Interviews by Deborah Jeanne Sergeant
Starting a new business? We recently asked established area business leaders, “What advice would you give to someone just starting their own business?”
“Prepare yourself to spend a lot of time there. You need to be there to establish relationships with your clientele. It’s imperative that people see you, get to know you and be personable and friendly, greet and treat everyone with respect.”
— Chris Sachel, Owner Mimi’s Drive-in, Fulton
“Over the past 35-plus years, I’ve supported and worked with a number of small business start-ups. There are two things I’ve seen repeatedly that aren’t always considered and can lead to a rough start-up or less than optimal sales. First, prospective business owners need to do an objective and thorough analysis of their competitors. This may sound obvious, but in some cases, it’s too easy to be so in love with your idea that you may disqualify or downplay your competition. Second, be sure your start-up planning includes a place in your budget for marketing your business. Many times, I’ve seen that finding funding for a website, or a professional website designer, as well as developing a strategy for launching a business are an afterthought — but so very critical to success. You can have the best idea, product or service in the world, but you’ll be practically invisible without a good marketing plan for your launch and sustainability.”
— Stephen Chirello, Owner Steve Chirello Advertising, Fulton
“Be clear with a business plan. Have a goal for your company and yourself. That will propel you further. Daily sales calls are a part of a business. I say this to anyone who wants to start a business. You have to dedicate a good 50% of what you’re doing to sales. When I had Five Star Events, I’d do only eight events a year. That was finding eight clients. With Women TIES, I sell sponsorships, meetings, events. Everything was sales-based. In year 12, I got tired of doing the sales and less of marketing and press releases. That is the No. 1 lesson. Sometimes we have enough repeat customers. Having to just fill in my calendar with small events was easy for Five Star Events. Make sure that in your business model you know how much sales you’ll need to do to be successful.”
— Tracy Higginbotham, Founder Women TIES, Syracuse
“Know your customer and diversify your offerings. Know what problem you are solving for the customer.”
— Jeff Grimshaw, Principal consultant at Grimshaw Consulting, LLC, Fulton and Peekskill
“Don’t try to do everything yourself. Seek advice from experts in areas that are not your strength. Successful businesses grow when we recognize we cannot do it all.”
— Debbie Bilello, Profit strategist at Virtual Office Solutions, Central Square
“Study what other ‘like businesses’ have done to be successful and copy that. Learn the customer is not always right, but you have to treat them like they are. Last, you’re not Walmart; you can’t survive long term being the lowest price, don’t try to be. So, offer a reasonable price and over-deliver not over-promise.”
— John M. Henry, Owner, Speedway Press, Mitchell Printing & Mailing Inc. and The Phoenix Press, Oswego
“My strongest advice would be to work tirelessly with passion and dedication not just for your business but also for the people that stand beside you. Build a team that will give you a birthday card that brings tears to your eyes.”
— Stephanie Overton, Owner Cayuga St. Steakhouse, Fulton
“Seek advice from a business attorney and an accountant prior to starting your business. Know the requirements on the type of business you are starting, the formation of the business. So many people start a business without this knowledge and end up paying penalties and interest because of lack of knowledge in what they are doing. Do not expect the government to give you all the information, as they do not have any good resources in one spot to give you the correct information on everything. Most likely you will be dealing with several different governmental agencies with your business and they can only help with their one portion.”
— Brenda Weissenberg, Owner of Affordable Business Solutions, West Monroe
“My advice for anyone starting their own business is surround yourself with a winning team to be successful. Get a real estate agent, lawyer and accountant that can answer all of your questions and help set you up for success, without having to learn everything on your own. It will give you a much better chance for success in your new business.”
— William Galloway, Broker/owner Century 21 Galloway Realty, Oswego
“Go for your dream, don’t let nothing get in your way.”
— John (Luther) Gray, Owner Motivated Creations, LLC, Oswego
“The advice I would give to someone just starting their own business is to practice patience and build with a long-term vision, but remain open to opportunity as it arises. Sometimes you can’t create the kinds of opportunities your business may thrive on, nor will you always feel ready to capitalize on them when they appear — it will take discernment to know when to stretch yourself and when to walk away. Intuition is essential for any leader owner, but it takes time to develop and requires failure as well as success to sharpen.”
— Patrick Corbett, President & CEO, Vanguard Research & Title Services, Inc., Syracuse and Oswego
“You need to be self-motivated and persistent. I had an English teacher in elementary school that had a little ditty, ‘Good, better, best / Never let it rest / Until the good is better / And the better’s best!’ Thanks, Mrs. Donovan!”
— Tony Pauldine, Owner Anthony M. Pauldine General Contractors Inc., Oswego
“Anyone considering starting their own business should carefully consider their overall business structure, weighing the pros and cons of forming an entity, for example, a limited liability company, versus sole proprietorship. The overall business structure would also include ownership structure and which of the founders is receiving what percentage of ownership. As a general rule, one should be careful when starting a business that is owned 50-50 as it creates an easy deadlock scenario. Another big piece of advice is to just simply get your house in order. Make sure you have all of your important business relationships in writing, including between the owners themselves. Careful preparation at the beginning can save a lot of headaches down the road.”
— Attorney Zachary D. Forward, Partner Barclay Damon LLP, Syracuse
“My No. 1 piece of advice would be to be prepared to work long hours. There are no days off when you are an owner of your own business. There are also no paid sick days, vacation days or holidays. As an owner, you are always on duty, always at the ready to answer a question or solve a problem. Having said the above, I believe the keys to success are to surround yourself with people who complement the company’s personality and skill sets requirements; try to anticipate what is coming; and have both a Plan A and a Plan B and be thinking about a Plan C because things don’t often go exactly as you originally thought they would.”
— Leah Haggerty, Owner Century 21 Leah’s Signature, Fulton
