Tell us a bit about your business.
Bel Canto Books is a Filipina-owned indie bookstore, offering a curated selection of fiction, nonfiction, and children’s books, organized around a theme of the month, in particular celebrating books by women and people of color.
What makes your small business unique from others?
Our micro-size (under 400 square feet at each location) means that every book is hand-picked by me, with a focus on AAPI and BIPOC authors.
Why did you decide to start your own business? How did you get started?
After spending all of my adult life working in the corporate world, I wanted to shift to something that reconnected me to my lifelong love of reading and storytelling. I started in January 2018 as a pop-up business, hosting a monthly book club at local wine bars and restaurants.
What is the biggest lesson you learned in the first year?
We opened our first brick-and-mortar location just before the pandemic, in November 2019, so learning how to adapt and innovate under constantly changing conditions was essential to our success.
What was the most surprising thing about becoming a business owner?
The runaway success of our teeny, tiny bookstore has been the most surprising, and deeply gratifying, thing about becoming a business owner, especially during a global pandemic.
What were some things you needed to teach yourself about running a business? How did you learn those things?
I needed to learn so many things, from doing all the paperwork to set up the business, to understanding how the book industry works, to how to run a retail store, to then pivoting to add virtual and online components to our business. I took business classes at our local college and with a bookstore consulting company, talked to a lot of small business owners, and did my own research online.
How does running your own business make you feel?
Running and starting my own business has given me incredible confidence in my own abilities and the power of community building. I’m so proud of everything that we’ve accomplished — opening multiple locations, building an engaged community of readers locally and globally, and creating robust programming in the form of author events, book clubs, community events, and literary festivals.
What are some of the challenges you’ve overcome or are working to overcome?
Profitability remains our biggest challenge. Running an indie bookstore is a very “high touch,” customer service oriented business with low profit margins, so we’re constantly looking for community partnerships and new business opportunities.
What advice do you have for other entrepreneurs looking to start their own business?
Do your research. Take business classes, talk to other business owners, and make sure you understand the needs of your community.
How do you manage to wear every hat that your business demands?
Being a solopreneur is a marathon, not a race. Do the best you can with the time, energy, and resources you have, and remember to extend grace to yourself when you need it. You are just one person.
What challenges do you feel are unique to AANHPI business owners?
As a first generation Filipina entrepreneur and lifelong overachiever, I feel incredible pressure to succeed and be a credit to my community. I struggle with being a people pleaser and setting boundaries to protect my mental health and physical wellness.
What are your proudest moments?
I’m proudest when customers find a meaningful book or discover a new author through our bookstore, especially when it comes to our AANHPI community members. Seeing them see themselves represented on our bookshelves is so powerful.
What are the next big plans you have for your business?
I want to keep the door open for new opportunities to connect with more readers, especially young people, whether that is through expanding the reach of our AAPI literary festivals, finding a larger bookstore and community space, or creating new programming that fills some of the learning gaps in our education system.
When you’re having a tough day, who or what inspires you to keep going?
I think of the people I’ve connected with through the bookstore, amazing people in our community who are taking care of loved ones, going back to school, working multiple jobs, and raising growing families, all while advocating for a better world. I remind myself of all the good in my life and in what I have yet to dream of.
How do you maintain a work/life balance as a small business owner?
I’m an “all or nothing” kind of person, so I love to be really busy and active, and then hide out for a few hours (or a day) and recharge by reading a good book, watching my streaming shows, or spending time outdoors.
What’s your “power song” and why?
I started listening to “All I Do Is Win” by DJ Khaled about six years ago when I was studying to pass a hospitality industry exam, and it’s stuck with me. It makes me laugh, and I love dancing around to it.
This article originally appeared on QuickBooks and was syndicated by MediaFeed.org.
15 expert secrets on how to grow your small business
When you’re serious about growing your small business it makes sense to get the best advice possible. You can do that even if money is tight by tapping the expertise of Small Business Development Center (SBDC) advisors and consultants. SBDCs are funded in part by the United States Congress through a partnership with the U.S. Small Business Administration.
SBDC Centers offer free consulting and free or low-cost training. (Find yours here.) Their results speak for themselves: SBDC clients grow sales by an average 18.1%, which is 4.3 times the national average. March 20th is SBDC Day, and to celebrate, we assembled some tips from their experts.
Here 15 SBDC pros share strategies for taking your business to the next level.
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Make a list of your competitor’s strengths and weaknesses. Thoroughly research them so you are able to take their weakness and make them your strengths. You don’t want to compete with them on their strengths when you can target their weaknesses and excel there. That’s your competitive advantage!
Tamela Darnell, management consultant, KY SBDC at Murray State University
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It’s as simple as it sounds, but sending a handwritten note to customers is one of the best ways to keep customers and get new referrals. Anyone can send an email, but when customers receive a handwritten letter, they know that you took the time to think about them, write the note, and mail it. (Who even has stamps anymore?!) Those notes become treasures for small business owners who many not otherwise receive much deserved accolades and you’ll be top of mind next time they or a friend is in need of your product or service!
Gina Woodward, regional director, America’s SBDC at WTAMU
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Disruptive customer service is a desired level of service that is delivering a customer experience that is so exemplary that it literally creates brand ambassadors for your business and blows the competition away. That begins with declaring exemplary customer service as a core value in your company and supporting that declaration with ongoing training and tools for every member of the organization from the top down.
