"Beating the Odds"

I just read an article in BusinessWeek that I thought was pretty interesting; it just had interviews from three entrepreneurs at the two, five, and ten year markers. According to the article, most small business ventures (two-thirds) survive the first two years, but only 44 percent survive to their fifth anniversary. Anyway, the entrepreneurs had some tips for those looking into starting their own business that I found interesting, so I thought I would share.

BYD Ranch & Kennel opened in 2007 when Miriam Reick used $100,000 of her own money to start a dog and horse boarding farm in Bryan, Tex. Reick said that one of the biggest factors in her business' survival was the use of profit to improve her operation. She constantly reinvested her income into the business, which made her ranch more profitable in the long run (if you can consider being open for two years a "long run"). She also said that setting realistic, attainable goals and striving to meet those goals were very important.

Tom Neimeier opened Space Architectural Design Firm in 2005, aspiring to have a small business of no more than 20 architects. Neimeier said that what helped his business, which had 16 architects in its fourth year of operation, was bringing in architects with diversified experience. He hired employees that had expertise in areas he (or anyone else at the firm) had experience with. The clientele base followed the architects, which allowed his business to grow.

Matt Carlin opened Resource Options, a staffing business, in 1999 after being a hockey coach for most of his professional career. Carlin said that entering a market that was similar to what he was experienced in (hockey coaching and staffing--who knew?) helped him get off to a running start. He also advised to not "put all your eggs in one basket." One of his first clients represented a large portion of his income (10-15 percent, he estimated), and when they filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, his business took a large hit. Carlin kept at it, however, and his business survived the loss.

Anyway, I just thought it was interesting to see what successful entrepreneurs have to say about what got them to where they're at. Here's the link if your interested in reading the article:

http://www.businessweek.com/smallbiz/content/oct2009/sb20091030_273887_page_2.htm