Business Discussions

Name: Gwen Sullivan Business:  Joyn Launched: April 2018 (congratulations, Gwen!) Location: Portland, OR Gwen Sullivan has spent years working in the sports and fitness industry, but she’s spent far longer feeling like she was a “fitness misfit.” As a kid, she played sports but always preferred the team element to the workout itself. Later, as a busy adult juggling working and parenting, fitness felt like a chore. When Gwen discovered she wasn’t the only one feeling resentful in the gym, she decided it was time to make a change. She’d stop focusing on reps and steps or minutes and miles and start finding activities that she simply enjoyed. This shift in thinking inspired Gwen to create Joyn, a website that curates community-oriented, inclusive group classes designed for fitness – but far more importantly, to promote movement and joy. Gwen, tell us more about the inspiration behind Joyn. I created Joyn because I wanted to change the conversation around movement by starting with jo

Name: Kelly Watters Business: Western Rise Launched: 2015 Location: Telluride, CO Kelly Watters is a 4th-generation entrepreneur, and her husband, Will, comes from three generations of business self-starters. So when they decided to start a sustainable technical-apparel business together, Kelly and Will knew they’d be working long hours, juggling multiple roles and responsibilities, solving unexpected problems and trying to stay positive along the way. Turns out, everything they anticipated about launching, running and growing Western Rise has come true. Also true? Kelly and Will love building an outdoor-retailing business together. As Kelly explains, “I’m the CEO, CFO and COO. Will is the creative director, and he manages all the product and works directly with the marketing team. We get more efficient at what we do every year – so we just keep taking on more projects! We love building something we believe is amazing.” Kelly, what inspired you and Will to launch Western Rise? Will an

  Fact: Outdoor activities keep our mind and our body health. Another fact: The gear and clothing we need for many outdoor activities often cause severe sticker shock. We’re not just talking about full-suspension hardtail mountain bikes and downhill skills with a titanium backbone. A good winter jacket and “breathable” T-shirts aren’t exactly cheap.   One reason for the steep price tag is that outdoor gear makers increasingly are trying to manufacture goods in an earth-friendly manner. It makes sense that an industry devoted to enjoying and, thus, preserving, the great outdoors is using natural, sustainable materials and non-toxic chemicals and dyes, as well as supporting fair labor and ethical trade practices. But all those great decisions mean higher costs for consumers.   In response, some forward-thinking entrepreneurs are finding ways to make outdoor gear more affordable while also being kind to the environment. The inspiration starts with a shift in mindset from

    Did you know that over 60% of the land in the United States is privately held and largely unused? That’s just one of the surprising facts you can learn from Hipcamp.com, an online platform that connects landowners to campers. Think of it as Airbnb for fans of sleeping under the stars. But instead of listing private rental homes, Hipcamp lists private land for camping.     Hipcamp aims to do more than just help people find a place to pitch a tent. The company’s parallel mission is to promote land preservation and conservation through peer-to-peer commerce. The intended audience? Wilderness lovers who like camping but despise crowded campgrounds. With interest in outdoor recreation soaring, the solitude and quiet of an untouched location is a prized commodity -- one that outdoor enthusiasts are willing to pay for.   The opportunity for enterprising entrepreneurs? Figure out how to give customers a rarified (or, at least, highly sought-after) encounter

As a kid fresh out of high school, avid skiier Ben Anderson learned the basics of ski-making from friends. Here's how the founder and CEO of Denver-based Icelantic Skis got his start turning a personal passion into a booming business.                     Does your business reflect a strong personal interest of yours? When did you decide that you were going to turn your passion into your profession, and how did you go about it?

