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After noticing a lack of classic coffee shops in the historic district of Troy, Missouri, Nancy Wyatt and her family took the plunge and decided to take matters into their own hands to fill this void. In December of 2014, the Wyatts formally established Roasted Bean, LLC. In addition to Nancy, the team includes her husband, Randy, their daughter, Kristen Glenn, and her husband, Justin. The coffee shop resides in a building built in the 1920s that the Wyatts are renovating.The Roasted Bean will serve pastries, donuts, and muffins in the morning. Then, at lunchtime, they’ll switch up the menu items and serve soup and cold sandwiches. In the late night hours, the coffee house will sell desserts like cheesecake. In addition to fresh coffee and food, the family’s renovated space includes new furnishings to create a relaxed and comfy atmosphere.

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Bringing a Coffee House to a Historic Downtown District

As a licensed massage therapist, Crystal Hawthorne has been in the business of healing people for more than seven years. A graduate of the Swedish Institute of Health and Science with a degree in occupational studies, Crystal learned what it takes to mend bodies and souls. Over the years, Crystal found more ways to help people with her own special brand of healing. Eventually, she decided she wanted a business where she had the freedom to use the techniques she’d learned. In April of 2017, Crystal started her own massage therapy business, Crystal-Lization, LLC, in New York City. Like many new business owners, Crystal was unsure about business tax issues and was stressed out about having to deal with them. To make things easier, she hired 1-800Accountant to handle her taxes. Now, Crystal feels very much at ease knowing she has someone to stay on top of her taxes, freeing her to focus on what she cares most passionately about – helping people and growing her business every day. Crystal is currently working on expanding her business. She plans to continue to sell her spiritual healing products on Amazon and would like to develop her own retail website. Crystal also dreams of one day owning a storefront where she can spread knowledge to people about spiritual healing through her products and massage therapy techniques. Says Crystal, “I wake up and want to always learn new ways of helping people through different types of massage and different healing techniques.”

Crystal Hawthorne and 1-800Accountant: Reducing Stress Together

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Entrepreneur Love King works as a full-time hospital administrator, overseeing doctors and nurses and ensuring patients receive top-notch medical care.
But King wanted to do something on the side that was totally different from working in a busy medical center. So she thought that starting a business in the online retail space through which she offers women’s clothing would be fun – and give her some extra income.
Fittingly, King is the proud CEO of Loving Yourself, LLC in Boston Massachusetts. It’s a one-woman operation with King running the small business entirely on her own. She formally created it in June 2014, and she can manage it from the convenience of her own home since it is web-based.
Located online at <a class="link" href="http://www.loveityourself.com/">www.loveityourself.com</a>, the retailer offers a variety of elegant and casual dresses, tops, and other items for female shoppers. Pricewise, they run from about $20 up to $75. While it specializes in selling clothing for women, King plans to offer items for men as well.
“My clothing can be worn by women ages 18 and up,” King says.
The entrepreneur is a native of Liberia, a West African country. She emigrated to the United States 12 years ago. Since setting foot on U.S. soil, she always had the goal of achieving the American dream in the back of her mind.
“I had always wanted to have my own business since coming to this country,” she explains. “I started thinking about what I could do to get into a business. I just thought about it and thought I could have an online store where I could buy items from a wholesaler and resell them. I love clothing, so it seemed like a good option for a business.”
According to King, serving her customers will ultimately make her new small business profitable and sustainable long-term.
“My customers come first,” she says. “I have to treat them with lots of respect and make sure I help them with everything. Customer service is so important in any small business.”
Starting a business can lead to lots of enjoyment for entrepreneurs in various ways. For King, she really likes the challenge it has presented her in using a different part of her brain.
“It’s something totally different from what I’m used to doing every day,” she says. “There is a big learning curve and learning process. The whole experience is just very interesting and enjoyable.”
<h2>Gaining an Edge over Competition</h2>
The clothing industry is quite competitive with so many retailers out there offering similar options on clothing at similar price points. King feels there are a few key ingredients to gaining an edge over her competition to get more customers to shop on her website rather than clicking over to other sites.
“Like any small business, you have to have high-quality products, the best prices, and offer discounts at times,” she says. “Customer service is also a big priority for me. Customers want more one-on-one support, and they can get more of this from a smaller company like mine compared to a bigger store.”
<h2>Small Business Challenges</h2>
All entrepreneurs, regardless of industry, are faced with a multitude of unexpected challenges when starting a business for the first time. Some of them are exciting, while others are a little scary. King talks about the challenges she has endured.
“Getting the customers by getting people to know about the business has been my biggest challenge so far,” she says. “Once I get them on the website, I have to find the best ways to get them to buy my products.”
<h2>Advice for Entrepreneurs</h2>
Based on her experience as a newly crowned small business owner, King wants to give some words of wisdom for anyone who has an interest in starting a business.
“You need to have that enthusiasm for the business,” she says. “If you aren’t enthused, it won’t go anywhere. Failure is not an option, especially if you’re trying to support yourself. Sometimes your business will stall and you’ll get down on yourself. You have to find ways to keep it going and be persistent.”
She adds that there are both advantages and disadvantages to self-employment.
“The biggest advantage is being your own boss,” she says. “But because of this, you have to do a lot of thinking for yourself since everything is on you. That’s why it’s important to surround yourself with smart people.”
<h2>1-800Accountant Client Testimonial</h2>
King is a client of 1-800Accountant. She offers praise to the national accounting and business consulting firm in terms of how the company has been able to assist her with her taxes.
“I’ve been very satisfied with 1-800Accountant,” King says. “One of my other accountants had me owing a lot of money to the IRS, so I needed something different. I’m very grateful for 1-800Accountant. Everyone I’ve talked to has been very nice, helpful, and understanding of my specific needs. I would recommend the firm to others seeking accounting services.”
Photo credit: The photograph of Love King was provided by Loving Yourself, LLC and is used with permission.

