Authentic Business Adventures Podcast

Draw In Customers Business Coach James Kademan
  • 5.0 (4)
  • Entrepreneurship
  • Updated Weekly

The business podcast designed for entrepreneurs and small business owners to be inspired by, listen to, enjoy and take some action from.

  1. 1d ago

    IV Bars to Reenergize

    Shahayra Majumder and Jonathan Chizever - Hydrate IV Bar Madison, WI On Focusing on What Really Matters: "They're passionate about their health, which is your only wealth at the end of the day." What good is money if you're spending your time hurting and not able to enjoy this great gift of life that we have all been given?  Health is arguably the most important thing to focus on, to make sure you can do the things you want to do.  Whether that is growing a business or enjoying time with friends. Shahayra and Jonathan set out to help boost the health of the midwest by starting a Hydrate IV Bar franchise in Madison, Wisconsin. Through our candid conversation you will learn what is a IV bar, why do people get IV drips and how they started this business in the IV drip world. Learn how they identified a gap in the Midwest’s wellness market, navigated the highly regulated and rapidly evolving IV bar industry, and brought a community-focused approach to health and hydration. Are you curious about how IV therapy went from hospital wards to vibrant wellness lounges?  Or what it takes to build a franchise rooted in both science and local values?  This conversation will open your eyes to the business challenges, customer stories, and passion that drive this growing trend. Shahayra and Jonathan share some great insights into franchise selection, the science behind vitamin infusions, building a winning team, and the power of connection within a unique new “third space” for health-minded people. Listen as they explain the power of IV drips and how they can help you in your health and life journey. Enjoy! Visit Shahayra and Jonathan at: https://hydrateivbar.com/locations/madison/ Sponsors: Calls On Call Extraordinary Answering Service, phone answering for small businesses: https://callsoncall.com Some videos have been recorded with Riverside: https://www.riverside.fm/?utm_campaign=campaign_5&utm_medium=affiliate&utm_source=rewardful&via=james-kademan   Podcast Overview: 00:00 Bringing IV therapy to Madison 05:39 Navigating Franchise Regulations 07:47 IV therapy goes mainstream in Tokyo 12:50 Curated med spa offerings 14:44 Choosing Hydrate IV Bar for Madison 19:02 Starting with franchise questions 20:37 Building a Health-Focused Community 24:53 Benefits of Vitamin D Supplementation 27:55 Challenges with supplement patents 32:20 Functional medicine consultations at Hydrate 34:08 Patient advocacy and safe care 39:05 Frequency of sessions per week 41:33 Supplements and their credibility 47:04 Choosing the right location 48:42 Optimizing franchise location space 52:48 Hiring nurses for IV procedures 56:16 Spa services and mobile options Podcast Transcription: Jonathan Chizever [00:00:00]: This gentleman with Parkinson's started supplementing the NAD with us, and the results we're seeing are just, like, amazing. He's not perfect in running marathons, but he's walking around without his hunch in his cane. I check in with his wife the next day, like, hey, how's he doing? And she's like, I couldn't believe it. I woke up and I walk out and he was up before me, which is rare. And he's sitting in his chair in the living room, giant smile plastered across his face. And. And it's like, what's going on? And then I see him get out of the chair, stand up with no cane, no hunch, and he's like, I feel better than I felt in a long time because of something that we all. James Kademan [00:00:41]: You have found authentic business adventures business program that brings you the struggle stories and triumphant successes of business owners across the land. Downloadable audio episodes can be found in the podcast link found@drawincustomers.com we are locally unwritten by the bank of Sun Prairie, and today we're welcoming, preparing to learn from Sahara and Jonathan of the Hydrate IV bar. So, Sahara, Jonathan, how are you guys doing today? Jonathan Chizever [00:01:06]: Wonderful. Excited to be here. James Kademan [00:01:08]: Yeah. Shahayra Majumder [00:01:08]: Woot, woot. James Kademan [00:01:09]: Let's talk about Hydrate IV bar. I don't know what in the world an IV bar is, and I bet a lot of people don't either. So let's just start with what is an IV bar? Jonathan Chizever [00:01:18]: Happy to tell them you want to go or want me to go? Shahayra Majumder [00:01:20]: Um, yeah, I'll kick it off if you want to add in, if there's anything that I miss. But have you ever had an IV before? James Kademan [00:01:28]: I had. Yes. I had a saline IV thing when I had a. A gut thing, a stress gut thing Shahayra Majumder [00:01:35]: way back when, probably in the hospital. James Kademan [00:01:37]: Yeah. Yeah. Not a fan. Shahayra Majumder [00:01:39]: Yeah. James Kademan [00:01:41]: Not a fan of being in the hospital. Shahayra Majumder [00:01:42]: Yeah, right. Yeah, I. A lot of people are used to thinking about IVs being something that you get in the hospital or at urgent care in an emerg situation. But an IV bar actually takes those services outside of an emergency situation and lets you be a little more proactive about rapidly rehydrating your body. James Kademan [00:02:04]: All right. Shahayra Majumder [00:02:05]: For your different health and wellness goals. There's lots that we can do with supplementing things that you might be deficient in or if you're just feeling certain ailments that could be improved with additional vitamin supplements, meditation, or hydration. That's usually why people come to an IV bar. For me, it's been more of a proactive thing. I realized as I started doing IVs on a regular basis, I felt more energy. I was getting sick less. I didn't really let anything get me down as much. Like during cold and flu season. Shahayra Majumder [00:02:49]: Yeah. Anything that you would add to that, Jonathan Chizever [00:02:52]: I think that sums it up. Great. Yeah. James Kademan [00:02:54]: All right. How do you get in the IV bar business? Shahayra Majumder [00:02:58]: You take that one. Jonathan Chizever [00:03:01]: So we both, in our travels, neither of us are from Madison. I've been here 10 years. Sahara's been here seven. And we've both, in our travels and living other places, seen this as a more established concept in other places. And, you know, in the Midwest, whether it's fashion trends or wellness modalities, we're generally the last to get just about everything. And so here we are. And so, you know, IVs have saved us in numerous occasions from feeling bad, and really, until we got in the business, didn't yet understand how much it can make you feel good in a consistent and proactive sense. But we just saw this as a market that makes so much sense for it, because, you know, what people traditionally associate it with is hangovers, at least in the selective sense, which it is phenomenal for, I've heard, at least. Jonathan Chizever [00:03:54]: But. But beyond that, you know, like, the founder of our brand, she got into this. She was a Broncos cheerleader, and she noticed all the guys in the team are doing these IVs routinely, all the time. And that was part of her origin story of getting into this. And so athletes love it, and athletes have been ahead of the curve and, you know, taking advantage of this. So for athletics and drinking Madison, we have a lot of bubbles, and turns out. James Kademan [00:04:24]: Yeah, yeah. Jonathan Chizever [00:04:25]: So. And then beyond that, we also have a very vibrant wellness scene. You know, we have a population that likes to take care of themselves. And, I mean, in so many ways, it made sense, but it was something that we saw being severely underserved. So it wasn't like we wanted to start a business. And we're like, what business do we do? It was like we noticed that there was a gap in the availability of these types of services in a place that it makes so much sense to have them. And the rest kind of naturally came from there. James Kademan [00:04:55]: Right on. So did you hunt down a franchise, or did you get introduced to the franchise? And you're like, yes, that's what we want. Shahayra Majumder [00:05:03]: Little column A, little column B. I did interview, like, every franchise under the sun doing IV stuff. James Kademan [00:05:09]: All in the IV stuff. Shahayra Majumder [00:05:10]: Yes. James Kademan [00:05:11]: Okay, how many are we talking here? Shahayra Majumder [00:05:12]: Oh, my God. I think I Started talking to folks in September of 2024, and then we signed our franchise agreement February of 25. So, yeah, I mean, that gives you a little gauge. It took me months and months of. James Kademan [00:05:27]: So just talking like, I don't know how many franchise I've seen. Are we talking five? We talking 50? Jonathan Chizever [00:05:32]: Oh, no, I'd say a dozen and a half maybe. Shahayra Majumder [00:05:35]: Yeah, maybe closer to like the 20 or 30. Jonathan Chizever [00:05:37]: Wow. Shahayra Majumder [00:05:39]: Yeah, franchise franchises. And there are a few that dominate the market. There are a few that are bigger. But what's interesting is this industry, it's very highly regulated, but the regulations are different state to state. So if you know a little bit about franchising, you know that franchises have to be registered in every single state. And some states are harder to get registered in. And so I talked to a lot of the folks that I was able to get their franchisees on the phone and get honest opinions about the kind of support they're receiving, how the market has received them. I particularly talk to folks in the Midwest or familiar with the Midwest because, you know, the market in the Midwest is not going to be what it is in, you know, Nashville, Tennessee, for example, where you're getting a lot more tourism and. James Kademan [00:06:38]: Yeah, sober me up. Sober me up. ...