    Many of the today’s most successful companies have been able to change and improve their business model thanks to instant, ongoing feedback from customers about what they like, love and loathe about the company’s goods or services. Business behemoths like Amazon, Facebook, Google and Waze can quickly glean insights about their customers’ experiences and practices so they can iterate and improve the user experience -- and offer more relevant product recommendations, too.   Companies in the outdoors industry as just as keen to tap into the instant customer feedback loop. But here’s an inherent conundrum: Since customers tend to be sailing the seas, hiking in the backcountry or otherwise off the grid when using their products, how can said businesses tap into that intelligence-gathering power?   To explore that question, Scott Galloway, digital marketing professor at NYU and co-founder of GartnerL2, a brand research and ranking firm, has come up with a “New

Name: Elisabeth Young Business: ElisaAnne Calligraphy Location: Atlanta, GA Launched: 2016 Elisabeth Young admits that she was never a great employee, as she was easily frustrated by unnecessary inefficiencies. Such frustration was a big factor in why she quit her corporate job and started working for herself creating custom wedding invitations. Initially, Elisabeth was excited to launch a new creative career. But, as many entrepreneurs have experienced first-hand, Elisabeth’s unquenchable passion for her business was almost squashed flat by the tough reality of working by herself day after day. Elisabeth opens up about her struggles with depression and anxiety during her first year of business and how she learned to cope and to heal. We appreciate her candid conversation about a sensitive topic. We hope others in our QB Community read this post and remember that they, like Elisabeth, are not alone in experiencing the ups and downs of running a business. [The following is based on a

Name: Christina DiEdoardo Business: Law Offices of Christina DiEdoardo Founded: 2006 Christina DiEdoardo was just a few months out of law school in Las Vegas when her boss, an attorney with a solo practice, left for maternity leave. Unsure if or when her employer would return, Christina figured she might as well start her own practice. For the next few years, working on myriad “weird and interesting” criminal and bankruptcy cases helped her build a reputation as an attorney to be reckoned with. So, too, did Christina’s willingness to be a pioneer in her industry. She was the first student at her law school to undergo a gender transition, and she remains the only openly transgender licensed attorney in the State of Nevada. Today, Christina runs her solo practice from her adopted home of San Francisco, where she drives her business forward with passion, dedication, determination and humor. In short, Christina does it her way. Christina, you built a successful law practice in Nevada. Whe

Name: Ben Cleaveland (CTE director) and Maggie del Castillo (CTE board co-president) Business: Conservatory Theater Ensemble at Tamalpais High School Location: Mill Valley, CA Founded: 1962 Question: What do students in a high school theater program have in common with small business owners everywhere? If you’re a student in the Conservatory Theater Ensemble (CTE) at Tamalpais High School in Mill Valley, CA, the answer is, well, everything. CTE is a student-operated organization, and the 350 teens currently enrolled are learning about far more than Shakespeare, script writing and scene blocking. Effectively serving as “owners-employees” of a small business, they’re also getting first-hand business training on managing money -- including budgeting, P&L and invoicing – as well as how to raise capital, market a product, grow their customer base and, sometimes, deal with unexpected fiscal constraints. Intrigued? So were we. That’s why we sat down with CTE director Ben Cleaveland and

  All this month we're taking a look at how our outdoor environment is creating new opportunities for small business. Lucas Zhao skated into the photography business - literally. Inspired by the great outdoors and his love of skateboarding, he's turned his passion into his profession.     How about you? How have your surroundings guided your small business journey? What inspires you when you look around your workspace (inside or out)? Want to weigh in but not yet a QB Community member? Click HERE to sign up in a flash!

We are using DMS as our document management in our firm. I’m looking for a Cloud one that integrate with lacerte. Any suggestion? Not fan of SmartVault. Thanks!

  Nani Waddoups has more than two-decades experience as an entrepreneur, and that doesn’t even include her past six years running a private therapy practice in Portland, OR. As a seasoned small business owner and a professional counselor, QB Community member Nani is uniquely positioned to offer up self-care strategies for staying centered and grounded -- something particularly important for entrepreneurs working around the clock to build a successful business. Beware the Red Dot Syndrome As Nani explains in this profile, the high-tech age we live in has created not just connection, but, for many of us, a sense of over-connectedness. The dot in “Red Dot Syndrome” refers to the notification icon alerting us that someone or something needs our attention. Nani points out our addiction (yes, she uses this word deliberately) to instantly responding to anything and everything is disruptive, to say the least. “When we see a red dot icon, we immediately stop what we are doing, stop what w

