NT! Anybody run/ran their own business?

[twenty four seven]

Interested to hear all kinds of stories as I am looking to do so myself within the next couple of years... thinking the NT'ers dream of a sneakershop or barber shop. What were you startup costs? Instant success/fail? Any input is appreciated.

 

[ricky409]

and no clothing lines, either...

interest has peaked, fambs...

i'm invested in this thread from here on out...

 

[socluis90]

Read this book first... if you feel you can handle the things mentioned in there go ahead. You can read it in a day and it will be one of the most valuable books you will read if you really start your own business. 

http://www.amazon.com/The...Businesses/dp/0887307280

 

[freakydestroyer]

Yall not bout that life. 

 

[patrick bateman]

[color= rgb(255, 0, 0)]I need importers/buyers/distributors of mobile phones, organic fertilizer and medical supplies. [/color]

 

[zyr12]

Checking in.

 

[eiddyfouw]

Originally Posted by freakydestroyer

Yall not bout that life. 

Truth be told 99.9% of NT (or society) ain't. 
It's not easy, long days, long nights, A LOT of stress that things may not work out. 

Taking a pay cut for a while before you can really sit comfortably. 

I'm on that path right now.  I own (half of) a small media company, but it's been a horrific year.  Clients pulling out left right and center due to financial issues.  

I'm already looking into other entrepeneurship ventures, I'm hoping to get positive feedback in the next few weeks.

Let me just say, it does NOT come easy. 

Unless you're willing to risk it all, stick to your day job.

 

[keif sweat]

Originally Posted by freakydestroyer

Yall not bout that life. 

Thanks for the advice Mr. Buffett

I'm in the same boat OP. Check out quora.com. Its basically a place you can ask answers about anything ranging from entrepreneurial endeavors to investing; you name it its on there. The best part is you can read other questions and answers that have previously been asked and users are continuously ranked based on the value of their answers so they're usually very informative. Its been a godsend to me over the last few months...I'm sure you can find almost all the info you need there

 

[chaostheory]

Originally Posted by eiddyfouw

Originally Posted by freakydestroyer

Yall not bout that life. 

Truth be told 99.9% of NT (or society) ain't. 
It's not easy, long days, long nights, A LOT of stress that things may not work out. 

Taking a pay cut for a while before you can really sit comfortably. 

I'm on that path right now.  I own (half of) a small media company, but it's been a horrific year.  Clients pulling out left right and center due to financial issues.  

I'm already looking into other entrepeneurship ventures, I'm hoping to get positive feedback in the next few weeks.

Let me just say, it does NOT come easy. 

Unless you're willing to risk it all, stick to your day job.

funny cuz its true. 

I've got a part-time job and I'm starting a clothing business on the side.  If you are trying to start something up.. I'd suggest doing it on the side for the first little bit because you won't be able to survive just on that start-up in the beginning.

 

[erickm713]

I know there's a couple NTr's that own restaurants right?

 

[ciph4]

Originally Posted by socluis90


Read this book first... if you feel you can handle the things mentioned in there go ahead. You can read it in a day and it will be one of the most valuable books you will read if you really start your own business. 

http://www.amazon.com/The...Businesses/dp/0887307280

+1

 

[eiddyfouw]

 

[skateboard]

My father started his own fabric retail business back when we first came to Connecticut. It was a hard start, but it was successful and now he owns 2 fabric stores and makes anywhere between
$100-150k a year, before taxes.