    1h 1m

  2. Jun 5

    The Power of PR

    Ronica Cleary - Cleary Strategies On Trying DIY PR: "You don't know what makes you newsworthy. You don't know what lands. You don't know what's a really good pitch and what's not." Every business wants, well actually, needs customers.  How do you get customers?  You get noticed and you get your business in front of potential customers.  How do you grow this awareness?  You can shout from the street corner, cold-call, pay for advertising, or use the tried and true way to build trust and that is to get some news stories written and published about you. The interesting thing about public relations is that, with the right public relation expert, you can control the narrative about your business and grow the awareness of your brand in a trusted space.  People generally trust the news much more than they trust an advertisement.  So if you are in the news, you are much more likely to be a trusted brand. Ronica Cleary has been on the news side of the desk and now helps businesses get noticed with her PR firm, Cleary Strategies.  She and her crew craft the stories and push them to the editors and people that can get them on the pages, print and web, that people read. Listen as Ronica explains the power of PR and how she has built her PR firm from her incredible experience as a television journalist. Enjoy! Visit Ronica at: https://www.clearystrategies.com/ Sponsors: Calls On Call Extraordinary Answering Service, phone answering for small businesses: https://callsoncall.com Some videos have been recorded with Riverside: https://www.riverside.fm/?utm_campaign=campaign_5&utm_medium=affiliate&utm_source=rewardful&via=james-kademan   Podcast Overview: 00:00 Starting Cleary Strategies Unexpectedly 06:09 Covering Trump's first election campaign 09:09 Media relations and crisis management 11:33 Evolution of media placements 13:59 Pitching to a busy newsroom 18:23 Managing media queries efficiently 22:16 Managing Public Relations Challenges 25:45 Concerns about paid media placements 27:11 Shady PR practices discussion 30:51 Using PR to Boost Visibility 33:50 Developing client content themes 37:20 Building a thought leadership presence 40:08 Importance of a founder's story 42:59 The value of PR in business 46:37 Podcast audience quality over size 50:26 Reflections on Starting a Business 53:56 Assessing contractor fit and retention Podcast Transcription: Ronica Cleary [00:00:00]: We, we think like producers when we pitch our clients. We don't. We have to think as a producer would so that when we present the pitch to the newsroom, it's like we've produced the segment for them and not because they aren't capable, not because they can't, but because maybe they don't have the bandwidth to do so. And so if our pitch comes perfectly packaged with the pieces in place, the B roll ready to go, the expert teed up the potential questions all written for you. You know, they're not going to take it word for word, but it's like all of the pieces are there. James Kademan [00:00:36]: You have found authentic Business Adventures, the business program that brings you the struggle stories and triumphant successes of business owners across the land. Downloadable audio episodes can be found in the podcast link found@drawincustomers.com we are locally underwritten by the Bank of Sun prairie, Calls On Call Extraordinary Answering Service, as well as Live Switch. And today we're welcoming, slash, preparing to learn from Ronica with Cleary Strategies. And today we are talking pr. So Ronica, how is it going today? Ronica Cleary [00:01:07]: It's going so well. Just poured myself a fresh cup of coffee, finished the pot. James Kademan [00:01:12]: So lucky. Ronica Cleary [00:01:13]: We've had a caffeinated day, but it's a good day. James Kademan [00:01:17]: Yeah, nice. Tell me, how long have you been in the PR business? Ronica Cleary [00:01:24]: So I'm approaching eight years this summer. So we started our agency, I always say we opened our virtual doors before it was cool. Yeah, nearly eight. And so it's, we're kind of, I can see in the horizon that 10 year mark, which is exciting. James Kademan [00:01:42]: I don't know what the, what the metrics are, what the data is for. How many businesses make it 10 years? It's not many. So I feel like you're doing very well. Ronica Cleary [00:01:50]: They talk about that five year mark as a really big turning point and I felt it and I think that's a very valid marker for, you know, a shift in your business. But I think you maybe hear less about the 10 year mark because people probably throw in the towel by then. James Kademan [00:02:06]: They're like, forget this, I'm done. No more, no more. Oh, it's funny. How did you end up in the PR business Ronica Cleary [00:02:14]: accidentally? You know, it was not on purpose, but that's been the beautiful part of the journey. So if I'm being more specific than accidentally, I think it was really client request for that type of service. So I'm a former television journalist and when I left TV I did obviously intentionally start a business and open Cleary strategies. But my vision was to do a lot of communicate traditional communications and support with internal communications and writing and, you know, coaching and. But what people were asking for in my network, because when you started business, you know, your first customers are usually in your network, was, you know, you used to be on tv. Can you help me get on tv? And it was, you know, I didn't call it PR in that moment, but I did have an aha moment a few years into running my business where I said, I think I'm a publicist. Like, how did that happen? And, you know, then we, I mean, we realized that was becoming our identity. I've really leaned into it and I love it. Ronica Cleary [00:03:12]: And we are now a full service PR agency. And that is very, very much our identity today. And we don't do any internal comms or anything like that. So a big shift from customer demand and direction, which is a really cool way to grow. And it's been great. James Kademan [00:03:27]: Nice. So what made you get out of tv? I guess that's an assumption. Maybe you haven't. What made you get out of being a video journalist? Ronica Cleary [00:03:35]: So that is, you know, a lot of reasons. But I'll make it brief because we only have 52 minutes. So let's see. I had a really beautiful career in television. I like to say I had a storybook career in tv. And my most recent work in television was as a White House correspondent. I worked in Washington D.C. and I covered the White House as a journalist. Ronica Cleary [00:03:56]: And my contract was coming up for renewal and I was pregnant with our second child. And at the time, my husband and I actually lived in different states. I lived in the District, the, the District area. I lived in Maryland, but right outside of D.C. with our daughter on my own. And most of the time and he was up here in Pennsylvania. And, you know, it just seemed like the right time to live under one roof with a. With the birth of our second coming and now we have three, which is really beautiful. Ronica Cleary [00:04:26]: And family's very important. And I always really was entrepreneurial. I always had a passion and an interest. I had a really bad attempt at entrepreneurship in my 20s, and I didn't have the drive or the focus to really turn it into something. And in my, let's see, how old was I? I guess my mid-30s. When I started this business, I was a different person and I was ready to really give it an honest try in, in the real sense of the, of making a service business work. And it felt like the right time. And I had done so many wonderful things in tv, it wasn't that, you know, I certainly hadn't done everything, but I felt like I had checked that box in my. Ronica Cleary [00:05:09]: And that I could really look back on that and feel accomplished and like the ride was extremely meaningful. And it felt like a time when I could close that chapter in a thoughtful way. So that's. That's kind of the. The Cliff Notes. James Kademan [00:05:24]: All right, this is. I want to go down the White House correspondent journalist a little bit. Ronica Cleary [00:05:29]: Sure. James Kademan [00:05:30]: Tell me about the contract. Was that with a specific channel or. Ronica Cleary [00:05:35]: Oh, yeah, sure. So I worked for the local Fox affiliate in Washington. So my TV contract was with WTTG, and that's Fox 5. That's the local station in Washington. And then if you cover the White House, you can become a member of the White House Correspondents association, which I was. But my contract in television was with the local Fox station in Washington. And, you know, I moved down there to become the political reporter for the station. It's actually, you know, I don't know if your listeners are super into this, but, you know, it's really rare for local stations to have White House correspondence. Ronica Cleary [00:06:09]: Usually that's a network thing or a print and print reporter thing or some radio stations. But I was down there. I covered the presidential election leading up to the election of Donald Trump for the first time, his first campaign. And, you know, I know he is president today, but that first time that he won, I mean, that the, the media momentum was a frenzy. It was all consuming. And so independent of the politics, I was down there at a really unique time that as a local news reporter, they actually said, we need someone in the briefing room. So that's kind of where, like, I call it like a bit of a storybook career, because usually to get in that briefing room, you've got to follow the journey into working at a national network or, you know, working for, I would argue, maybe a. A bigger news outlet. Ronica Cleary [00:06:58]: And while WTTG,...