Name: Ben Gucciardi Business: Soccer Without Borders Launched: 2006 Located: Boston, MA (national office), Oakland, CA (largest US program) plus cities throughout the United States and overseas Ben Gucciardi was earning his M.A. in global educational leadership, working in youth development for underserved families and playing a lot of soccer when he had an idea. The California native realized soccer could be a tool to help struggling kids learn to better communicate, connect and collaborate with their peers, parents and teachers. Could he build a program around his favorite sport (at one point, Ben played soccer semi-pro) to help disadvantaged youth? Over the next year, Ben kept thinking and writing about his idea. Then his partner (who is now his wife) pointed out there were almost no summer programs for refugee kids arriving in Oakland from places like Burma, Afghanistan and Iraq. Maybe Ben could develop a soccer-based program designed specifically to help those students? Ben could

  Name: Michelle Kagarmanov Business: Mystic Hills Hideaway / Mystic Trails Rentals Location: Black Hills, South Dakota Launched: 2013 (bought the existing business from previous owners) Before Michelle Kagarmanov moved back to her home state of South Dakota, she was the program director of a non-profit working with refugee students in Minneapolis. She and her husband were ready to start a family of their own, so when her dad, aka “Pops”, called to ask if she’d run a newly purchased Black Hills RV resort with cabins, a restaurant/bar and off-road vehicle rentals she saw it as an opportunity to be near family, as well as to make her own schedule. With motorized sports ranking as the number one outdoor recreation activity in the U.S., their Mystic Hills Hideaway caters to a year-round clientele of ATV, UTV and snowmobile enthusiasts who come for the 500 miles of US Forest Service trails directly accessible from the campground. We spoke with Michelle about how they balance the seas

Name: Diana Marie Estey Business: Alive Anew Launched: 1998 Located: Wellesley, MA and Mill Valley, CA Diana Marie Estey has long been an outdoor enthusiast and a health and wellness buff, and she’s always relished having the freedom and creativity to do her own thing, too. Years ago, when she was working as an outdoor educator in three different states, Diana started running her own weekend trips on the side. She loved offering clients thoughtfully planned excursions for cross-country skiing, kayaking, yoga and more. Eventually, Diana opened her own business, Alive Anew, offering instruction for individuals and groups in outdoor fitness, yoga, meditation and mindfulness. In addition, Diana began leading weekend retreats in New England and Northern California and longer hiking and yoga retreats in Baja and the mountains of Europe. We spoke with Diana about creating a business based on her love of communing with nature while helping clients build a strong, flexible mind, body and spiri

How to make great medical mobile app? Is it good idea nowadays?

Have you checked the weather forecast today? Depending what product or service you offer, the weather – and, to put it more broadly, the seasons – may be a significant factor in your overall business strategy. Let’s say, for example, that you run a summer camp for kids, a lawn care company, a commercial fishing business or you sell gourmet ice cream from a truck. You know that when the temperature climbs and the sun shines, your business will be booming. You might base most or even all of your annual revenue goals on the income you earn during those critical few months. Maybe you need to hire extra employees during your busy season or plan to ramp up your marketing campaign for that key period of time. For those reasons and more, you need to carefully manage everything from your budget and payroll to your cash flow and operating expenses throughout the entire year to ensure you sail through the high season – and, just as important, stay on track during the ensuing quiet times, too. P

      "It takes money to make money" - Sol Luckman   As an accountant and small business owner, I am all too familiar with this old adage. Any company that accepts checks or credit card payments from their clients knows that it will cost them money, to accept the money they made.  While merchant processing fees are difficult to avoid completely, a little extra knowledge can go a long way and save you a lot of money!   Three Tier vs Interchange Plus   Before selecting a merchant processing company it is important to understand the different fee calculations and how they would impact your business.   Three Tier merchant processing: A large majority of the merchant processing companies, including bank provided merchant services, like to boil down the charges per card into three rate categories   1: Qualified = ATM/DEBIT Card Purchases  2: Mid Qualified = Standard Credit Cards 3: Non-Qualified = Rewa

