not pay close attention to the terms.  It was not too important when I was running the business out of home.  Margins?  We are fine?  Terms?  Whatever?  Sales, sales - if I sell it they will pay.  What I did not know would not hurt me, or so I thought.  As soon as I left the safe haven of a "no rent studio" I soon came to understand how important it was for our channels to pay and pay on time. 

Which brings me to where we are today.  We are not good.  Things are looking bad.  Bankruptcy court protects companies that declare bankruptcy - what if they take me down with them?  Do I get a bail out too?  So Congress, Mr. President where is MY bail out?  Companies that have no money.....no wait companies that spent the money I was owed, they got paid - me....not so much.  A maxed out credit card may never free up any funds. 

Fun  A Fact: A  small business that drop-ships and works with large/small/medium companies........can get screwed.

The Future Looks Grim

I do not want to really burst anyone's bubble, and sadly I heard that a few business in our industry have already closed up and declared bankruptcy - this makes me sad.  I do not want to become one of those businesses.  I can and will fight to survive - problem is we were already a lean-mean-well run machine.  People say I am resourceful, creative - they say I will figure it out.  Maybe I will.  I do know one thing though - if our channels do not pay us we can not survive.

Running in Circles

January 14, 2008.

So....ya um I am a bit behind on blogging, posting, eating, bathing  basically even cleaning my house.  I have had a crazy week and it is only getting crazier....and you know a cold is a comin'.  I am seriously having a real hard time concentrating because I seem to have so much on my list.

Scrabble Dabble Do

I think I have mentioned over and over how hard it is running a business, let alone one in a down economy.  Sales are down for us, and we still chug along.  I am faced to really go hard after sales right now and find some great partnerships for Jamie's Painting & Design.  

Last week I had a great meeting with a catalog about designing some exclusive products for them.  We started looking at 6 name plaques, 6 birth certificates and 2 of our brand spanking new products.   It was so fun to start the year off with a great new partnership.....then I got the deadline.   Today.  Excited - yes, almost impossible - yep!  Good news is I work great under pressure - I work fast and I will finish.....

What Else Can We Do?

I am starting this Fund-raising project that I think will generate some new business for us.  I also think it gets our name out there, and it is good to be involved in the community.  I have talked with a few friends at different schools and am feeling really good about some projects we will be able to do.  Also I am doing my very first "In Studio" class if you will for a Girl Scout Troop.  I have taught art before, I teach it at my son's school - I should be okay right?  

With the Economy down I find that if I am not busy - well I will go crazy from stress.  So this little project is going to not only help with the bottom line but more importantly it keeps me busy.  The plan is for them to go through all the same processes that I go to to design a product, however I will use an artist as an "Inspiration" and teach them about a certain way of using paint, pens or crayons.  Then let them make the product, tie the ribbon - do all the fun things we do at Jamie's Painting & Design.

Twits, Tweets All on Twitter

I don't know what it is about 2009 but I can not seem to get enough Twitter.  I find I am checking it all the time - a bit obsessed, maybe?  It is interesting information, interesting people - I try to follow people that interest me, ones that follow me - reporters, etc.  Not sure what I did right (or wrong) but I am picking up followers like every ten minutes - really, no idea what I did to get them following me.  But like I said - totally enjoying it.  If you want to follow me and think I have something interesting say (don't laugh some days I do) you can follow me here.

A Little Press is Good for the Soul

I have mentioned before that I subscribe to HARO (Help A Reporter Out) for queries that reporters, magazine editors, TV Producers and Bloggers subscribe to.  You get three emails a day with a list of subjects and what the reporters are looking for.  Most times they do not pertain to me, but some days they do.  I have pitched a story, or two - maybe three.  I finally got a bite.  

Next Saturday a local magazine is coming over to photograph my two children's room, and my garage/play room (that was once my studio).  They originally said they were coming in April....I thought great, I can tidy them up by April.  The date was wrong  - it is NEXT SATURDAY!!!!

I am trying not to have a nervous breakdown, not to mention I have picked up a cold.....I know the room(s) will look great.  I am also thinking I can direct them in the right area for a photograph....("uh ya no not that section, that is where the dog ate a portion of our carpet, hey look at those great tiles on the wall!")