    58 min

  3. Jun 1

    Breaking Barriers to Literacy

    Rowan Childs - Madison Reading Project On Building Up Youth: "We want to make sure every kid is excited and sees themselves on the cover or as the main character." Often we take the skills we have for granted.  We want this and that, but rarely take the time to have gratitude for all that we have.  I'm not talking material things, I am speaking of opportunities and education.  As business owners, we know how to read. Did you know that many children have challenges achieving the literacy needed to understand the other subjects in school?  Rowan Childs saw this need and built a non-profit to help children get access to books to read.  Not just any books.  These are books that kids want to read.  Madison Reading Project is a non-profit that offers free books and literacy resources to children to ignite a love of reading. The beautiful thing is Madison Reading Project has blossomed from a small startup to a non-profit that continues to serve thousands of books to children.  This is truly an amazing success story and a story that is making the world a better place. Enjoy! Visit Rowan at: https://www.madisonreadingproject.com/ Sponsors: Calls On Call Extraordinary Answering Service, phone answering for small businesses: https://callsoncall.com Some videos have been recorded with Riverside: https://www.riverside.fm/?utm_campaign=campaign_5&utm_medium=affiliate&utm_source=rewardful&via=james-kademan   Podcast Overview: 00:00 Starting a reading pilot program 04:15 Addressing literacy challenges 07:50 Finding support and gathering books 13:52 Benefits of being a smaller team 14:32 Navigating diverse board challenges 19:27 Building trust with the community 22:38 Offering diverse book options 26:55 Selecting books for community programs 30:36 Lessons from volunteering at food bank 33:00 Donating books through our program 37:20 Giving out books during holidays 39:20 Paper fashion design contest 43:41 Deciding to make paper dresses 45:51 Building Awareness and Finding Volunteers Podcast Transcription: James Kademan [00:00:00]: You have found Authentic Business Adventures, the business program that brings you the struggles, stories and triumphant successes of business owners across the land. Downloadable audio episodes can be found in the podcast link found at https://drawincustomers.com.  We are locally underwritten by the Bank of Sun Prairie, and today we are welcoming, slash, preparing to learn from Rowan Childs of Madison Reading Project. Rowan, I'm super excited to be here. Rowan Childs [00:00:32]: Thank you. Welcome. James Kademan [00:00:34]: This is amazing. We got. I mean, people can see we got whatever, 5 billion books behind us and all that stuff. So tell us the story. What is Madison Reading Project? Rowan Childs [00:00:44]: Yeah. So we are a nonprofit. We provide all kinds of literacy resources, whether they are physical books, digital resources, and our wonderful stuff. We're here to support adults and children in support of them learning how to read in support of them re engaging or engaging in reading and love of books, ultimately to help raise literacy rates in Dane county and now just in Sauk county as well. Yes. That's a brand new thing. James Kademan [00:01:27]: Wow. Rowan Childs [00:01:27]: Yeah. James Kademan [00:01:28]: All right. Rowan Childs [00:01:29]: But we're really here to make sure that kids have their books and to help remove some of those barriers that they have. So whether it's been from the very beginning through what we do today, we do that in a way more sophisticated way than how we started, but it really is to try and provide really high quality materials that children and adults can keep. So we want to make sure that kids are excited about the books and about reading and that they ultimately are inspired to want to hang on to those and to continue to read and love books. James Kademan [00:02:08]: Nice. I love it. I love it. It's so interesting because when you give me address to the place, I just follow gps. And I was like, it's just going to be some warehouse or something like that. But this is a very bright. It's vibrant, it's welcoming. It's not just some dingy, like, there's the books in the back kind of thing. Rowan Childs [00:02:25]: Not at all. James Kademan [00:02:25]: So this is cool. This is very nice. Rowan Childs [00:02:28]: Good. That's how we want everyone to feel. James Kademan [00:02:30]: Yeah. I love it. Let's go back to the way back when, when you first started this 12 years ago, you said, yep, that is a while. We got pandemic. We got. Rowan Childs [00:02:41]: Man. James Kademan [00:02:42]: I feel like every few years there's some kind of a crisis. So I don't remember all the crisis we've been through. But what triggered you to start Madison Reading Project? Rowan Childs [00:02:51]: Yeah, I had just helped my own son re engage in reading. He liked reading things at home, but not so much the books that he was reading at school. And after I helped him figure that out, it just got me thinking about what if I hadn't understood the teacher who had messaged me at home? Or what if they hadn't messaged me? It took me some time and resources to figure that out. So I started just researching and couldn't really find what I was looking for, which wasn't necessarily volunteering on helping kids how to read, it was the other piece of it. And so I spent some time interviewing at some schools and some other after school locations and no one really knew of something of what I was describing and eventually had this idea of potentially how I this pilot program idea. But I wanted to find a pilot program location that would be smaller versus starting somewhere that had 200 kids. So I eventually found a program at Salvation army on Darbo drive that had 30 kids. And Zarbo Drive area is a pretty impoverished area. Rowan Childs [00:04:15]: And the director at that time said he was actually trying to help the kids with homework, but they were behind in reading and he was trying to engage kids in reading. So it was this perfect sort of timing. And the week that we met, the Race to Equity report came out, which was a five year data set on everything that you kind of need for the proof of why literacy is so important. So anything on the actual literacy rates of every school in the county, comparing not just districts and schools, but also third grade reading levels, fifth grade high school in poverty rates, and also race, comparing kids who are white and black or Hispanic. And some of the differences not only were maybe 10 or 15%, but some of the schools were up to 40% differences. And that's just heartbreaking. Still, every time I talk about it, it makes me just really sad because if you can't read whether you're in third grade, you. You're just always going to be behind. Rowan Childs [00:05:28]: Ultimately, you might still be able to struggle through school, but what kind of job are you going to be able to get or can even get your driver's license? You know, it's just snowballs from there. James Kademan [00:05:40]: Yeah. Rowan Childs [00:05:42]: And Will, who was the director at the time, was really adamant that if you can't read, it's just going to be a really difficult life or could lead to a life of incarceration. And so the two of us were very passionate about trying to figure something out. And then the last piece was the funding. James Kademan [00:06:05]: It's a pretty big piece, kind of. Rowan Childs [00:06:07]: I had no money to put towards my pilot program. Someone I had mentioned what I wanted to do, said you really need to have the right money to do the pilot program. Correctly. James Kademan [00:06:19]: Thanks. Rowan Childs [00:06:20]: Yes. And wrote me a check for $1,000. Oh. Which is really nice. That way I could actually purchase the right materials to make the program the pilot. Correct. James Kademan [00:06:32]: Wow. Rowan Childs [00:06:33]: So that was the last piece for that. So we did a three month pilot program that went really well. The parents, the kids were really engaged and excited about clearing out some of the old books that nobody wanted to read, putting in new books that the kids helped so select. The teachers were excited to have new materials so successful that they asked me to come back and do it again. James Kademan [00:06:59]: All right. Rowan Childs [00:07:00]: Which we did. And one thing led to another. But it definitely, as we stayed and sort of kept learning from that, that really was the beginning of learning that. Absolutely kids do want to learn how to read. They absolutely do want to read great books and to select books. And there's a lot of pride in being able to select their own books. And we stayed at that location exclusively for nearly two years, just learning with the kids and the parents and the teachers really what we did or didn't want to do or what we could do before we were going to scale at all. And that was great. Rowan Childs [00:07:50]: And the other piece was, how are we going to fund all of this apart from that initial check? And while we were doing that initial pilot program in that first year, people just started giving me boxes of their nice books that they had never used or just unsolicited. They're like, oh, oh, by the way, I have a box of books for you. Like, oh, thank you so much. Or people were asking me how they could donate some money because they loved what they had heard what I was doing, whether I really knew them or not, till the point where I had a basement full of books in my house. And I was like, this seems like we have something here. So we have definitely children in a population in Madison initially that absolutely would love to have more books and programs. We have people who absolutely seem to love books and want to provide books....

