Meeting my mentors

Today I went to the free counseling offered by SCORE. So far, I have found SCORE to be an excellent source of aide in creating my business plan. They have tons of great information available to Santa Barbara entrepreneurs.

My experience today was interesting. I met with Vic and David (think Statler and Waldorf from the Muppets). Two men in their 70's (if they're a day) who were absolutely darling. Wise men, for sure. Great business men, for sure. Qualified to give advice on starting a business in Santa Barbara, most likely. But they absolutely couldn't get on board with my concept. David was positive that there were not enough young women getting pregnant in Santa Barbara (he advised me to try LA or the valley where young pregnant women abound apparently). According to Cottage hospital's website there were over 2,000 pregnancies in SB proper last year. Vic felt like my having very little retail experience was a deal-ender. "Huge red flag" he said. I disagree. Obviously, I'll have a lot of learning to do but there are tons of women who've started a retail business with little-to-no experience.

Part of my goal with this blog is to track my pursuit of information. I plan to talk with as many business owners as possible. I plan to 'scout' other resale stores (there are no maternity resale stores in SB). I plan to attend classes, research the web, quiz friends and strangers, and hopefully get some sit-down time with current owners of similar stores in other areas. All of these encounters will be posted to this blog for a few reasons.

(1) To keep me accountable. Knowing that I need to keep up w/this blog will make me search for info. I desperately do not want to get distracted from this blog. I sincerely plan on making a business happen.
(2) To encourage other to-be resale store owners! In researching this industry I've found very little free information on how to get started. There are several books for purchase (online only). I absolutely love the idea that one day someone might get valuable insight from this little 'ole blog. Goose bumps.
(3) Posterity. One day...when I'm a wildly successful resale store owner (wink wink) I might enjoy reading about the days of yore (triple wink).

So stay tuned for more entries of mentorship, interviews, and general advice. I'm so pysched!