Vacation, though much desired, has raised an interesting question for us: Is it possible to take a break from the business without breaking the business? As a new business, we've felt the pressure to be very available... The kind of available that means long hours and quick burn-out. And we've looked at our options. We could simply close and put up a sign. We could cut our hours. We could think about hiring someone more full time, which might put our business in a precarious financial position but keep us sane.
When we opened last January I was 7 months pregnant. We had no family In the area, and most of our friends were very busy with their own lives. That left us with very few options. My husband planned on taking a couple weeks off work in order to watch the store when I had the baby, by which time I was supposed to go back to work. Two weeks. What to do?
We focused on the things we had to daily. Inventory, learning the fiscal software, reordering, setting up lessons, special orders, and deciding that knitting/crochet nights we should have at the store. There was no time to worry about the future when each day was so full.
And then suddenly, there were regular customers. And some of those customers became friends, sometimes dropping by even when they didn't need yarn. I learned about their children, their jobs, and sometimes their dreams and even their animals. And suddenly we had offers to watch the store after I had the baby. Not just "hey, if you need to run to the bathroom I can watch the store" kind of offers. No, these were substantial "I can watch the store Thursdays through Saturdays, if you'd like" offers.
My husband and I were floored. We knew we would need some help, but this was beyond what we had ever expected. We had our Miles baby and four full weeks with him thanks to several generous people. Incredible.
All that to say that our small business is dependent on family, community and friendships. Yes, good product and services are a lot of what keeps us financially viable, but often mental viability is more important to our-and thus the business'-survival.
So thank you, Jenni, Kathy, Krista, Becky, Lesa, Cindy. Sometimes we've had a hard time, and you all can be incredibly proud of your part in keeping this yarn store going.
As always, you can check out our website Here or our Facebook. Thanks for stopping by!
-Joy
