Business Discussions

    We love the Olympics around here! Watching athletes from all over the globe is not only inspiring, it’s educational as well. How many times have you pulled out a map or read about another country’s customs while taking in an event? We know we have!   The Games have got us thinking internationally, so we want to know:   Have you taken your business beyond your country’s border? What were some of the complications you faced bringing products or services international? What insights can you share about going worldwide?

Name: Hanna Broer QB Community member name: @HannaB Business: Hanna Broer Design Launched: 2011 Craftsbury, Vermont-based designer, Hanna Broer, is a one-woman operation -- from design to sewing to racing packages to her tiny town’s post office before the 2:30 closing time. Originally from Canada, Hannah got her professional start working as a seamstress for a designer in Montreal. But she always knew she wanted to strike out on her own. She made herself some underwear one day and thought, “I should sell this!” -- and the rest is history. We spoke with this lingerie lady from her third-floor sewing studio (where she sits atop a village grocer and a tattoo parlor) about loving your body, eco-conscious design and how she staves off the loneliness of working solo. Hanna, how did you get started in the clothing business? I worked for a fashion designer in Montreal who had a women’s clothing shop. I was the shop assistant and a seamstress. I really enjoyed it, but I was very much planning

Hi Everyone, How must a business gear up to face Holidays and Special Days? Any ideas? Ever thought of making a calender at the beginning of every year and marking out the Holidays and Special Days and having a strategy for such days. Businesses can do well if they plan out these special times and work sales strategies around them. Holiday season is big time for most businesses and so are Special Days such as Valentines Day. Planning for such days one must consider Stocks and Labour. Also this is the time when Employees too want offs.  Having a plan and working out all the details over and over before the rush starts could be a good way to be one step ahead.  Above all this is also the time when the very very special people around you want to spend more time with you. So plan for that too.  Have a Great time everyone.  

Where I live in Massachusetts, no amount of signage or other early-warning systems seem to prevent trucks from getting stuck in our notoriously low-clearance tunnels and underpasses. Know what they use in Australia? Holograms. Holograms and also waterfalls. You see, you need an actual surface to project the hologram on - one that can be lowered and raised easily regardless of passing traffic. When a too-tall vehicle approaches the Harbour Tunnel in Sydney, Australia, it trips a sheet of falling water that serves as the projector screen for a giant stop sign. You kinda can't miss it. Do you know what this means? Among other things, it means that someone, somewhere had a really great boss. I imagine a meeting about the problem of too-tall trucks, and a raised hand: "How about we use a hologram of a stop sign?" Better yet, someone suggested this new application for hologram technology and the person next to him said, "That might work, but you'd need a giant waterfall to pr

  Artist and illustrator Emily Rose Thomson designs colorful critters to hold, wear or display. Whether it’s a hedgehog totem, a bird necklace or a plush Loch Ness Monster, her pieces are cute, quirky and adorable. We caught up with the New York-based maker to talk about why asking for help from her fellow small business owners is so important, what she's learned about making your product photography stand out and — most importantly — the big questions she has for all of *you* here in QB Commununity! Read on to hear her small business story, and help her out by sharing your own tips in the comments below!   Name: Emily Rose Thomson Business: PeriwinkleNuthatch Illustration and Art Pieces Started: October 2011   How did you start your awesome business? I thought I was going to lose my day job, so I decided I could try selling my art online. As a kid, I always made a profit selling art — I used to paint pictures of people's pets on rocks! My mom was actuall

   

  It's time for the 2018 Winter Olympics and we couldn't be more excited! Olympic athletes have a lot in common with entrepreneurs. They all have a laser focus on a goal, a singular dedication to do whatever it takes to succeed and a never-wavering determination to beat out the competition. Sounds like the formula for “Starting a Business 101,” right? Given their familiarity with these fundamental business concepts, it should come as no surprise when Olympians “retire” and go into business for themselves. Here are nine who made a successful transition from winning in sports to winning in business. • Jim Craig, Hockey: 1980 Olympics This legendary hockey goalie from the 1980 “Miracle on Ice” team that bested the Soviets now runs Gold Medal Strategies, a marketing and promotions firm based in Boston. • Jesse Lumsden, Bobsled: 2010, 2014, 2018 Olympics Training is expensive, so this Canadian athlete started his business a few years ago as a way to help fund it. He makes “Olympian