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Giving Customers Something They’ll “Love” to Wear

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Kara Fiore didn’t always have dreams of small business ownership. After her father turned 80, he fell ill under a mysterious sickness that confused and concerned the doctors they worked with. The doctors quickly learned his condition was not a textbook condition, and it didn’t take long for Fiore’s father to become a Stanford case study. Finally, they discovered he had a very rare condition that causes an abnormal protein to get deposited into the brain. Several misdiagnoses on their part, sleepless nights of doing research on hers, and two brain surgeries performed on him later, she formally established CBD Meds, LLC in July of 2014.Sometime after a few years of research had already taken place on Fiore’s part, she learned about hemp. Hemp is a legal and non-psychoactive part of the cannabis plant. Inside the cannabis plant is a compound called CBD, which stands for “cannabidiol.” Not to be mistaken for THC, CBD eases inflammation and pain. Neuroscientists believe it protects the brain and neurons from damage and positively affects seizures, eye health, memory, mood, stress, and the immune and nervous systems.“My father started using the compound I was able to find, and that’s how I started the business. I believe that this compound, which is part of a plant Mother Nature has given us, acts as the key to some of these health issues because an overwhelming assortment of health issues involve inflammation of some kind. It’s always kind of a sticky situation when you sell botanical extracts because you need to respect the law, you can’t make any claims, and you must be very particular about terminology. You can’t say your product will cure any disorder, and there’s a misconception that THC and CBD are the same thing,” Fiore explains.Fiore runs her small business out of a home office in San Mateo, California. Under CBD Meds exists RSHO HempOils, a web-based store that sells award-winning, high-quality, topical products that contain CBD, like calming balm, body wash, body lotion, shampoo, and conditioner, in addition to oils, hemp drops, and hemp capsules. So far, the collective reaction from her customers has been the most rewarding part of her journey toward startup success.“Hearing people tell me how the products are working for them, and how they no longer have inflammation — topically or internally — has been so rewarding. There are people in chemotherapy who are using these products who say they don’t have any pain. Hearing all this positive feedback from people is very exciting. Most importantly, they are grateful to be pain-free,” she enthuses.Although the small business owner does face competition in her industry, she sees this as a good thing when considering the bigger picture.“The competition is good because the more people who get educated, the better,” she says.<h3>Challenges of Entrepreneurship and Networking</h3>Like most small business owners in the startup stages of success, Fiore has faced her fair share of challenges. For Fiore, having to develop an online presence on social media proved to be challenging, especially because she was not active on social media before becoming a small business owner.“I wasn’t involved in social media at all before this,” she admits. “I do see the benefits in getting the word out fast. I’m still so new, and with every business comes challenges, so it’s a natural learning process.”<h3>Tips for Aspiring Entrepreneurs</h3>Fiore learned that she simply couldn’t do everything by herself, and she emphasizes that aspiring entrepreneurs should learn the importance of delegating tasks.“As an entrepreneur, I’ve learned that delegating and getting help with the things I can’t do myself has given me a peace of mind and has helped me to organize my time so that I can focus more on the business, as opposed to all of the accounting,” she says. “I’ve hired a web designer and a virtual assistant.”<h3>Experience as a 1-800Accountant Client</h3>Kara Fiore is a satisfied client of 1-800Accountant. She is receiving assistance in the form of bookkeeping, tax consulting, and tax preparation.Image credit: The logo included in this blog post was provided by CBD Meds, LLC and is used with permission.