Mark Collier, business consultant, Georgia’s SBDC
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Start looking now for a potential person to purchase your business to keep it thriving and growing long after you exit. One of the best places to look is at your own employees. If you find an employee that shows interest and potential start grooming them now. It may take a couple of years for you to sell (or be willing to sell) and in the meantime you have the opportunity to foster and mentor a great employee to become the next owner.
Susan G Desgrosseilliers, business advisor, Maine SBDC at the University of Southern Maine
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If you have a bricks and mortar business located next to other businesses, collaborate and promote as a city or neighborhood. The more ways that you can find to work and promote your businesses together, the more ways you will create a friendly and warm environment that your customers will love.
Here in Cleveland Heights, Ohio, several independent restaurants joined up to market together. And CLE Urban Winery had an event where it offered the product of another local small business, Brewnuts. They are both advertising for each other, and making more sales.
Katie A. Van Dyke, director, Ohio SBC at Cleveland Heights Library
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One of the biggest missteps that a company can make is thinking that they know who their customers are. Research shows us that most businesses have not taken the time to truly understand their customers. The easiest thing to do is to survey your customers, let them tell you what you are doing right— and believe me they will tell you what you are doing wrong.
You also need to look at demographics, geographics, and psychographics to obtain the full picture of who your customers truly are. If you master this concept, you will be better at catering to their needs and making them your customers.
Carleen Dotson, training specialist/business consultant, Ohio University SBDC
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Sell yourself, not just your product or service. Face-to-face contact, as well as a phone call, are powerful ways to establish trust and maintain that confidential relationship. Email has become the sad standard of sales in 2019; although important, it lacks the personal touch. Don’t fall into that trap!
Mary Kay Della Camera, microenterprise business advisor, Connecticut SBDC at UConn School of Business
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Revamp your website if it is more than five years old. Website design has evolved, internet users are more savvy and you don’t want to be considered “obsolete” in a glance. Simple changes like placing your logo and call-to-action in the upper left corner; using concise, keyword-rich content that is understood easily; and the addition of hyper-linked buttons to your product or service page placed above the “fold” or “scroll” line can make a big impact in user experience and bounce rates.
Laura D. Katz, area director, Athens, University of Georgia SBDC
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It’s a commonly accepted business fact that it is easier and less expensive to keep an existing customer than it is to get a new one. As small business owners we have to make a concerted effort not to take the customers we have for granted. Small simple things can make a big impact, so do what you said you would do, go the extra mile and follow up, asking for feedback. Start with these things and loyal customers will follow.
Bill Burnham, growth acceleration specialist, Florida SBDC at USF
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The reality of running your own business is that you can work 24/7 and there’s still more to do! When helping clients prepare an operating plan, I always recommend scheduling at least two weeks for vacations. I also recommend taking breaks during the day – for a short walk or meditation – for rest and renewal.
Ann Garbarino, NYS certified senior business advisor, SBDC at Stony Brook University
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Look around for key partnerships in all aspects of your business. Are there ways to partner with supplies, distributors, wholesalers or retailers that would cut your cost of goods sold (COGS) or marketing? For instance, your organic dog treats require vegetable pulp, is there a juice bar that regularly throws out pounds of pulp?
Kim Sherman-Labrum, associate business consultant/training coordinator, Idaho SBDC in Boise
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Map out your cash flow for six to twelve months. As your sales increase, it’s even more important to do this, since your inventory and payroll expenses will probably occur before your customers’ money hits your bank account.
Karen Goldner, managing director, Illinois SBDC at Women’s Business Development Centers
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Businesses need to explore all options when looking for financing. Usually the front line of financing sources are the banks and rightfully so. That is what they do best. There are some who use the SBA guarantee programs and others who don’t.
But there are other entities involved in that universe. Starting at the neighborhood level, there are the Community Development Corporations (CDCs). Their mission is to improve their own business districts and have funding to do that from tax abatements to grants. Then there are municipalities. They also have an economic development component helping businesses located within their jurisdictions. Then you have the counties which have the economic development officers and then state programs.
Honeycomb and non-profit Kiva have crowdfunding options. There are also online lenders. Business owners need to explore as much as possible in their quest to get financing.
Brent G. Rondon, certified global business professional (CGBP) manager, Duquesne University SBDC
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Whether you have employees, subcontractors or family pitching in, learning how to delegate effectively can be the difference between reaching new heights and burning out. Many small business owners are accustomed to doing a variety of things themselves instead of enlisting the help of others, so it can be challenging to identify the tasks you don’t need to do yourself and assign the work to someone else. Once you overcome the challenge, though, you will have more time to dedicate to what you do best — grow your business.
Denise Whitford, business advisor at the Connecticut SBDC
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These “smile makers” are four categories of target-audience products almost guaranteed to be a selling success. Add products for children, grandchildren, family and pets, the fastest growing purchasing categories.
Rita A. Mitchell, certified counselor, USM SBDC and Penny Bolton, business consultant, Murfreesboro, Tennessee.
This article originally appeared on Nav.com and was syndicated by MediaFeed.org.
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Featured Image Credit: QuickBooks.
