I just got a fun note from Mr. Wood in South Korea who read the Yahoo Finance page story on me. I like the FBI connection. I am going to write him back and see what kind of business he’s going to start up. I also am interested to dialogue with him about the challenges of setting up a business in South Korea.

Ms. Faiola,

I just loved your story on yahoo.com. It epitomizes the American dream. It’s awesome!

http://finance.yahoo.com/smallbiz/article/featuredbiz/26545

I, too, wanted to join the FBI after the military. I was recruited in NC but the wait was too long for me, 8-10 months. So I ended up working with UNIX-based systems. I think it was the better choice in the long-term.

I’m trying to start a small business, too, but it’s not easy drumming up customers. I’m keeping my day job for now. 🙂

 

I came across some outdated news that Emma Faust Tillman, once the world’s oldest living person, died at 114. Normally I would marvel at her longevity and then move on to the next news article. In this case, something caught my eye – she was an entrepreneur with her own business! A woman, and a black woman at that, with her own business in 1910 is something worth doing more research on.

She was the daughter of former slaves (one of 23 children in her family!) and became the first black graduate of her high school. She had bookkeeping experience and took courses in bookkeeping so that she could keep the books at her father’s farm.

But, racial discrimination was very prevalent and she was not allowed to take those bookkeeping skills to work in an office setting. So, she started her own cooking and baking catering company (something in common with our beloved Martha Stewart who started on her multi-billion-dollar business from similar humble beginnings). She baked for such greats such as Katharine’s Hepburn’s father and Jackie Robinson and even President Franklin D. Roosevelt when he stayed at the old Heublein Hotel in Hartford.

Being a woman entrepreneur comes with its own challenges today. The obstacles must have been tenfold back in Ms. Faust’s day. We are so fortunate to have access to SBA small loans (where women get preference points just for being of the female persuasion), strong female leaders to look up to (Oprah, Andrea Jung, Anne Mulcahy, Martha Stewart, Idra Nooyi to name a few) and a culture that is more open to women taking charge of their own destinies. My hat’s off to Ms. Faust for leading such a long and storied life, helping to pave the way for other women entrepreneurs.

Can this man do no wrong? Wow, David from The Bubble Room has gotten another national press mention. On page 99 of the new People Style Watch, he gets another shout-out as a “local fave.” One of these days, we’ll have to get him to share his wisdom with us on attracting national press.

Sparkle Fluff using foaming bath butter! Fun stuff! Sharon, the owner of Sparkle Cookie, is going to school to be a librarian and she’s also incredibly crafty as you can see from her web site.

A local Otion customer, Gail, just wrote me about some fun things she’s doing with her fragrances.

Anne-Marie, I just wanted to say how much I’m enjoying the new scents I bought, and the samples you gave me from your store. Thanks to you I’ll be trying some scent combinations I may not have thought of otherwise. I made some gingered peach soap bars w/the peach sample fragrance, a sachet w/Beach Breezes, and am looking forward to creating some tropical blends w/the lime fragrance sample. Thanks again for your great service!

I personally think that the Lime makes a great blending fragrance. Lime, plus a little Ginger, plus a dash of Dark Rich Chocolate? Hummmmm, so good, so good. Can you imagine that as a body scrub or a whipped souffle creme?

From a business angle of things, making new products with ingredients you already own (no new outlay of capital, no new inventory to store) seems like a win-win situation. If you make up any fun new blends and want to share, be sure to email me and I’ll publish your good idea in our newsletter or on this Blog.

I had the privledge of being a guest speaker at Western Washington University on Tuesday night for the International Business Club and the Marketing Club. It was entirely invigorating and I loved the questions posed by the students. It ends up being a bit of a trip down memory lane for me.

The talk was supposed to be focused on Bramble Berry’s international marketing and a discussion about how we ship to international customers. It ended up being more of a general business talk so I worry that I didn’t have enough topical information for the students. But, several of them did take business cards and hopefully will take me up on the offer to tour the warehouse and ask any follow up questions that they might have. So far, one very confident sounding student (“Jazz”) who has owned a vending machine business has already called. That’s the kind of follow-up I like to see with any would-be entrepreneur.

Some of the questions that were asked were general start up questions (How much money did it take? Where did you start out? How much did you work? What was the worst part of starting a business?) to current questions (Who helps run your business? How many people do you employ? How big is your warehouse? How much do you make? How do you market to your customers? Who are your customers?)

It was a fun talk and I hope that I get invited back. Not only was I inspired by the student’s enthusiasm and proverbial zest for life but I liked taking a walk down memory lane and remembering the mattress at my 3rd warehouse so I could sleep there, or the pain of our first stolen credit card or the absolute joy after Bramble Berry grossed it’s first $million. So, Western, if you’re reading this, please consider this an open-ended acceptance for any invitations you’ve got open to speak. It was a great experience.

One of my favorite and longest-time customers is Scott Blackson from The Soap Fairy. He’s been a customer for going on seven or eight years! First of all, I love his name. But it’s not just a whimsical name that sets him apart. He follows it up with a comprehensive line of soaps and toiletries and an amazing attitude to boot. The guy is just a ball of fire, doing more than seems possible in any one day. We actually publish one of his books through our small press (Red Wheelbarrow Press) on how to market to consumers if you’re just a wee, start up business. It’s called “Marketing Your Handmade Crafts” and it’s a down to earth, easy read that will be sure to give you some great ideas and food for thought. When you go to his web site, notice that he has a newsletter ‘zine to keep his customers informed about his goings-on and product information. Connecting with your customers is always a good idea.