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Raising Awareness for CBD Research through Small Business Ownership

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Leah Lancaster of Chattanooga, Tennessee always dreamed about working from home. So when a gig cropped up that would allow her to do just that, she seized the opportunity. While working at her former company as a freight broker for truckers, some contract revisions were made that she wasn’t thrilled about. After seeking a new parent company to work under, Lancaster formally established Lancaster Logistics, LLC in January 2015. She’s living her dream of working remotely with her husband and business partner, Nathan.“As freight brokers, we work in logistics. We’re basically travel agents for products. We act as go-betweens for people who need trucking companies to transport the product from point A to point B,” Lancaster says.In a fast-paced, modern world, sometimes quality goes overlooked. Lancaster feels that the old-school approach of having honesty and integrity is just part of the tremendous responsibility of being a small business owner — and believes that’s what will get her ahead.“My main goal is to just do things the right way in regards to my customer base. I believe in doing the job honestly so I can sleep at night. There are a lot of shady people in this industry, but that also means that I get to do things my way with my business, and I know what I want my business to be about,” she confides.Despite working from home, Lancaster still deals with a variety of interesting characters. In fact, one of the things she enjoys most about her line of work is how surprisingly people-oriented it is. She works with both the customers and the carriers.“You wouldn’t believe the different types of people I encounter. It’s my dream job because I get to work from home in my pajamas but also make connections with so many people,” she enthuses.What makes Lancaster’s situation unique from other small business owners’ is that she — along with many other freight brokers — works under a parent company. Her experience is similar to someone who works in a corporate environment in the sense that she must build her name within her industry and set herself apart from other brokers working within her parent company. In order to market herself to the right prospects, she maintains a presence on websites designed for brokers and truckers.<h3>Challenges of Small Business Ownership</h3>When asked about the challenges she faced in the infant stages of small business ownership, Lancaster admits she had no idea what she was doing.“There’s a lot of industry knowledge that goes into doing this job well. At first, I got looked down on, especially because this is such a male-dominated industry. Sometimes they talk to me like I’m vapid, and I deal with it,” she confides.Lancaster has also been forced to learn how to deal with rejection.“It can be tough to pick up the phone and listen to people tell you ‘no’ 50 times before they give you a chance. But getting through it is the rewarding part.”<h3>Tips for Aspiring Entity Owners</h3>Although Lancaster loves being a small business owner, she admits competition is intense in her industry. Combating competitors all boils down to delivering the quality customer service to her client base that Lancaster swears by. Her advice could benefit anyone trying to make a name for themselves in their industry.“Do everything you can to stand out and make yourself different. Part of my success just goes back to how I do business. It’s the level of service you provide. Get your foot in the door and then blow them away by going above and beyond. Give 100% every time,” she advises.Lancaster also insists small business owners should never take “no” for an answer.“Keep working. Don’t quit. Sometimes ‘no’ just means ‘not right now.’ Eventually, a break will happen.”<h3>Experience as a 1-800Accountant Client</h3>Leah Lancaster of Lancaster Logistics, LLC is a satisfied client of 1-800Accountant.“I love 1-800Accountant. I recommend the service to everyone. I’d be lost without the help I’ve received,” she enthuses.Photo credit: The photograph included in this blog post was provided by Lancaster Logistics, LLC and is used with permission.

