Have A Little Faith

Warm weather is back.  Maybe it will even stay around this visit.  I can open the front door of my shop.  There are chalk drawings back on the front sidewalk.  Kids are out and about again.  More junior high kids have discovered Coco's.  That is good and bad.  I am used to my regulars.  They are good kids who enjoy having their place.  I can and do trust them.  If they are short a few cents, they will pay me back the next time they come in.  Without my asking.  They always remember.  With more kids coming around, there are bound to be a few thrown in the bunch that I can't trust.  Some that I will have to watch more closely.  Some that will not have credit with the shop.  They are going to throw their candy wrappers on the ground.  They will be destructive.  They will not draw cute flowers with the chalk.  I can take it.  If they are too rotten, they will be banned.  Not going to spend too much time stressing about wild children.
Yesterday an eighth grade girl discovered my shop.  She was SUPER excited.  She has not lived in our town very long.  She lived in Detroit before.  Imagine what a great change for her.  She was in a bad area of Detroit.  Now she is in our quaint village.  She likes bubble gum.  She came in several times and kept buying gum.  This afternoon she came in again.  I was doing something at the time.  Not give her 100% of my attention.  She sat down, started coloring, and talking.  She likes to talk.  She rambled on for a bit about her family.  Out of nowhere she says.  People think there are only two kids in my family.  There are really five.  Two brothers still live in Michigan.  My one sister is crazy.   Really, crazy.  She threatened to kill me a few times.  She got sent to a mental hospital.  I said, I'm sorry.  That is sad.  She said her sister was sent away two years ago.  She is bi-polar and will not take her medications.  She does not know where she is now.  (My worst nightmare.)  Her parents do not talk about her.
Her friend showed up about that time.  They got their candy and were on their way.  She said she wants to use Coco's as her meeting place.  I am good with that. 
I am working on fliers for the shop.  My new friend that works at The Paper is doing the actual graphic design part of it.  She showed me samples.  I showed her pictures I want to use.  Today she came back with the first draft.  I am VERY happy.  A couple of tweeks and it will go to print.  I will put them at some businesses around town.  I hope that will bring more tourists in.
My word for the year is trust.  I think Faith goes along with that as a nice companion word. 
Happy Easter My Friends! 

Where Have I Been?

I spent the last couple of weeks getting organized to have taxes done for the sweet shop.  Who knew that putting all receipts of EVERYTHING in a box was not a great idea.  I knew it.  I hope it is a lesson learned for me.  So I spent hours, and hours, and hours......you get it, organizing.  I had to look at every single receipt.  I also had to have an inventory of Coco's complete.  Can we say nightmare?  I like to play more in the abstract idea arena.  Accounting is not my thing.
So after hours and hours, I had every area complete.  I put my end figures on two pages for the accountant.  Now our accountant does the taxes while you sit there.  My hours spent equaled less than 10 minutes of time for the accountant.  I mentioned it would have made me feel better if it took him longer. 
The best part of the meeting.  I had all the information he needed.  He did not ask for one additional item.  That is how thorough I am.  When I get around to actually doing it.
Several good things came out of all my hard work.  I realized that Coco's is doing better than I think.  We did not come close to a profit.  That is to be expected.  Seeing where my money went in black and white really helped.  There are times I feel like, what the heck?  Where is all my money.  Well, quite a bit of it is inventory.  Too much went to remodeling the shop.  In the next year, I will not have so many expenses.
Hubby was like, why are we getting this money back?  I said, you are welcome.  Thanks to my losing money, we get money back.  He did not thank me.  He is starting to see there is potential in Coco's.  That is good news.
I have made a couple of changes that are helping the shop.  I will be making a few more in the next month.  I think I am on the right track.  I have a bakery that is supplying me with baked goods.  Every Saturday they make Fried Cinnamon rolls for me.  I sell about 7 dozen a Saturday.  The rolls were something the bakery we had in town while I was growing up carried.  Three generations of our town grew up loving fried cinnamons.  They still do.  It is bringing all kinds of new people into the shop.  Saturday mornings are very busy.  I love it.  I have a new person making cake pops for Coco's.  She is amazing.  Her cake pops are like art.  She has a HUGE group of friends.  Her cake pops bring people in the door.  Two changes that are really turning things around for the shop.
The next thing I am doing is putting up wall shelves.  I need more floor space.  With floor space I can start having more things for children.  I want the children to be able to play while their parents sit and have coffee.  Think Chuckie Cheese without the Cheese and chaos.
I will also be carrying more gift items.  The toys I sell are doing well.  The gift line I have is also very nice.  Yesterday I ordered organic lotions.  I like to use organic items.  I found an affordable place to buy wholesale.  Starting small.  Will see how it goes.
It is all about evolving.  Finding the right mix of things to be successful.  Fingers crossed I am on the right track.