For me, June is all about open-air markets - the perfect time for local farmers, artists, and artisans to get outside and meet their customers face to face. What does June mean to you and your business? What's your one-word theme for this time of year?   Want to weigh in but not yet a QB Community member? Click HERE to sign up in a flash!   QB Community Home          Talk About Your Business          Find Inspiration     

My first summer job at age 16 was at the mall, at a fudge kiosk where I was required to ask passersby if they would like a free sample. Truth time: It sucked. BUT, in retrospect all that stepping up to senior citizens looping the floor for exercise helped prepare me for a whole lotta cold-calling when I first started working for myself.   As any teen will tell you, summer is the time for self-employment. What was your first summer job, and how did it inform your perception of working for yourself? Did you learn any skills that helped prepare you for your current gig?

  The future of business is happening now. Small business owners who are adopting Artificial Intelligence, machine learning and automation technology today are positioning their business to succeed in the coming years. It’s no surprise that many of our savvy QB Community members are automating (or attempting to automate) some aspect of their business. Here, we’re sharing a roundup of what they’re doing and why.   Automating to speed up production   “Our popsicle production early on involved plastic molds in a freezer overnight. Now we use a high-powered machine that freezes over around 200 pops an hour! And someday we'll hopefully have large-scale popsicle machine equipment that can freeze and package many more pops at a time than we could dream.” -- Alexia Burke, Izza Pops   “The construction industry is an old-school trade so we don’t really automate much, although tools help us make things easier. Of course, smartphones with cameras are a godsend and frequentl

  The fashion industry is constantly changing -- for proof, just check the back of your closet for those once beloved pleated jeans, shorteralls and the blazer with quarterback-worthy shoulder pads. In fashion, it’s not just the styles that are evolving -- the way we shop has fundamentally shifted, too. Today, we can browse and buy without ever leaving our living room and still get our items delivered in time for a last-minute business lunch. Or we can sit back and leave the decisions in the hands of professional stylists we’ve never actually met. No matter the approach to finding fashion, we pretty much all agree we want shopping to be easy, convenient and, in many cases, customized. Let’s take a look at what’s hip for today’s mass consumer fashion industry and what the takeaway could be for the small business owner (SBO). Trend #1: Move over catalog, there’s a new mail-order fashion trend in town Sites like Stitch Fix, Fabletics, Adore Me, Rent the Runway and Trunk Club all

I'll tell you a secret: There was a time not so long ago when I was still sending PDF invoices and keeping printouts in a binder (I know, I know!). There comes a moment in every self-employed life when you realize you can't afford not to invest in the right tools to keep track of your finances. When did you decide you needed a reliable financial management platform? Did you reach a certain milestone in terms of sales, clients, accounts? Or did you just hit a wall?

  All through the month of May we've been focusing on the many ways that recent technological advances have changed the way we do business. Here's what QB Community members had to say on the subject!   Social Media Has Changed the Business Conversation "The days where a brand could craft its message and send it out to the world as being carved in stone are over. [Thanks to social media], the brand at best can state its position and communicate it, but...it now becomes shared with the world -- consumers, prospects, customers -- and they can do with the brand what they wish, to a large extent. The brand is no longer this stoic monolith that stands unchallenged, but rather is an equal voice in a digitally-connected ecosystem and community, no more powerful than any other voice." ~ @TheDotConnector   Everything Is "Instagrammable" "Being a product-based business means I have to think about every aspect of my product, from the container it is housed in, the labels and t

Maybe it was the day you ordered your first batch of business cards. Or the first referral you ever received. If you’re like @LeslieBarber, QB Community Leader and co-founder of Nutrabella, it was first time someone purchased your product who wasn’t a friend or family member.   What was the moment or milestone that made you realize you were running a REAL business? That you became a REAL business owner, entrepreneur?