    51 min

  4. May 22

    How to Own a Campground

    Rachel LaCasse-Ford - Lake Road Campground On the Best Plan for Business: "It's very important when you're thinking about purchasing a business or starting a business that you know the beginning, middle, and end, like, you know all the pieces, you know how you're going to get in, how you're going to manage it, and how you're going to get out if things don't go well, or if things go well and you want and you're ready to sell and move on." There are businesses everywhere, or every type.  Rachel thought it would be a great idea to buy a campground. Now she is here explaining her compelling story! From navigating the ins and outs of real estate and business purchase, to building a self-sustaining, hospitality-focused business with the help of family, trade associations, and thoughtful planning, this episode is packed with practical advice and inspiring stories. Whether you’re dreaming of your own entrepreneurial venture or simply love a good behind-the-scenes peek at unique local businesses, you won’t want to miss the authentic insights and lessons learned shared here. So grab your campsite mug and settle in for this week’s adventure! Enjoy! Visit Rachel at: https://lakeroadcampground.com/ Sponsors: Live Video chat with our customers here with LiveSwitch: https://join.liveswitch.com/gfj3m6hnmguz Calls On Call Extraordinary Answering Service: https://callsoncall.com Some videos have been recorded with Riverside: https://www.riverside.fm/?utm_campaign=campaign_5&utm_medium=affiliate&utm_source=rewardful&via=james-kademan   Podcast Overview: 00:00 Importance of keeping good books 05:06 Managing a small rental property 08:54 Laundry and bathroom amenities 10:58 Things to do around the campsite 15:59 Family-run campgrounds discussion 18:25 Setting competitive pricing strategy 20:20 Preparing for potential flooding 25:19 Watching dredging near the lock 26:35 Family outings by the overlook 29:42 Relying on handyman skills 35:06 Managing campground quiet hours 38:46 Importance of good bookkeeping 39:33 Evaluating a business opportunity 44:42 Planning for future capital needs 47:31 Empty nester future plans Podcast Transcription:

    51 min

  5. May 16

    Helping Entrepreneurs Buy Homes

    Shane Perkins - Ultimate Strategy On the Reality Banks Overlook: "If you have that kind of equity and you've worked and you've saved that down payment, then there's nothing telling me that you're not going to make your payments." When you have a job with a W-2, you fit in the traditional bucket.  Traditional things for people with traditional jobs are fine.  They are simple, and easy and everyone can buy them with ease.  You want a loan, let's see your W-2, and see how much house you can afford. The challenge comes in when you are an entrepreneur.  You make money, but it isn't nearly as easy as looking at a line on a document supplied by your employer.  There are many more factors and a bit of gray area.  These are the types of things that traditional banks get scared of.  That is where the Ultimate Strategy comes in.  To get entrepreneurs into homeownership, without the limitations of traditional banks. Listen as Shane Perkins describes how he is training more students to help entrepreneurs implement the Ultimate Strategy to achieve the homeownership they desire. Enjoy! Visit Shane at: https://TheUltimateStrategy.com Sponsors: Live Video chat with our customers here with LiveSwitch: https://join.liveswitch.com/gfj3m6hnmguz Calls On Call Extraordinary Answering Service: https://callsoncall.com Some videos have been recorded with Riverside: https://www.riverside.fm/?utm_campaign=campaign_5&utm_medium=affiliate&utm_source=rewardful&via=james-kademan   Podcast Overview: 00:00 Issues with current mortgage system 05:36 Helping families become homeowners 08:58 Understanding mortgage pre-approval vs. approval 12:45 Real estate deals in different states 13:21 Working in your local market 18:39 Discussing home loan qualification criteria 20:11 Discussing home loan options 24:35 Benefits of refinancing a mortgage 26:57 Real estate investment strategy 29:52 Housing affordability concerns 34:22 How mortgage payments are managed 36:41 Investor strategies for real estate students 41:23 Discussing payment reminders with clients 43:56 Passion for helping people in real estate 47:03 Maximizing returns on home equity 51:38 The value of entrepreneurship Podcast Transcription: Shane Perkins [00:00:00]: I've created a strategy that helps people get into homes that don't qualify for traditional mortgage. I just realized that the demand is so high that I can't help everybody. So I'm creating an army of folks that want to go out there and help people become homeowners. If someone's looking for a real estate investment strategy, there's nothing better out there. It's consistent. Couple deals a month, two, three deals a month, every single month. There's always a demand for it. James Kademan [00:00:33]: You have found Authentic Business Adventures, the business program that brings you the struggle stories and triumphant successes of business owners across the land. Downloadable audio episodes can be found on the podcast link found@drawincustomers.com we are locally underwritten by the bank of Sun Prairie Calls On Call, Extraordinary Answering Service, the Bold Business Book, as well as Live Switch. And today we're welcoming, preparing to learn from Shane Perkins of the ultimate strategy. So, Shane, how is it going today? Shane Perkins [00:01:02]: It is going great. How are you doing? Do you have a good Mother's Day? Yeah. James Kademan [00:01:06]: Oh, yeah, yeah. That was. It just came and went. Yeah, it's so funny. My kids in sports, so any day, Mother's Day, Father's Day, whatever, Memorial Day, Labor Day, they're all. You're just traveling to some different grassy field where he's playing some sport. So, yeah, I imagine that's what a lot of parents are doing. Let's start with the ultimate strategy. James Kademan [00:01:29]: Shane, what is the ultimate strategy? Shane Perkins [00:01:31]: Well, I have been a real estate investor for 29 years, and I've created a strategy that helps people get into homes that don't qualify for traditional mortgage. And I didn't start that until 2001. And so I've been doing that for about 25 years. James Kademan [00:01:49]: Wow. Shane Perkins [00:01:49]: And so I call it the ultimate strategy. And I did it myself for many, many years. And. And now that my kids are grown and gone, and I've decided that I need to empower other people to help more people get into homes. So I teach other people how to do the ultimate strategy, and they use that strategy to go and help other people get into homes. James Kademan [00:02:15]: Right on. And is it the property that has the challenge getting lending happening, or is it the borrower, the people trying to get into the home? Shane Perkins [00:02:23]: You know, James, I say that we have a broken mortgage system. You know, they've been using the same system for 30 years and they're, you know, people change jobs, people start businesses. Business owners are notoriously turned down for mortgages because they are taught, as all of us entrepreneurs are to minimize their taxes. Right. Well, that means writing off everything that you can. And there's many things that you can write off. And at the end of the day, your tax return says that you don't make enough money to pay for a house, but you're sitting there paying $3,000 a month in rent. And so we know that these people can pay. Shane Perkins [00:03:01]: We know how to record their income in a manner that will finance them on a house. And when I say finance, we get them into a house. We are not lenders, so we use creative financing strategies, real estate investment strategies that have been around for, you know, a hundred years. And so that's what we do. We help people get into homes. James Kademan [00:03:26]: Right on. You know, it's interesting you mentioned the small business thing, because I remember the last house that I bought with my wife. We, the lender straight up told us, let's just put her W2 on there and just ignore your income. And if we get challenged by it, then we'll come back and figure something out. But it's better just to not even use the word entrepreneur or self employed. Shane Perkins [00:03:49]: It is. James Kademan [00:03:51]: I'm like, I'm pretty sure I make more money than her, but whatever makes. Shane Perkins [00:03:56]: But that's the way it works. And it is, it's a broken system. And I, you know, what I've figured out over 25 years of doing this program is that there's three components that make people pay for their home. And the first one is the most important one. And that's in that they're in the home of their choice. You know, there are owner finance programs out there on specific houses, but if that's not what you want, what's, you know, what's, you know, what's the factor there? Yeah, you can call yourself an owner, but it's in something that you're having to settle for. And so that's the first factor. The second one is that they must have equity. Shane Perkins [00:04:35]: And so we do require down payment. You know, it's similar to the older old school. Right. 20% down. We do some 15% down deals, but you got to have some skin in the game. So you got to, you know, save for a down payment. And that and the fact that you have income is the third thing. But documenting that income for a bank is far different than documenting that income for what we do. James Kademan [00:05:01]: Right on. So are people coming to you or are you having a cold call and reach out to people? Shane Perkins [00:05:07]: No, once, once you get this program up and running, people seek you out. You know, there's a statistic that I heard, and I can't verify if it's true or not because they're pretty close. Close lipped on their. And I've tried to verify it, but I had a friend of mine tell me that, that, that actually works with Zillow very closely. That said 7,000 people a day are turned down that have a 20% down payment on Zillow. And I don't discredit it. I believe that that's true. I just can't prove it. Shane Perkins [00:05:36]: But that's a lot of people. And they don't want to rent again, you know, that, you know, renting is. It's great when you need it, but when you have kids and you have a family, you don't want to be at someone else's mercy to just raise your payment or, hey, I want somebody else to move into there, you know, or we're going to sell or something like that. You want to give your kids roots, you want to give them a home. You want to be able to build a tree house or paint your girl's bedroom pink and your boy's bedroom blue or what have you, you know, you want to call it yours. And so we've recognized what it takes to be able to help people get into homes. And now I just realized that the demand is so high that I can't help everybody. So I'm creating an army of folks that want to go out there and help people become homeowners. James Kademan [00:06:26]: Right on. Let's talk about this army. Is this army people that are just looking to start their own business in this space, or is this other people that are already in the mortgage industry and they're looking for. Shane Perkins [00:06:37]: It's a little bit of both. Yeah, it's a little bit of both. So, you know, real estate investing, there's a lot of people that want to get into it, you know, and there's all these programs out there, and I don't, you know, wholesaling and fix and flip and burr methods, you know, buy, repair, rent and repeat and all of these different methods. And they're all good strategies, but they're a lot more competitive nowadays because there's so many people getting. Getting into it. So it takes you, you know, you have to go through quite a few cold calls. And the things that loi blaster, where they. You blast out letters of intent, agent outreach, door knocking, foreclosure list, there's all these different strategies. Shane Perkins [00:07:22]: And again,...