 

[thunderchunk69]

Originally Posted by Patrick Bateman

[color= rgb(255, 0, 0)] [/color]

 I hope I'm misinterpreting you 

 

[sixfoot nathan]

i'll be taking over the family diner business in a few years, i dont have any experience in food services but i'm starting to do some research now
hopefully i can build the business up and make it better than ever.. need some tips from restauranteurs

 

[ybyb19]

I was also thinking of starting my own business but im still in college and about to be junior pre pharm major which is becoming pretty demanding fast, so idk if I can balance the 2 while being sucessful at both
...p.s. I have no intention of ever pursuing pharmacy

im just in school b/c both my parents come from strong educational backgrounds (dad's professor) so I don't think I could just drop out of college without getting kicked out the house smh at wasting time and money but i guess I'll have a my bio degree

and I would give up anything to start my business but dropping out of school will create a world problems not just with my family but also financially(im 19)...any advice is appreciated

 

[odog24]

i run the streets thats about it

 

[patrick bateman]

Originally Posted by ThunderChunk69

Originally Posted by Patrick Bateman

[color= rgb(255, 0, 0)] [/color]

 I hope I'm misinterpreting you 

[color= rgb(255, 0, 0)]I'm dead serious actually.. I need foreign markets though, that's where the big money is

[/color]

 

[18th letter]

I was thinking about this early today.

I mean of course its hard to run your own business and what not, but we've seen those success stories like vending machines and red boxes, and dudes is caking.

What about car washes? What are the start up costs for one of those?

 

[girlslovewaffles]

owning a business is difficult. starting it up is even harder.

for every success story you hear, there's thousands of untold failure stories.

reading entrepreneurial books aren't going to help you. most of them just reiterate things you should already know. if you don't, there's not a great chance that you will pick it up because a lot of the entrepreneurial spirit is developed over a long period of time. if you weren't a business-minded individual as a child growing up, it will be tough for you. there are so many intangibles when it comes to starting a business that reading books just isn't going to cut it. there's definitely an "it" factor that needs to be recognized before you go out and start something.

OP is thinking of starting a barbershop or sneaker shop. i don't think the former is a good business model because the barbershop experience in itself is all about talking and befriending the barber. now, if that's what you want, you can start one up and be a small business owner. but if we're talking more money, it's just not going to be possible to deliver that "barbershop service" as an absentee owner. no one is going to treat their customer better than the owner so if you're not there, a classic barbershop just aint gonna cut it. idk about you, but cutting hair for the rest of your life isn't exactly a luxurious lifestyle. as for a sneakershop, i will cosign it under one condition: it's not your main source of revenue. what i mean by this is is you better have a sweet e-commerce site that does 99.9% of the sales volume because NO ONE is going to be buying enough shoes from your store so that you can pay rent and line your wallet. it should be there just for looks, kind of like a flagship establishment. maybe once in awhile, someone will come in, try something on, and cop it. if you're not going to have an online presence, don't bother because you might as well just burn your cash in a fire.

when people ask me what it takes to be an entrepreneur, i usually just tell them that not only do you have to see 2-3 steps ahead, you basically need to see all the steps leading up to the finish line. then, it's just a matter of letting things run its course while giving your input and time. managing people is crucial. managing expectations is even more important.

PS: the term "entrepreneur" is used a little too loosely IMO. most people are small business owners. true entrepreneurs are more in the business of starting multiple ventures, scaling them, and either selling them or letting them run on its own. small business owners are more likely to start a business and just work on that business as their main source of income. for example, founder of super cuts vs your neighborhood barber.

 

[str8hood]

I own my own business. It is a Computer Repair store (check sig).

I started out when I was in high school, fixing computers for friends & family. When I went to college, I became the resident "computer repair guy". After I dropped out of school (smh), I got a job at Best Buy. The purpose was primarily to learn how to run a business. Started off as a Part-Time employee and worked my way up to manager in about 18 months. I learned as much as I could while there in all facets of the business. Their successes, I built on. Their failures, I turned into successes for myself.

I quit Best Buy about 3 years ago to start my own business. I left a 75k + a year position to pursue the possibility of financial freedom. I started out doing house-calls via word-of-mouth. Built up a pretty big clientele within a few months. It was difficult travelling to everyone's home/business, so I decided to take the plunge and open a storefront. Things were slow at first, but I let all of my current clientele know about the storefront.

Over the past 3 years, I have been able to successfully run this business by myself. I generally work 12-16 hour days. It has not been easy, but it has been fun. Being an entrepreneur was always my dream. I am living that dream. It feels great.

