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WBDC Retail/Franchise Initiative Client Success Stories
Company Name: Curves Little Village
Contact/Owner: Maria Justa Ponce
Address: 3948 West 26th Street, Suite 109
Telephone: 773-542-5254
Business Type: Fitness Center
Employee: 2 full-time, 2 part-time
Maria Justa Ponce, owner of Curves located in Little Village, turned what seemed to be a roadblock into a great career opportunity. After losing her job of 30 years due to company downsizing, she decided to open her own fitness center in her community after identifying the absence of a major fitness center specifically for women in Little Village. Backed by many years of experience in administrative and management positions, she launched her plan to start her business.
Justa explored fitness franchise options and was immediately attracted to Curves for its structured fitness plan for women. After receiving the franchise paperwork from the Curves headquarters, she decided to come to the Women’s Business Development Center to obtain financial and technical assistance.
At the WBDC she attended the franchise, marketing and financial workshops. After the educational seminars she met with Janice Lopez, WBDC Business Counselor for individualized counseling sessions which were instrumental in helping her develop a solid business plan and securing a sizeable loan from Foster Bank. Moreover, the WBDC helped create community linkages with the local television and radio stations to feature her business, which led to increased exposure. "The WBDC provided me with all options and resources. In the end, however, they let me make my own decision. And I loved the fact that I can make my own decisions with the given resources. Whenever I need help, I’ll call the WBDC."
On March 29, 2006 Justa will celebrate her second year in business. Her goals include educating Latinas on the benefits of incorporating exercise in their everyday lives. Although she admits that it is a challenging process to establish one’s own business, she is extremely gratified when she is able to help people become healthier and re-energized.
Maria Justa Ponce finds great optimism in the midst of challenges. "There’s always going to be mistakes and challenges, but you learn as you go. If you take a step back, the next step can be a jump forward."
Company Name: Loopy Yarns
Contact/Owner Name: Vicki Sayre
Address: 719 S. State St., Chicago, IL 60605
Telephone: 312-583-9276
Business Type: Yarn, knitting and crocheting
Employees: 4
Vicki Sayre’s yarn/knitting/crocheting retail store came about from a moment of epiphany after returning from a knitting retreat. What better way to combine her passion for yarns and nurture her business skills? Approximately one year later on September 8, 2005, she successfully opened up her retail store named Loopy Yarns. After knitting and crocheting for over 30 years and after many years of working in the corporate world, Vicki turned her hobby into a business reality.
Vicki read about the Women’s Business Development Center on their website, www.wbdc.org, and was referred to the WBDC by the Small Business Administration. She enrolled in the WBDC JumpStart business development series and individual business counseling sessions. Through this process, she learned “all of the key things to do business” such as how to write a business plan, how to conduct market research and cash flow planning. Vicki urges entrepreneurs to come for further counseling at the WBDC with an open mind as soon as any questions or concerns are raised: “I wish I had come for further advice within my first couple months after opening. The feedback I've received from the WBDC in the past couple of months has been invaluable to evaluate my inventory purchases wisely”.
Vicki began her market research by talking to other business owners and yarn stores. As a result, she came to two conclusions: 1) there was no yarn store near public transportation for easy access to customers, and 2) there were not enough knitting stores with a friendly atmosphere. After finding her niche, she identified a location in the newly flourishing South Loop area and focused much of her efforts in hiring the right employees in order to create a friendly place for customers to shop.
Despite some challenges as a start-up retail business, such as delayed opening date and maintaining an accurate account of her inventory, Vicki persevered to do what she loves to do while sustaining her business. Loopy Yarns currently provides many levels of classes on knitting and crocheting, and more importantly provides a friendly atmosphere for the customer. Vicki gains “tremendous satisfaction and inspiration when people learn and enjoy the knitting experience.” Always thinking about customer satisfaction, she plans to expand Loopy Yarns further by creating additional classrooms in the lower level of the current facility for various knitting/crocheting classes.
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