Today really brought out the challenges that face new and growing small buisinesses. I was still working on my spreadsheets but upstairs P and R had a meeting with a buisiness advisor of some sort to talk about the future of their sustainable material retail company now located in the basement and it was really a fascinating meeting to over hear.
The company is at a major cross-roads right now in terms of what service it will attempt to provide. Three architects started the company 4 years ago and it still hasn't met with much success. They aren't even breaking even with sales. Too often, clients will come in and it will because a consulting session rather than a sale. It has been really difficult to find a balance between profit and education on alternative materials. Now, they are discussing the idea of real-life retail store vs. online powerhouse. The company I think will end up making the distinct movement towards a shop with daily buisiness hours rather than an online resource but it was still cool to hear both sides of the equation.
I has been really intersting working with a company like this at such an unstable time because before I didn't really understand what is involved in becoming a successful retailer or what being a retailer even meant. Not only did I get a lot farther on my spreadsheets today but I learned a thing or two about buisiness.
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