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  Name: Steve Lawrence Business: The Chocolate Maker’s Studio Location: Based in Portland, OR but sold all over the US Founded: 2008   Portland-based chocolatier Steve Lawrence has been in the food business since he started washing restaurant dishes as a teenager. Now he’s ascended to the top of the heap of fine chocolate makers in the United States. We were able to grab a few sweet moments with Steve during this busy time of year - Valentine’s Day is nearly upon us! - to talk about his growing business, the science of chocolate and how much his wife loves his job.   Steve, how did you get into the chocolate business? Many years ago, when I lived in Denver, I was a pastry chef. I’d always enjoyed working with chocolate but found it challenging. For such a simple food, chocolate is very complex in the way it responds to time and temperature and movement. When my wife and I moved to Seattle in the 1990s, I went to work for Fran Bigelow, whose business, Fran's Ch

Name: Kevin Gambini QB Community member name: @kevingambini Business: Breakaway Bikes Founded: Kevin took over an existing business in 2014 Kevin Gambini was on his way to becoming a licensed land surveyor when he noticed something funny going on in his favorite bike shop in his hometown of Santa Rosa, CA. Inventory was unusually low, so Kevin, a mountain-bike enthusiast and weekend racer, asked the owner what was up. Turns out the owner was getting ready to either sell off all the inventory or find a buyer for the business. Something clicked -- and Kevin decided to buy the store. Suddenly, in addition to being a newly minted business owner, he was also a manager, a merchandiser, a salesman, a marketer, an accountant and an HR department. “It was a shock to the system,” says Kevin, thinking back on his early days of entrepreneurship. Kevin tells us about the challenges he’s faced and why learning to accept his own shortcomings was critical to his success. Kevin, you were passion

   

We all know there's no "I" in team, but yakking about the Super Bowl with @Racecar75 got me thinking that there are several reasons why star quarterbacks should rush - not run - toward self-employment post-NFL.   1. They know how to prepare. Quarterbacks watch miles of footage during the season, studying the competition for gaps in coverage and other weaknesses they can turn into opportunities come game day.   2. They have a padded playbook... Quarterbacks must memorize novel-thick books of set plays designed to address every possible circumstance on the field.    3. ...but can think on their feet. If Plan A doesn't work, there's always a Plan B.    4. They delegate wisely. Quarterbacks know exactly where their guys are on the gridiron and must decide within seconds who gets the pass.   5. They learn from, but don't dwell on, their mistakes. Mid-game, there's no time to fixate on a fumble. The best qu

If you can't find it, make it! Friends Kyrra and Lauren of Myabetic founded their one-of-a-kind line of fashionable totes for diabetes supplies when nothing else would do.  Does your product or service solve a problem? If so, what?

Have you considered hiring a business or marketing coach?   For some people it is a no-brainer, they are dilligently saving up for one. While for others it is a strange thought. They are cool with simply googling away and trying new things.    What are your thoughts on the matter?   -Jessa Hargrove

what did you do to start your own business? i have tried a business plan and grants to get funding. all turned down and unable to get funding due to my bad credit. even had opportunities to start a couple of businesses with friends but those fell through. once again because of money. i dont have money saved up because i am unable to save much from what i make at work after paying bills. i am not happy working anymore. i want to leave my job and stop working for others in general and start my own business. i dont know what to do. i would appreciate any advice. thanks. 

