Startup Story (Loans)
Good morning.
While the title might not be the best, this is important information, so I hope you find it helpful.
Starting a business or taking on a challenge always requires money.
And that doesn't change even after you've opened; it's a persistent problem.
Even now, it's incredibly tough...
*Ukulele live performance around June 2014
As I briefly mentioned in the previous article, I started with very little financial leeway, which led to considerable hardship.
There are the costs of starting a business and the costs of operating it afterward.
It's generally said that new business owners tend to be overly optimistic about both.
I was told the same thing in consultations before opening, and it was a recurring theme in every seminar I attended.
Despite hearing about this money problem so many times it felt like my ears were calloused, I made the exact same mistakes.
Everyone gave me so much advice, but why is it so hard to prevent?
*I even sold stationery...
Perhaps it's because of the financial sense I developed from my previous life (as a salaried employee).
"Expenses" were something I thought I was conscious of.
But somehow, until then, it was the company's money, so my approach to spending and thinking about it was probably too lenient.
Just by being in the shop, rent and electricity accrue, but if nothing is produced, it's only a loss.
If you launch a new product or initiative, money first goes out as an upfront investment. If the product sells well, it's fine, but if it doesn't, it's just wasted expenses.
I experienced many times trying to sell that product by spending even more, only to end up with no results and a loss.
*Early Base Coffee Jelly, around June 2014
As I write this, I realize it's like gambling. I don't gamble at all, but there's a similar tendency, isn't there? "Next time I'll win, next time..." and so on.
My shop started with expenses overwhelmingly outweighing sales, and within six months, the initial capital ran out. I realized mid-month, six months in, that I wouldn't be able to pay the bills at the end of the month.
Somewhere in my head, I thought, "It'll work out somehow," but after crunching the numbers, I broke out in a cold sweat.
I vividly remember the reality of not being able to pay at that time and the sense of fear that came with it.
Since I had just opened, I thought the bank wouldn't lend me money, but I went to consult them anyway, just in case.
Looking back, I should have sought advice sooner, but at the time, I probably felt a strong sense of guilt about borrowing more.
I managed to secure the funds within that month, so I didn't cause any trouble for anyone, but if I hadn't been able to borrow money then, Base Coffee wouldn't exist today.
*Even amidst all that, I closed the shop to attend exhibitions in Tokyo, feeling like I was overspending on learning...
*I'm buying beans from various shops here... How much did all this cost?! ( ;∀;)
Since opening, I've invested a lot of time and money into honing my roasting skills.
Customers who have been buying beans since the beginning probably know that our Base Blend has constantly changed (sorry for the inconvenience...), sometimes the roast was too light, the bean weight varied from 200g to 250g, and so on.
*A coffee bean-shaped burn. I'm clumsy.
Somehow, we managed to continue for a year and celebrate our first anniversary, and TSUBOYA-san even visited (fond memories!).
It seems like this was also around the time, during our first year, that the number of pop-up events increased.
That day at Nagoya Coffee Stand was amazing; I feel like I was brewing coffee non-stop from opening to closing.
*My homemade coffee stand. I only used it once (I realized after opening that I couldn't use this many servers because I couldn't keep up with the hot water supply (;^_^A
To be continued
*Ukulele live performance around June 2014
As I briefly mentioned in the previous article, I started with very little financial leeway, which led to considerable hardship.
There are the costs of starting a business and the costs of operating it afterward.
It's generally said that new business owners tend to be overly optimistic about both.
I was told the same thing in consultations before opening, and it was a recurring theme in every seminar I attended.
Despite hearing about this money problem so many times it felt like my ears were calloused, I made the exact same mistakes.
Everyone gave me so much advice, but why is it so hard to prevent?
*I even sold stationery...
Perhaps it's because of the financial sense I developed from my previous life (as a salaried employee).
"Expenses" were something I thought I was conscious of.
But somehow, until then, it was the company's money, so my approach to spending and thinking about it was probably too lenient.
Just by being in the shop, rent and electricity accrue, but if nothing is produced, it's only a loss.
If you launch a new product or initiative, money first goes out as an upfront investment. If the product sells well, it's fine, but if it doesn't, it's just wasted expenses.
I experienced many times trying to sell that product by spending even more, only to end up with no results and a loss.
*Early Base Coffee Jelly, around June 2014
As I write this, I realize it's like gambling. I don't gamble at all, but there's a similar tendency, isn't there? "Next time I'll win, next time..." and so on.
My shop started with expenses overwhelmingly outweighing sales, and within six months, the initial capital ran out. I realized mid-month, six months in, that I wouldn't be able to pay the bills at the end of the month.
Somewhere in my head, I thought, "It'll work out somehow," but after crunching the numbers, I broke out in a cold sweat.
I vividly remember the reality of not being able to pay at that time and the sense of fear that came with it.
Since I had just opened, I thought the bank wouldn't lend me money, but I went to consult them anyway, just in case.
Looking back, I should have sought advice sooner, but at the time, I probably felt a strong sense of guilt about borrowing more.
I managed to secure the funds within that month, so I didn't cause any trouble for anyone, but if I hadn't been able to borrow money then, Base Coffee wouldn't exist today.
*Even amidst all that, I closed the shop to attend exhibitions in Tokyo, feeling like I was overspending on learning...
*I'm buying beans from various shops here... How much did all this cost?! ( ;∀;)
Since opening, I've invested a lot of time and money into honing my roasting skills.
Customers who have been buying beans since the beginning probably know that our Base Blend has constantly changed (sorry for the inconvenience...), sometimes the roast was too light, the bean weight varied from 200g to 250g, and so on.
*A coffee bean-shaped burn. I'm clumsy.
Somehow, we managed to continue for a year and celebrate our first anniversary, and TSUBOYA-san even visited (fond memories!).
It seems like this was also around the time, during our first year, that the number of pop-up events increased.
That day at Nagoya Coffee Stand was amazing; I feel like I was brewing coffee non-stop from opening to closing.
*My homemade coffee stand. I only used it once (I realized after opening that I couldn't use this many servers because I couldn't keep up with the hot water supply (;^_^A
To be continued