    57 min

  6. May 10

    Navigating Insurance Pitfalls

    Fred Fisher  - Fisher Consulting On the Unrealistic Expectations We Have in the Insurance World: "You have to know more about your insurance needs than the guy selling it, the guy who has to take continuing education classes." Insurance is basically paying for a promise you hope you will not need to ask to be kept.  To avoid great financial loss, or to have the support of a team of lawyers, insurance is a necessary evil.  Like most things that are necessary. Fred Fisher of Fisher Consulting has been in the insurance world for decades.  He has been working in insurance in different roles throughout his career and knows the industry inside and out.  What he shares is both educational and a bit frightening. Listen as Fred Fisher shares hard-earned insights gained through decades in the industry as a claims expert, lawyer, consultant, and author. He uncovers the pitfalls of buying on price alone, exposes the risks of working with “order-taker” insurance agents, and explains why business owners need to demand more from their insurance brokers. Enjoy! Visit Fred at: https://www.fishercg.com Sponsors: Live Video chat with our customers here with LiveSwitch: https://join.liveswitch.com/gfj3m6hnmguz Calls On Call Extraordinary Answering Service: https://callsoncall.com Some videos have been recorded with Riverside: https://www.riverside.fm/?utm_campaign=campaign_5&utm_medium=affiliate&utm_source=rewardful&via=james-kademan   Podcast Overview: 00:00 Pursuing law to help artists 06:12 Understanding legal claim complexities 14:22 Undisclosed potential claims risk 17:01 Handling an insurance claim oversight 23:41 Managing legal risks and disclosures 31:51 Handling policy order requests 36:00 How Farmers handles declines 39:30 Unexpected renovation challenges 44:34 Understanding building code coverage 48:41 Understanding tech liability policies 55:16 Delayed claims denial examples 01:01:21 Restrictive insurance policy drafting 01:09:55 Choosing not to compete anymore 01:12:29 Challenges in insurance claims handling 01:19:56 Treating renewals as new business 01:22:53 Program introduction and sponsorships Podcast Transcription: Fred Fisher [00:00:00]: I used to tell my staff, never take a renewal for granted. Treat every renewal as new business because our competitor will. They're going to dive deep, they're going to find a hole, they're going to find out that our insured's doing something new that we didn't know about, that that we're not covering. And they can. So treat every renewal as new business because our competitor is going to do that because it is new business for them. So either we dig deep and compete or we lose the account. James Kademan [00:00:31]: You have found Authentic Business Adventures, the business program that brings you the struggle stories and triumphant successes of business owners across the land. Downloadable audio episodes can be found in the podcast link found at drawincustomers.com we are locally underwritten by the Bank of Sun Prairie, Calls On Call Extraordinary Answering Service, the Bold Business Book and as well as Live Switch. And today we're welcoming, preparing to learn from Fred Fisher of Fisher Consulting. And Fred, I gotta say I'm excited. Though you probably don't hear this very often, I'm excited to talk insurance with you. Fred Fisher [00:01:05]: That's, that's really interesting. That's the fastest way to clear the room is. Oh yeah, we're talking about insurance tonight. James Kademan [00:01:10]: We're going to talk about insurance. I got a thing at that place, right? Fred Fisher [00:01:14]: Absolutely. James Kademan [00:01:14]: No, I'm, I am super excited for a few reasons, right? One, I have some property insurance that's due, so it's top of mind. Two, I live in southern Wisconsin and we just got hit with I think four out of five days. We had hail, there's tornadoes. I got some buddies that had some baseball size hail. And I'm like, man, if I was an insurance company, I'd be like, oh, we gotta write checks. We're supposed to collect the checks, not write them. So anyways, it's top of mind. Fred Fisher [00:01:43]: That's the product though, that's the whole problem. The claim department is where, and this is a quote from a colleague of mine, Chantelle Roberts. The claim department is where the product is produced. James Kademan [00:01:57]: Ah, I like it. Fred Fisher [00:01:59]: I do too. And I will never take credit for it. It's Chantel's. No, she's a phenomenal professional. James Kademan [00:02:06]: That's awesome. So tell me a story about your business and how you got started by accident. Nah, as per usual, it's all good. Fred Fisher [00:02:15]: You know, up until recently, the insurance industry has never been a destination profession. Everybody got into it by accident. You don't go to business school, say, I want to be working for an insurance company. That just does not happen. It Is more so now, though, because more and more colleges and universities do have risk management insurance curriculums, which is unnecessary. But for me, when I went to University of California, berkeley in the 60s, at least I think I did, and I graduated with a social science field major, but I'm more of a gestalt thinker. And so I couldn't just take political science because what good is that without knowing something about journalism or know something about sociology or know something about psychology? In the real world, all that works together. And so that's why I did a social science field major. Fred Fisher [00:03:06]: But when you graduate with a degree like that, where you're going to end up is probably selling life insurance, which is exactly what happened. But I intentionally had already enrolled in law school to go at night. And the reason I did that and the reason why it was intentional is back then, everybody wanted to be a lawyer. And so unless you really were smart, you didn't get into the top law schools. And even then, if, even if you did, if you didn't graduate in the top 10% of your class, you probably didn't have a job waiting for. James Kademan [00:03:36]: For you. Wow. Fred Fisher [00:03:38]: And I didn't, you know, and I didn't want to work for corporate America or whatever anyways. I wanted to be an entertainment lawyer. I wanted to represent artists and musicians because I had a lot of friends who were artists and musicians in Berkeley, in the Bay Area at that time. And I thought, well, I could help protect them, you know, from the evil of corporate America, what have you. And one thing led to another, and I got a job as a law clerk eventually. And the other reason I did this too, is because if you went to the top law schools, like I said, you wouldn't have a job. But if you went to a night law school and you could get a job in the legal industry during the day, you had a job waiting for you was 90%. I like those odds. Fred Fisher [00:04:15]: I like those odds. So I ended up kind of getting a job as a law clerk in what was called an insurance defense law firm. And I have nothing but good experience from that. The gentleman who was heading that firm up, and we were all employees of an insurance company, so this was in house counsel. And he loved teaching, he loved young people and helping them really learn. And as a result, you, if you work there, you, you could move to another law firm, you know, after a year and a half or so, and one thing led to another, and I did that. And then I. And then, unfortunately, the partner of that law firm, after eight months, decided, well, we don't really need a law clerk. Fred Fisher [00:04:57]: What we need is somebody who's licensed and can do Fred's job and also go to court, you know, on minor motions, so. Enough to send somebody heavy out. And so I got laid off. Boo. Yeah. But he actually did me a favor. I had friends that were work. I had a couple of friends that were working at this claim adjusting firm, and they were doing something I didn't even know existed. Fred Fisher [00:05:19]: They were handling nothing but what were called professional liability claims. They were handling cases against lawyers, insurance agents, real estate brokers, medical malpractice, which I stayed away from. A little too real for me. And oddball stuff for Lloyd's of London, including Seedman Zo, you know, for companies that manufacture seed, you know, for. For farmers, so to speak. James Kademan [00:05:42]: Yeah. Fred Fisher [00:05:42]: Coat it with this little clay stuff so that it could be put into a mechanical planter so they could have control over one seed every six inches. How do you like that? I mean, if you're. If you're going to be planting seed in 500 acres, you know, that's a lot of seed if you don't manage it correctly. And it's really expensive. So this was a whole different world. And so I handled a claim involving that where nothing grew. 500 acres, nothing. It was like what happened. Fred Fisher [00:06:12]: You know, I'll never forget the phrase necrosis of the cotyledon boy. There's a federal regulation on it, and I'll never forget it. But it was interesting work and I was good at it. And especially when it came to lawyers and insurance brokers, you had what was called a claim within a claim. I mean, at first you had to decide that the attorney screwed up or did the insurance broker screw up, and then what was the underlying matter they were working on? Because that's where the damages are, supposedly. And so you didn't know whether you were with an attorney malpractice case, whether you were going to handle a personal injury statute of limitations problem, or the attorney didn't file the lawsuit on time. And then the next case has to do with a merger and acquisition. Wow. James Kademan [00:06:55]: You see, What a variety. Fred Fisher [00:06:56]: Yeah, exactly....