   

We are a new church plant and were debating utilizing Quickbooks online or nonprofit. The customer service rep convinced me to go online with more options. The problem is after I ordered online, it did not have the option to create member contribution statments which is important to any non-profit. In short, I wanted to merge giving/donations/etc. to one system vs going back and forth between one in accounting and one for our contributions. I called Quickbooks and the rep tried to help me out, but couldnt. However, he led me down a path and I figured it out. #1 First, decide how you will track your donations.https://community.intuit.com/articles/1145821-recording-in-kind-donations-receivedThis was important as I didnt want my contribution statements to merge with accounting because I can pull that information directly from my bank. #2 Keep your donations in one account. Example. If John Doe gives monthly, it shouldnt be 4 seperate transactions. However, once you click into Jo

Hey everyone - this is my first post  and I'm not really sure if we're allowed to ask specific tax questions, but figured I'd give it a shot.   It's probably a dumb question, but if I ended up with $700 in net income this year (my first), would I pay the 15% SE tax on the whole $700, or just on the $300 that's above the $400 IRS threshold? Hope that made sense.  Thanks!     (Title edited by moderator for clarity)

    Heather originally didn’t set out to create a business when she started selling her unique crafts to her fellow students in art school, but p i ‘ l o has now been going strong for more than 20 years.    She creates luxury pillows and home decor items that are sold all over the world and in huge online stores that include the likes of Anthropologie, but Heather still struggles to call herself a business owner.    We couldn’t wait to find out more about her journey, the special formula she uses to price her products and what she's hoping to learn next from you!   Name: Heather Shaw   Business: p i ' l o Designs in Toronto   Started: 1994   How and when did you decide to start your business?   I always knew this is what I wanted to do, and I was only 20 when I started this business — while I was still in school!    I went to art school In Vancouver, but honestly, they didn’t know what to do

In 2014, Lindsey Laurain was inspired by a conversation with her husband to find a product that would make mealtime with her small kids a lot less messy — and a lot more fun. Soon after, she quit her corporate job and created EZPZ Happy Mats, a line of colorful, practical mats that double as both placemats and plates. Lindsey was recently one of our top 10 finalists in Small Business Big Game, so we reached out to learn more about her journey as a small business owner and what she's learned along the way!   Name: Lindsey Laurain Business: EZPZ Happy Mats Started: August 2014 Tell us a little more about how you came up with the idea for EZPZ placemats. Who or what inspired you to create your product? The idea for our EZPZ Happy Mats was born purely out of mealtime frustration.  My husband and I have three little boys — three-year-old identical twins and a five-year-old — and one night at dinner my husband got so frustrated because every plate or bowl was on the floor. He

Ok, we'll go first: "Love." This month, QB Community is all about how we share the love - with clients and customers, employees, suppliers and - yes! - our own hardworking selves. Check back throughout the month of February for members' ideas on putting all those good vibes into practice.  Now it's your turn: What's the one-word theme that's pushing you forward this month?

Name: Willa Amai Business: Singer-songwriter — professional 8th grader   Founded: Musically gifted since, well, birth   Willa Amai remembers being just three years old and singing to her sister and her parents in “gibberish.” Her lyrics may not have been clear, but, even then, Willa’s gift for music certainly was. Her talents were nurtured with regular piano lessons, and, at age nine, Willa started setting her original poetry to music. Today, the newly minted teenager is represented by We Are Hear, a record label and management company founded by multi-platinum producers Linda Perry and Kerry Brown. Recently, Willa was selected out of more than 100 artists to create and perform a cover of the Daft Punk song chosen for the QuickBooks 2018 BACKING YOU campaign. Her beautiful melody and rich, resonant vocals have put this talented, inspiring teen in a bright spotlight. Good thing Willa is very much ready to shine.    Willa, you just turned 13. The fact that you have a

Any advice on whether one is required to file/issue a 1099 to a contractor/vendor based on a corp-to-corp relationship? 

IF A SALARIED EMPLOYEE STARTS WORK THE SECOND WEEK OF THE MONTH AND THEY ARE PAID 2 TIMES PER MONTH HOW ARE THEY PAID FOR THE SECOND HALF OF THE MONTH. I PAID THEM AN HOURLY RATE FROM THEIR START DATE TO THE 14TH OF THE MONTH (THE FIRST HALF OF THE SALARY PAY) WHICH WAS 24 HOURS. SHOULD I PAY THEM HOURLY FOR THE SECOND HALF OF THE MONTH OR USE THE SALARY AMOUNT FOR THAT SECOND HALF?