Perhaps one of the most important questions that someone thinking of starting a business (or adding a new line to their existing business) is: Will you make money? Or as Gary put it: Can you compete and still make a reasonable return on your investment? This is an easy, yet hard question. Often, people will … Read more
It’s happened twice in my career so far: the deathbed will. In both instances, the situation was exceedingly sad – individual gets sick; realizes their estate plan isn’t up to date; and attempts to re-write their “will” (or write it the first time) by text message or by signed affidavit. In both cases, although the … Read more
Last time, we took a look around to see if people are actually buying handmade soap. We found my friend from kindergarten and some other sellers on Etsy. But, does that really answer Gary’s second question? Who else is selling a competing product, and at what price? Not really. It is just saying that some … Read more
We’ve talked about deadlock before, and how to deal with it. While deadlock is never a great thing for Founders to deal with, today there is reason to celebrate. Why? A client chose the “Candy Land” method of breaking deadlock, and among the three of us, that makes a total of about 5 clients over … Read more
Back to our little soap opera. What dilemma is our start-up hero facing today? Last time, we discussed what it is that we want to sell: Handmade soap. The next question is: Does anyone need or want what you are planning to sell? Wow. Harsh reality hits fast and hard. Just because I want to … Read more
We get a ton of questions about “non-competes” at OGS. In legal terms, a “non-compete” is a specific kind of “restraint of trade” that is governed by Wis. Stat. Sec. 103.465. However, the type of “restraint of trade” that is right for you and your business may not be a “non compete” and could be … Read more
Last time in my soap opera, I discussed professionals that I would need to talk to before I started any soap business. I received a nice email from Gary Barber, a committed volunteer at the Madison Chapter of SCORE. He proposed that his first steps are not the professionals, but rather something else: My first … Read more
Disclaimer: This post is not legal advice (or about the law, at all) Happy (almost) Halloween everyone! Halloween is my favorite holiday, and for the last 25 years or so, I’ve marked it with an annual showcase of the timeless classic, “Garfield’s Halloween Adventure” or “Garfield in Disguise” (depending on your region). GHA is a … Read more
If you have heard me present lately, you will know that I have started to make soap. I have gone full nerd on it using graduated cylanders and all. It has been fun to build a new knowledge set, bust out my old chemistry and lab skills, and try out a whole bunch of fragrances. … Read more
Pizza Hut has my wife’s favorite pizza. Now, I’ve always loved “the Hut” – but I wasn’t a fan of the pizza until I met Kim. So, how can you love a pizza place but not really love its pizza? Its awesome trademark, obviously. Most companies utilize two flavors of trademark – a design mark … Read more