    1h 24m

  7. May 1

    What is Thai Massage

    Nuttha Goutier  - Sabai Thai Massage On the Passion to Succeed: "I said I have the dream, I have the vision, I have the belief and I am young and full of energy. I think the vision that I have, people will like it and people will love it." We've probably all been told to relax more than a few times.  The hustle of business can take it's toll on both the body and the mind. How do you unwind, or recharge?  Nuttha (pronounced Neat-a) Goutier as the founder of Sabai Thai Massage in Vancouver has the answer. Nuttha explains the different services her team provides, as well as details how she grew her business to include multiple locations. Listen as Nuttha shares how to start your business, as well as how to overcome some of the growing pains that come with adding multiple brick and mortar locations. Enjoy! Visit Nuttha at: https://sabaithai.com/ Sponsors: Live Video chat with our customers here with LiveSwitch: https://join.liveswitch.com/gfj3m6hnmguz Calls On Call Extraordinary Answering Service: https://callsoncall.com Some videos have been recorded with Riverside: https://www.riverside.fm/?utm_campaign=campaign_5&utm_medium=affiliate&utm_source=rewardful&via=james-kademan   Podcast Overview: 00:00 Growing up in a village 03:41 The hard labor of farming 08:30 Choosing to move to Canada 11:57 Starting the first location 13:12 Early business vision and challenges 16:40 Late nights renovating before opening 22:11 Taking a business break in Thailand 25:50 Creating a caring work culture 27:59 Improving customer comfort skills 31:37 Adapting to new technology 34:06 Balancing family, real estate, and spa 36:46 Exploring franchise opportunities 42:25 Discussing increased massage industry competition 45:28 Massage as a routine activity 48:29 Discussing healthy aging habits 52:00 Types of massages offered Podcast Transcription:

    57 min

  8. Apr 25

    How to Stage a Home

    Alisa Sparks  - Linden Creek On Realizing Your Own Success: "I kind of had this moment where I paused and realized I had accidentally worked myself out of a job, and that should be a good thing. My team had it covered, my clients were happy, things were rolling well, and I kind of scratched my head and went, what do I do next?" As business owners we often have one speed: Go.  We run relentlessly, sometimes with action without actual accomplishment, and other times we find ourselves with an empire we built and we realize we can idle down a bit and not work quite as hard. This is the goal, of course. Selling houses is big business.  Like anything of value, the better it is presented the higher the sales price.  This is why staged homes sell for more than empty or lived-in homes.  But who has the skills and furniture to stage a home? Alisa Sparks started her home-staging business, Linden Creek, and was successful.  Then she built that business into a franchise empire that took success to another level. Listen as Alisa explains what it takes to make start a home staging business, what it takes to build a franchise from scratch, and what can be done when you have the systems and people in place and things are actually running well. Enjoy! Visit Alisa at: Linden-Creek.com Sponsors: Live Video chat with our customers here with LiveSwitch: https://join.liveswitch.com/gfj3m6hnmguz Calls On Call Extraordinary Answering Service: https://callsoncall.com Some videos have been recorded with Riverside: https://www.riverside.fm/?utm_campaign=campaign_5&utm_medium=affiliate&utm_source=rewardful&via=james-kademan   Podcast Overview: 00:00 Discovering a passion for staging 9:22 Real estate staging process 15:42 Learning to delegate effectively 19:25 Shifting demand from staging to design 26:04 Considering a franchise business 28:37 Franchise owner support and coaching 33:07 Ensuring brand consistency across franchises 40:10 Evaluating franchise prospects 48:24 Navigating software development challenges 51:37 Importance of honest sales communication 59:48 Program sponsor and listener call-to-action Podcast Transcription: James Kademan [00:00:00]: Tell me about the art or pictures. And most people's houses you'll see pictures of family or graduation pictures or grandma or whatever. Are you including some pictures like that or is it more art or maybe it's nothing. Alisa Sparks [00:00:11]: Yeah, definitely do not include family photos when you're selling a home. Now, you could have a really cute family and they could be fantastic, but the problem is the moment they see a picture of your family, the conversation in their brain changes from this is this could be my home. I can imagine myself living here to. To somebody else's living here. And all of a sudden it changes that emotional connection. And so we highly recommend you don't have photos of your family in a home. James Kademan [00:00:39]: You have found Authentic Business Adventures, the business program that brings you the struggle stories and triumphant successes of business owners across the land. Downloadable audio episodes can be found in the podcast link found https://drawincustomers.com we are locally underwritten by the bank of Sun Prairie Calls on call Extraordinary Answering Service, the Bold Business Book and Live Switch. Today we're welcoming, preparing to learn from Alisa Sparks of Linden Creek. And Alisa, I believe we're talking home staging here. So how is it going today? Alisa Sparks [00:01:11]: It's going great. Thank you so much for having me today. I'm excited to be here. James Kademan [00:01:15]: Yeah. I'm actually very excited to talk with you because I've met some home stagers before, but I have never met a home stager with a company that's beyond many offices or even beyond really their home office. So I'm excited to talk to you, talk to you about your business growth. That's huge. Alisa Sparks [00:01:35]: Yeah, it's been a really fun journey. This is an industry. You're absolutely right. Most individuals in this have their one stop location and so expanding outside of just our four walls has been a really fun adventure over these last few years. James Kademan [00:01:49]: Nice. So let's go to the way back. Right. When did you first start this? Alisa Sparks [00:01:53]: I started Linden Creek eight years ago. My background has nothing to do with interior design or real estate. I have a background in finance, so I love numbers. Give me an Excel spreadsheet and I will entertain myself for hours. Right. Like that is my. My bread and butter. However, with that being said, I found myself in this place where I was always trying to fulfill this creative itch. Alisa Sparks [00:02:15]: So. So when I would finish my day job, I would spend time buying the ugliest houses I could find and renovating them, building furniture in my garage, whatever I could do to kind of fulfill this creative itch that I had until finally I had this aha moment of like, maybe I should take this passion that I have and this hobby and build it into something that's a true business. James Kademan [00:02:36]: How cool is that? And when were you working in finance industry before? Alisa Sparks [00:02:41]: I was in the finance industry and actually supported the Department of Defense for nearly a decade, managing their aircraft budgets. So again, nothing at all related to what I do today. But so many of the skills that I learned from that experience, whether it came from systems and operations to managing financials, have been crucial for the success of where Linden Creek is today. James Kademan [00:03:03]: Nice. And what was the major contributing factor to make you shift? Saying, I gotta go off and do this on my own. Government, you got health care and whatever. W2BI weekly paycheck, whatever. Alisa Sparks [00:03:16]: All the great benefits, all the safety nets. And so much so that I had a good friend of mine that I worked with two years into me starting Linden Creek. We caught up and grabbed coffee, and she looked at me and she goes, why did you leave such a safe, stable job with such good income? And I was like, there's something more to this. So, yeah, it was a big shift in change to get faster of make this massive jump. It actually all came down to a book. I was at the gym listening to an audiobook of Rich Dad, Poor dad by Robert Kiyosaki. I'm sure many are familiar with that one, but he talked about the value of building a business and how that becomes an asset. It's not just a job. Alisa Sparks [00:03:54]: And there was something about that that struck for me when it came to just that ownership of what you have and the work that you're putting into something. And as I started kind of scratching my head going, okay, what kind of business could I start? I'm playing with aircraft, right? Helicopters and things like that. That's not transferable to my own business. And as I was really thinking about it, we had just put a home on the market that we had renovated and flipped. And the feedback we got was the staging was good, but it wasn't staged. It was just my furniture that I had collected over the years and kind of made look right for the home. But it was this aha moment for me of maybe I could stage houses. I don't have an interior design degree, but there might be something to the staging. Alisa Sparks [00:04:33]: And so that was really what started the entire concept of Linden Creek. James Kademan [00:04:37]: How cool is that? All right, so what was the answer that you gave your friend? So when you're at the coffee shop and she's like, what are you doing? Alisa Sparks [00:04:45]: I Smiled politely. And I said, this one's for the long game and it's going to be worth it at some point in time. And it has been. I'm thankful for the transition I made. I can look back and say with confidence, this was a good call, but it's scary in that interim, right. Like when you don't know, when the math doesn't math, when you're still building your business and reinvesting every penny. It's a scary transition. James Kademan [00:05:05]: Oh, I totally understand that. I. You know, you remind me of a time I had a buddy of mine offer me a job at a place that he was working out. And I'm like, I'm actually starting my own thing. And he was like, why? It's just one of those things where it was interesting. Where? To a point. When someone asks you a question like that, you really don't know how to answer it, because in order for them to ask that question, they don't really have the foundation that's needed to understand the answer that you would give. Alisa Sparks [00:05:36]: Yeah, that's exactly right. James Kademan [00:05:38]: Just say, like, because. Whatever. So tell me, when you first started your business, I imagine you get the website is this. Well, I have to back up a step because I don't know a whole lot about home staging other than I have seen homes that are staged. Inserting couches, furniture, rugs, stuff like that, that once the house is sold, those go to a different house or how does that work? Alisa Sparks [00:06:02]: That's exactly right. Yeah. So we own our own furniture and inventory. It started small in my garage. I became best friends with my FedEx delivery guy who would drop off new furniture every day, and I would spend my evenings, you know, assembling furniture in my garage until everything was built out. We do a much larger scale of that today. So the operations are different. But yes, I was slowly building and collecting my own set of inventory and furniture, putting it in a home and. Alisa Sparks [00:06:27]: And the moment the home sold, taking it out and moving it to the next property. Wow. James Kademan [00:06:32]: So I imagine that takes a lot of space. You have all. I mean, coaches aren't small, right....

