Know Everything About Your Business

Source: http://www.evancarmichael.com/Startup/960/Know-Everything-About-Your-Business.html and visit www.thecarlu.com

Advice For Startups - Know Everything About Your Business

Whatever business you are in, know everything about it. In the event planning business people think that because they can do a dinner party at home for 10 people they can do a large event for 1,000. Start at the bottom and learn all the rungs of the business. Be a waiter, understand catering. Knowing all of the areas of the business will make you more money when you start your company. It will also help when you’re working with suppliers. When I hire waiters and staff, for example, I know what it really costs and where I can make more money. I also understand how to bill the client which is important or I wouldn’t make any money.

Be An Apprentice - Part of knowing everything about your business is learning from someone more experienced than yourself. I finished high school – that’s it. You can take hospitality at school and I’m sure there are great programs but you won’t really learn about it until you get hands on experience. I had a graphics arts business and wanted a part time job working for a caterer. I found it a very interesting business and learned how people ate with their eyes. It’s an artistic business and eventually I got hired to do a party for the opening of Les Miserables in Toronto. The person putting it on liked the work I did and took me to New York. He was my mentor. You can learn both good and bad things from mentors. You know which elements you want to copy and which ones you don’t. Now he’s my business partner and he’s calling me for advice!

Partner In 3s Or Go Solo - Partnerships are tough and I believe that if you have a partnership you should have 3 people involved. When you get into business you think you’ll get along and then you find out things about your partner that you didn’t realize before. Maybe they’re not as entrepreneurial as you, or have different business ethics. If I’m a workaholic does that mean my business partner has to be one? I can’t hold it against a partner if he is not as entrepreneurial. Having a third partner may allow for easier decision making and some accountability that is hard to establish when there are only two people involved. The main thing is getting an understanding of each person’s role. In our partnership at The Carlu, I handle the creative and my partner handles the finances. We may not always agree on everything but we successfully work out all the kinks.


Pick Your Investors Wisely - You have to pick and choose your investors. We have 11 great investors but could have raised all the money we needed in one meeting with one person. We chose not to accept that person’s money because we did our research. Someone can come to you with the money you need but you have to think about what it’s going to do to your business down the road – they could be a competitor to you. Do your research by talking to people and using the Internet. Also look at the questions they ask and answer. Look at where they see the project going in 5 years. Is this in line with your vision? Do they want to build the business to run or to sell? With this particular person we found out that he was very active and not a silent partner type of investor. He would have made it difficult for us. As an entrepreneur you still want to have some control of your vision.

Treat Your Suppliers Like Gold - I believe that what goes around comes around. Your suppliers are your most important business partners. Treat them well and pay them. I pay my suppliers before the job happens because if I’m ever in a bind I can call on them and I’ll get top service over everyone else. If there were 10 parties tomorrow, and I needed supplies, I know I would be their priority. Communication and respect are also important. You have to acknowledge them. Nobody tells people they do a good job anymore. After SARS and 9/11 many companies dropped their Christmas parties to save money – but it’s actually hurting them. We have parties for our suppliers and we try to promote them. If I scratch their backs they will scratch mine.

Match Your Brand - You should also pick the right suppliers to match your brand. Do research on your potential suppliers. How are they with their suppliers and paying their bills? One caterer I dealt with filed for bankruptcy and ripped off their bread supplier and opened up the next day under a new name. Those aren’t the people I want The Carlu to be associated with so we didn’t even consider them from our roster. I wouldn’t have known that if I didn’t do my research.

Trust Your Gut - What is the connection you have with the people who work with and for you? Do you trust them? If I sense a good energy in someone then I want to work with them and if I don’t then I won’t. Paper doesn’t mean much to me. Everyone can tell you how good they are in a resume or RFP. If you don’t trust someone don’t go with them even if they have $100,000 to give you. You have to really understand your gut before you start trusting it though.

Mistakes To Avoid - Know What You’re Good At - Too many entrepreneurs lose out because they are not business people. Don’t be an entrepreneur if you’re not a business person. Someone can be the most creative, unbelievable chef but if they can’t run a business, they should stick to being a chef. Understand your role and responsibility if you’re in it with a partner. If you don’t understand the business, you need a partner. If you understand the business side, do you need a partner?

Don’t Always Trust The Experts - Don’t always trust the professionals that come to you with their opinions and advice. It’s important for you to think outside the box and trust your instincts. There were a couple of things on this floor that the best architects in Canada came to design. We trusted our gut and questioned them because it didn’t feel right. My gut was telling me something was wrong so and didn’t match our vision so we questioned it. We wanted to stay true to our brand.

Work With Family - Everyone says don’t work with family and friends. I disagree and choose to work with my family and friends. More than half of our day is spent working so why not work with the people you know and love? It’s tough at times but it’s worked out for me. In the long run it’s worth it, I see them everyday.

Don’t Jeopardize Your Brand - In the beginning our goal was to support charity and fundraising events. We allowed them to bring in their own donated products and found ways to reduce the cost for them. The problem was they didn’t perform up to our standards, products ran out etc.. When a guest doesn’t enjoy an event the attendees don’t blame the charity, they blame the venue. We’ve learned not to jeopardize our brand anymore and have set strict guidelines.

Trust Your Employees - Once your business is up and running you have to learn to put trust in your employees. You’ll never sleep and drain yourself as an entrepreneur if you don’t put trust in your employees. I’d rather someone make an attempt at something and make a mistake than do nothing at all. It’s the effort that counts. I put trust and confidence in my staff and that has paid off – they respect me and more importantly the business I have created. I couldn’t run my successful business without the staff that I have because they are all integral to the daily success.

Accept The Fear, Take The Risk - You need to accept the fear and take the risk. My dad always told me that I should love what I do and not always worry about the money. The money will come to you if you enjoy what you do. How many people do you know who hate their job? If you want to be an architect why don’t you become one? I get up at 5:00 AM and I absolutely love every second of what I do and it doesn’t feel like work. Accept the fear and go for what you want.


If I Were To Start A New Business… - If I wasn’t running The Carlu I’d probably be an architect or photographer or run a boutique hotel. I enjoy the travel and hospitality industries and need something that is creative. I’d like to work in a carefree environment and ideally somewhere with a beach outside the front door!