  

When Going Tough The Tough gets A Cold

Yep, I have a cold, and it is a doozy.   On top of everything else I get sick - and I know, I know, I got it because of the stress.....oh well.  I am going to keep chugging (Orange Juice that is) and try to work through this one.  No time for a sick Mom.  

Keep You Posted

I will take before and after pictures of my children's rooms (these are from two years ago when we were on View From the Bay, a local TV show exactly two years ago)....I don't have much work to do but I do have to do some spiffin' up, cleaning up and touching up of scuff marks.  The garage is another story all together - too many toys to count and I am always shoving stuff in corners, or moving items around they no longer play with.  Not to mention the laundry that is out there....

I will keep you posted.  I am hoping 2009 continues to look up..or out, or uh better?  Whatever it is, it has got to be better than the end of 2008.....right?

2009 New Year's Resolutions.....er Goals

January 5, 2008

One very wise woman on the Mom Entrepreneur Group I belong to suggested we call them goals instead of resolutions.  Since goals we strive for, resolutions are hard for most people to um you know keep -I am voting for goals.  Who knows, resolutions, goals, pipe-dreams - call them what you want....I got myself some goals.

I am actually tempted to do the whole Steve Martin routine from the old SNL days and he lays out his wishes peace for the world....which I do wish for all those things, but I am trying to be a little more realistic.  And, I am putting a note in on line calendar for 2010 to see if I actually was able to complete any (if not all) of my goals. 

These are my resolutions, goals for 209:

Update Jamie's Painting & Design's Website

This is already half way done by the time I am wrting this, however sometimes I don't always finish things.  My husband has been telling me for months, I mean over a year that I need to get my site search engine optimized-meta tags-crawled.....or something like that, I was not really listening.  I mean, I was listening but he is an expert in that area, me not so much.  I am doing my part by writing content and he is doing the rest and getting it ready for our webmaster. 

Find A Partner

I already touched on this in an earlier post and I am actually starting to tell people I am looking for a partner.   I am looking into joining some great organizations that can help me with this on-going challenge I am having.  I am honestly concerned about this a tad, due to the weak Economy, but I am still forging ahead.

Lean Mean Fighting Machine

We are working on a ways to cut back, get more organized, better use our time and of course save money.  The last storyI read about thousands of retail stores closing had me hyper-ventilating a bit....so I am just saying, you may want to be prepared.  We are prepared to survive.  I would rather have all the information and be prepared for a possible bad year.  The rose colored glasses have been put in the drawer by me.  Not sure when they will come out again, but I know they will.

If you are not already looking at ways to save money, cut back or just survive - you are crazy.  Okay maybe the word crazy is a little cruel but the word Recession is on everyone's tongue and I am thinking we are in for a long bumpy ride in 2009.  I could be wrong, I hope I am wrong - but if I am not wrong, I will be prepared.

Help for My Blog

My poor, poor little blog....it's like the little engine that keeps going no matter what.  I work at it, I write, I link, I twitter....it just putters on.  I would really, really like it be a better read and better linked blog.  I need to give it some more attention and I need to get better reading other blogs and staying connected.  I am of the mantra I can only do so much and if I help (entertain) 10 or 10,000 people - it is better than none. 

Keep the Balance and Keep the Faith

For those with small children they know the guilt and the pull from the business and the family is never-ending.  I am happy to say that this past year has been easier for me to stay balanced, but I could still improve.  I am also happy to say I don't have the guilt....well I still have a tad bit about not scrap-booking, buying store bought cupcakes and letting them play the wii more than I should - but I am getting better.  I still would like to do more - I still want more balance and structure in my life, my business - basically for me and especially my family.

Relax And Just Be

As an Entrepreneur and sort of creative person I find my mind wanders and I have this problem with not focusing.  Wait - not that, just that I have so many ideas and so many great plans I am sort like that child running in circles.  Most other entrepreneurial friends are very similar - too many ideas not enough time or resources to do all of them.  That is okay, I just need to take a breath and focus on what I can do, and what I can afford to do.  Maybe the 35 other things I want to do I can do next year.....

Compliancy Lead Testing...WTF?

Even though this is on the bottom of the list, it is on my front of mind.  I am trying not freak out about this, but I am still sort of freaking out.  Today someone told me (good reputable person, not a crazy tweet) that Insurance Company's are not renewing insurance without a certificate thingie.  Part of me thinks it will blow over, the other part is freaking OUT!  I will wait and see and again......be prepared for what needs to be done.