    1h 1m

  9. Apr 17

    How to Get a Ketubah

    Michael Shapiro  - Ketubah.com On How the Artist Gets Inspired for the Ketubah: "There would be a discussion of the couple's values, maybe how they met, maybe where they met, and the artist would be listening for things that were important to them, including things between the lines, maybe that they weren't speaking about, but that they got a sense of" Business owners that become business owners because they learned a craft and saw a need are some of the most fascinating people to speak with. Michael Shapiro learned about Ketubahs and took the bold step of starting https://ketubah.com/.  The website connects ketubah artists with Jewish couples soon to be wed. After speaking with Michael, you learn about his keen awareness of what couples want, what artists can offer and combines this to help couples get a beautiful piece for their special day, and beyond. Listen as Michael explains what it takes to make a great ketubah and how he has built his business around helping others. Enjoy! Visit Michael at: https://ketubah.com/ Sponsors: Live Video chat with our customers here with LiveSwitch: https://join.liveswitch.com/gfj3m6hnmguz Calls On Call Extraordinary Answering Service: https://callsoncall.com Some videos have been recorded with Riverside: https://www.riverside.fm/?utm_campaign=campaign_5&utm_medium=affiliate&utm_source=rewardful&via=james-kademan   Podcast Overview: 00:00 Reviving historical Jewish art forms 04:21 Understanding the Ketubah document 09:03 Ketubah sizing and ceremony use 11:43 Early ketubah art practices 15:12 Blending tech with craftsmanship 16:28 The significance of ketubahs in weddings 22:28 Transition to online services 24:10 Custom calligraphic font for Ketubahs 29:06 Starting the first website 32:02 Early marketing efforts 33:26 Providing custom design options 37:19 Meeting artists in Israel 42:02 Struggling to break even 43:39 Learning to delegate tasks 46:52 Managing through pandemic challenges 50:01 Managing cash flow challenges 53:09 Following your passion and persistence Podcast Transcription: Michael Shapiro [00:00:00]: There are some. It's something that usually the couple, you know, there's been some dream of it for years and years, in some cases since childhood, people have imagined what their wedding day was going to be like. On top of that, add the hopes, dreams and expectations of parents, other family members. So it can be a very stressful thing. So I'm very proud of the fact that at least with the purchase of the ketubah, thanks to my team's expertise, empathy and real human customer service, the ketubah is one thing that you can just relax. It's not something you're going to have to worry about. We're there to hold your hand every step of the way and make sure that everything is absolutely right. James Kademan [00:00:40]: You have found authentic Business Adventures, the business program that brings you the struggle stories and triumphant successes of business owners across the land. Downloadable audio episodes can be found in the podcast link Fun to draw in customers.com we are locally underwritten by the bank of Sun Prairie calls on call, Extraordinary answering service, both business book as well as live switch. And today we're welcoming, preparing to learn from Michael Shapiro of ketubah.com and I gotta say, Michael, I'm excited because we're talking about what looks to be some art that. It's funny, I had no idea stuff like this existed. So let's start with the foundation. What do you do? Michael Shapiro [00:01:18]: Absolutely. So ketubah.com sells ketubahs. What is a ketubah? The ketubah at its core is the Jewish marriage contract. The traditional text of it goes back more than 2,000 years. And there is a tradition which is only a thousand years old, if you will, of making this document into something beautifully written and beautifully decorated. James Kademan [00:01:43]: Is this so thorough? Thousands of years who or thousand years who, I guess. Tell me how that has translated over the course of modern times. Is it essentially the same that it was forever ago? Michael Shapiro [00:01:57]: Very, very interesting. And, and you know, I, I actually just, just published a book that looks into the history of this art form and then brings it up to date because there was a very interesting ebb and flow, which is it all started that the tradition of decorating these started in the land of Israel and in Egypt about a thousand years ago. It then moved through Europe all the way to Spain. And then after the Spanish Inquisition and the expulsion of the Jews from Spain, it moved all throughout the Mediterranean into the Middle East. Then over time, with the invention of the printing press and the application of the printing press to making inexpensive versions of this, the art form started to die out. From sort of the late 1800s onwards. Then in North America, starting in the early 1970s, some Jewish artists in the United States and in Canada started to bring the art form back to life. And that's what the book is about. Michael Shapiro [00:02:55]: My book is called Ketubah Renaissance and it's about the modern revival of this ancient art form in a North American context. And that really is what made my business possible. James Kademan [00:03:07]: That is incredible. It's so funny something that I would consider this to be pretty major that I must be just living under a rock because I had never heard of these until connecting with you. Michael Shapiro [00:03:18]: Don't feel too badly. I actually, until 1995, I wasn't aware of this tradition either. So my parents and grandparents just had a simple Ketubah, a simple marriage document that was given to them by the rabbi just on a piece of paper filed away. So that was, you know, that was from the period time when this tradition of the beautifully decorated one had died out. So it was only in 1995, when I was studying in Jerusalem, networking with Judaica artists with an idea to open a shop when I came back to came back home to Canada that I met my first Ketubah artist. So don't feel too bad because I didn't know about this tradition either until, well, 30 years ago. And then I started the company. James Kademan [00:04:01]: Right on. That is awesome. So tell me about the contract itself right before we dive into the art, which is probably more fun. Part, tell me about the contract. Is this just a typical copy paste from every other marriage out there or is there some type of a conversation that happens between the parties, the husband, wife, as to what's going to be included there? Michael Shapiro [00:04:21]: So yes and yes. So the handed down text has changed very little up until this period of the Ketubah revival. And it was a revolutionary text for its time. Imagine in biblical times a woman on her own, either because her husband died or because they became divorced. And divorce is allowed in Judaism, not encouraged, but it is allowed in Judaism. Women and her children on their own could be in serious financial straits. So this was a document that basically was a little bit like, if you will, a prenup slash insurance life insurance policy, which is that if she ended up on her own, she would have financial sum that would be available to her so that she and her children would be okay. That very legal text changed very little up until, as I said, the early 1970s. Michael Shapiro [00:05:17]: Around the time, and this was one of the contributing factors that opened up the, the revival of the art form, there started to be A proliferation of texts, and these included texts that went outside of the religious legal framework that the original text had come down. By that time, not all Jews were practicing sort of Orthodox Judaism. Their reform there was conservative and a whole range of texts that were more like what you're mentioning in your question. Many of them now are more like love documents, commitments of shared value, rather than a legalistic sort of a document. James Kademan [00:05:54]: Gotcha. You know, it's interesting because I'm thinking that the. The men are essentially assigned to support the women. So if the guy goes away for whatever reason, divorce, death, whatever woman is taken care of, does it also. I mean, we're in a time now where that could be flipped, where the woman is the one making all the money. So does that go both ways? Michael Shapiro [00:06:12]: You know what? That's a really interesting question. The traditional text, as far as I know, does not take that into account. And the more I would say contemporary texts, they don't get into the financial end of it at all. So I guess in that circumstance, it would really be up to the state laws in terms when a couple divorces to make sure that they're treating each other fairly versus the religious document requiring that. James Kademan [00:06:43]: Right on. And then last question, in regards to the contract itself, is this a legally binding document? So if some. A divorce happens, the spouse can say, hey, or the ex spouse can say, hey, this is. You owe me, according to this. Michael Shapiro [00:06:58]: Well, it's. So it's binding within a Jewish rabbinical court, if you will. It is. There have been some attempts to bring the ketubah to the so sort of, you know, courts of the state, so to speak. I'm not an expert in that field. I don't know how successful they have been. So I guess the answer is kind of yes and kind of no. James Kademan [00:07:20]: All right, fair enough. Let's get into the fun stuff. Tell me about the art side of these. Michael Shapiro [00:07:25]: Okay, so as I mentioned, the art form, it, you know, goes back about a thousand years. It's a very rich art form. And one of the things that I find fascinating is the. That the ketubahs from different communities across time in different parts of the world typica

    1 hr

  10. Apr 11

    Expand Your Biz Internationally

    Rihab Abouzaki  - This N That Communications On What She Does: "We are a gateway to the US market. As a company, we take the international brand and help them find distributors or help them directly sell in the US market, advertise in the US market." Often we get a little cozy with success.  Sometimes even a bit complacent, and we slow down our businesses growth. But what if you could expand your market beyond your nation's borders and broke into other countries?  Luckily you can, but it may not be easy. Rihab Abouzaki has started This N That Communications to solve this problem.  Her and her team, with their international experience, help companies navigate the waters of marketing, delivering and growing their business in other countries. Listen as Rihab explains what it takes to expand your product globally. Enjoy! Visit Rihab at: https://thisnthatcommunications.com/ Sponsors: Live Video chat with our customers here with LiveSwitch: https://join.liveswitch.com/gfj3m6hnmguz Calls On Call Extraordinary Answering Service: https://callsoncall.com Some videos have been recorded with Riverside: https://www.riverside.fm/?utm_campaign=campaign_5&utm_medium=affiliate&utm_source=rewardful&via=james-kademan   Podcast Overview: 00:00 Talking marketing with Rehab 06:14 Comparing U.S. and Middle East markets 10:14 Demand for Saudi dates in the US 14:25 Distributing Indian products to the US 16:26 Marketing costs versus sales returns 18:39 Finding the right distributor 22:01 Costs of launching in the US 27:09 Tracking ad performance instantly 28:59 Streaming TV and prime time 31:30 Instagram bots vs real engagement 36:55 Why Instagram is losing trust 41:10 Supporting small and mid-sized brands 44:51 Building a client-focused creative team 46:03 Understanding the advertiser's role Podcast Transcription:

    51 min
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5
out of 5
4 Ratings

About

The business podcast designed for entrepreneurs and small business owners to be inspired by, listen to, enjoy and take some action from.

Information

  • Creator
    Draw In Customers Business Coach James Kademan
  • Years Active
    2018 - 2026
  • Episodes
    11
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Copyright Authentic Business Adventures Podcast, via Draw In Customers Business Coaching. All rights reserved.
  • Show Website
    Authentic Business Adventures Podcast

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