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How This Small Business Owner Keeps on Trucking

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Melanie Haynes has always loved animals. All animals, big and small. So when Melanie was in transition from a corporate job, she decided to take her eleven years of pet care experience and start a business that reflected that passion. In March 2017, Melanie officially registered Mel’s Space Coast Services, LLC, and from there Space Coast Pet Services was born. “I did pet sitting casually as a hobby and was a pet owner for many years before taking the leap and starting my own pet care business,” Melanie says. “There’s a huge difference between a professional pet care provider and someone who does it as a hobby, and I knew there was a need for qualified, trained and caring pet care professionals in my area. I decided I would fill that need.” Melanie puts in long hours for her business. What drives her to succeed, besides giving pet owners peace of mind, is providing for her family’s future. “There’s a great sense of pride in knowing that you’ve worked hard to create something from nothing all on your own and, in the process, are able to help others. I want my children to see that hard work can pay off when you’re passionate about what you’re doing.” As a new business owner, Melanie continually seeks to learn new best practices and to keep up with current trends in the industry. She’s had many opportunities to connect with and collaborate with other local small businesses. “When you can find a way to network with other small business owners who hold the same core professional values as you do, it can only lead to positive results,” Melanie says. “My experience has shown me that when you do good, good comes back to you.” Melanie also hired 1-800Accountant for tax preparation and advice. “The prompt and exceptional service I receive from 1-800Accountant has tremendously helped my success,” says Melanie. She’s thankful that her personal tax advisor answers any questions she has in a timely and detailed manner, and help is always just a phone call or email away. “It’s definitely been worth the investment as a new business owner to make sure my business has a successful financial ground from the start. I feel very confident going into tax season and beyond.” Melanie has big plans for her business. She’s currently enhancing the services she offers to ensure that Space Coast Pet Services continues to be the premier pet care company in the area. Says Melanie, “I’m really excited to see ideas become reality and watch my company grow into more than I ever dreamed.”

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Melanie Haynes Provides Expert Pet Care, Relies on 1-800Accountant to Boost Her Success

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Jonathan Davis has had a passion for quality, intricate woodworking ever since he was in college. But more recently he saw a chance to take that passion and turn it into a business, which he named JBD Wood Products LLC. “If you love what you do, it’s not really work,” says Davis. Davis knew, though, that if he wanted to make a living at woodworking, he was going to have to do it well and find customers who appreciated his prowess. “Woodworking is more and more of a scarcity every day,” says Davis. “Everything nowadays is made out of plastic or pressed boards, made out of sawdust. I want to show people the quality of real genuine woodworking.” While Davis clearly cares about the quality of his products, starting a woodworking business has meant some big challenges. Originally, Davis wanted to run his business from his home. That might have worked had he been doing just a little bit of it on the side. But being a reputable business meant that Davis had to conform to local zoning laws, which didn’t allow him to make and sell wood products out of his home. He had to rent a workshop, a move that has created higher overhead for his business than he’d expected. Along with overhead and profit margins come tax concerns. Davis has turned to&nbsp;<a class="link" href="https://1800accountant.com/">1-800Accountant</a> to assist him with business and tax considerations. “1-800Accountant has been extremely helpful during this process,” says Davis. They “opened my eyes to the importance of staying compliant with the IRS and maintaining my business taxes.” Back in the shop, Davis hopes to grow a successful woodworking business while showing people across the country that, as he puts it, “Woodworking is not dead!”<a class="link" href="https://1800accountant.com/">1-800Accountant</a>&nbsp;is happy to help Davis realize his business dreams. We’re a virtual accounting firm merging the convenience of technology with live support from experienced accounting professionals. We offer a complete suite of personalized accounting, bookkeeping, advisory, and payroll services to individuals and small businesses at an affordable price. Schedule your consultation with America’s leading small business accounting firm. 866-699-6123.

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Davis Seeks to Carve Out Profits With the Help of 1-800Accountant

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For Alexis van den Berg, the road to her own business was a long and winding one. Family hardship forced Alexis to take a break from her fine arts and illustration schooling early on. “I was still working random jobs here and there when my boss from the restaurant I was working at heard that I was going to school for illustration,” says Alexis. “He asked me to create new branding for some new restaurant concepts for his business, scooped me up and had me start work at the corporate office.” Alexis found that brand design was a big step up from illustration, but it was a career she felt drawn to. “I found that graphic design was a beautiful marriage of art, technology, and business that I enjoyed,” Alexis says. “I decided that this was something I needed to go back to school to educate myself. I took out loans, went to school and began my new career path.” During three internships, one on the Jim Henson lot, Alexis learned about the branding industry and found that she wanted to help people by using her creativity. After graduating, she worked for a while as an in-house graphic designer, but soon she realized this wasn’t exactly what she wanted to do. She began freelancing on the side, helping small businesses starting up. Not much later, Alexis decided to make a full-time business of it, and in 2017&nbsp;<a class="link" href="http://www.alexisvandenberg.com/">AV Creative Designs LLC</a>&nbsp;was born. It’s been going gangbusters since. “The best feeling in the world is when past clients come back a few months later, and they send you pictures of the logo or other projects you worked on together with some updates on how their business is doing. I live for that.” Alexis also made another smart decision. She hired 1-800Accountant to help with her taxes and bookkeeping. “Taxes were such a gray area for me,” she says. “I thought I was doing things right, but 1-800Accountant gives me the guidance I need with all of my taxes. It also helps that my LegalZoom account is linked up with 1-800Accountant, so it feels like all of my business information is together in one place. Each time I meet with Vanessa, I breathe a sigh of relief because I feel like everything is buttoned up nicely.” Not surprisingly, Alexis is looking to grow her business even more. “I am definitely working on expanding my client base and hopefully hiring some talented graphic designers to work with me in the future,” Alexis says. “I can’t wait to be in a position where I can create some jobs!”