We have made a little over $500,000 over the past 2 years. I am now looking for employees as well as scouting locations to open up more stores. I'm looking forward to the potential.

I must note that the business was only successful because of the blood, sweat, and tears I put into it. I am passionate about my company and I refuse to fail.

Sidenote: it cost me approx. $5000 out of pocket to open the business. The business has been self-sufficient since then. I have not spent another penny of my own money. Also, keep in mind that computers have gone from a luxury/pastime to a necessity. It is something you need to factor into your gameplan. People can live without luxury cars, possibly even haircuts. However, people CANNOT and WILL NOT live without their computers or the use of them.

Good luck in your future endeavors. Feel free to PM me if you have any more specific questions.

I wish you success!

 

[girlslovewaffles]

Originally Posted by Str8Hood

I own my own business. It is a Computer Repair store (check sig).

I started out when I was in high school, fixing computers for friends & family. When I went to college, I became the resident "computer repair guy". After I dropped out of school (smh), I got a job at Best Buy. The purpose was primarily to learn how to run a business. Started off as a Part-Time employee and worked my way up to manager in about 18 months. I learned as much as I could while there in all facets of the business. Their successes, I built on. Their failures, I turned into successes for myself.

I quit Best Buy about 3 years ago to start my own business. I left a 75k + a year position to pursue the possibility of financial freedom. I started out doing house-calls via word-of-mouth. Built up a pretty big clientele within a few months. It was difficult travelling to everyone's home/business, so I decided to take the plunge and open a storefront. Things were slow at first, but I let all of my current clientele know about the storefront.

Over the past 3 years, I have been able to successfully run this business by myself. I generally work 12-16 hour days. It has not been easy, but it has been fun. Being an entrepreneur was always my dream. I am living that dream. It feels great.

We have made a little over $500,000 over the past 2 years. I am now looking for employees as well as scouting locations to open up more stores. I'm looking forward to the potential.

I must note that the business was only successful because of the blood, sweat, and tears I put into it. I am passionate about my company and I refuse to fail.

Sidenote: it cost me approx. $5000 out of pocket to open the business. The business has been self-sufficient since then. I have not spent another penny of my own money. Also, keep in mind that computers have gone from a luxury/pastime to a necessity. It is something you need to factor into your gameplan. People can live without luxury cars, possibly even haircuts. However, people CANNOT and WILL NOT live without their computers or the use of them.

Good luck in your future endeavors. Feel free to PM me if you have any more specific questions.

I wish you success!

i don't want to sound like a ****, but i think you should revamp your site. it does not look well put together and i think a lot of newcomers would be deterred from it's lack of cohesiveness and presentation.

do you do any retail sales? have you looked into the possibility of selling repair kits or complementary items online? i recommend shopify as a streamlined e-commerce platform. it will give your site a modern and professional look, as well as let you sell some stuff online to generate more revenue. the best thing about selling online is that it's scalable.

OH, and i just clicked your link and my anti-virus said that an attack attempt was made

 

[girlslovewaffles]

also, make sure you NEVER TELL PEOPLE MORE THAN YOU NEED TO.

it's one thing to bounce ideas off colleagues. it's another to have loose lips and give away all your secrets.

 

[str8hood]

You're right, looks like the site has been compromised. I'm about to pull it down. 
I built this site years ago and have not spent much time working on it. I have a new re-designed site on my computer currently, I need pictures to complete it. 

Thanks for the heads-up btw. Horrible for a computer repair store to have a virus on their site

Edit: Took the website down. Virus infected the server. Fixed problem, back online.

I now have motivation to upload the new website.

 

[girlslovewaffles]

Originally Posted by Str8Hood

You're right, looks like the site has been compromised. I'm about to pull it down. 
I built this site years ago and have not spent much time working on it. I have a new re-designed site on my computer currently, I need pictures to complete it. 

Thanks for the heads-up btw. Horrible for a computer repair store to have a virus on their site

Edit: Took the website down. Virus infected the server. Fixed problem, back online.

I now have motivation to upload the new website.

cool, glad i was of help.