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Alexis van den Berg: The Long and Winding Road to AV Creative Designs

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For the folks in Augusta, Georgia seeking the ultimate man cave, they needn’t look any further than the Men’s Refinery BarberSpa. In addition to the barbershop, the space also includes another small business. In December of 2014, Brad Pond established The Inside Drive, LLC. The Inside Drive offers a realistic golf simulator within the confines of the barbershop, making it a one-stop shop for those looking to get a more polished image and improve their golfing statistics. The game offers 50 different courses, and you can use your own golf club as a controller.
“Golf is my passion, and I wanted to make it more accessible to people,” Pond says of the partnership. “We’re creating a culture within our team that focuses on high tech, high touch, and just phenomenal customer service.”
What Pond enjoys most about small business ownership is the journey that comes with seeking startup success.
“I love the spirit of entrepreneurship — having to fix problems along the road and address new challenges daily. Although I feel I wrote a great business plan, you don’t find out what works until you put the pedal to the metal and just go for it,” he admits.
The Inside Drive is one of the only small businesses providing golf simulators in Pond’s region, so he is confident he has an edge over his competitors.
“We have the first mover principle in our area of the southeast. The model we have created would be seen more in the northeast and in Canada. There is not much competition for this style of golf simulator, especially the pairing with the men’s barber shop,” Pond says.
The Inside Drive shares a common goal and demographic with the established Men’s Refinery. This partnership lessens the risk typical of startups to attract clients, but also allows both to explore new demographics by playing off each other’s strengths. The Inside Drive has a website, as well as pages on&nbsp;<a class="link" href="http://www.instagram.com/insidedrivegolf">Instagram</a>, and&nbsp;<a class="link" href="https://twitter.com/insidedrivegolf">Twitter</a>.
<h2>Challenges of Small Business Ownership</h2>
Every small business owner will face challenges at some point, especially in the startup stage. In a partnership, those challenges can be doubled. Pond has preparedness on his side, and didn’t go full-speed ahead with the business until the time was right and the goals for both The Inside Drive and Men’s Refinery were clearly defined, and in alignment with each other.
“The challenges have been refining the business model to something where the funding made sense. I partnered up with Men’s Refinery a year ago, and we wrote a business plan to fit our model. So the biggest challenge has been getting the economy and the bank on the same sheet of music so we can go full throttle with the business,” Pond explains.
Despite the inevitable challenges, Pond insists that startup success makes jumping over the necessary hurdles worth it.
“Being an entrepreneur is a very rewarding task, so it’s a matter of understanding your own risk profile, and it’s finding people who support you and teaming up with others,” he advises.
<h2>Testimonial for 1-800Accountant</h2>
Brad Pond is a very satisfied client of 1-800Accountant and recommends the nationwide accounting firm for other small business owners looking to achieve startup success.
“I’ve been overwhelmed. I’ve been really blown away! I’ve been really nervous about the bookkeeping setup, the tax implications, and one afternoon call really addressed all of the things I was concerned about in a way that made sense. It allowed me to focus on the startup of the business and not worry so much about the accounting side. Get out there and do what you do really well. Bookkeeping will not make you money, so turn those things over to 1-800accountant,” he says. “I don’t need to be an expert on the accounting side of things – they’ve got my back!”
Photo credit: The photograph of the indoor golf simulator is used courtesy of&nbsp;<a class="link" href="http://www.insidedrivegolf.com/">www.insidedrivegolf.com</a>. The logo was provided by The Inside Drive, LLC and is used with permission.

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Indoor Golf Simulator Makes for the Ultimate Man Cave

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