do you have any idea how difficult it is to come up with a fabulous name for a new business?  not only does it need to be memorable, catchy and match your vision – but it has to be available in the form of a registered business and domain name.  the domain name thing is especially challenging.  no matter what fabulous names/phrases that sprung from my curly head – someone seemed to have beat me to it.

but i dug deeper.

and here is how troolie found me…

brainstorming, thesaurus, doodles.  blogs.  notes to friends.  text messages.  talking out loud.  more doodling.  acronyms.  typing in a domain name.  thinking….lots and lots of thinking!!  and i started to think about ways to sign off letters, cards and notes.  “yours truly”. i liked the “true” aspect of the word.  genuine.  ideal.  sincere.   then i thought i’d like a unique spelling.  trooly?  troolie?  yes.  love the double o sound (and look).  then i started thinking about all the marketing potential:  troolie amazing.  troolie modern.  troolie adorable.  and so on  – and so on!  i liked the way the name looked, sounded and felt.  i think it’s got a lot of personality, it’s easy to pronounce, and i can go so many directions with it!

i hope you like it!

it’s been registered.  the domains are mine.  and now – my fabulous designer (ashley at dash station) is working to present design concepts this week.  can’t WAIT to see and show off!

until then….

yours troolie,

~kate

i am so excited about the National Stationery Show in New York.  first of all – i think i’ll go bonkers at the show – all that creative power is going to charge me up!  and the thought of going to NYC (alone, maybe with my mom! or with a friend or two) is electric.  i haven’t been since the early days of ooma.  and i haven’t been more than a few hours without both kids since Charlie was born (it will be almost an entire year).   i’ll be wearing heels, make up, cute outfits galore!  perhaps i’ll be enjoying cocktails!  i’d love to see How To Succeed in Business Without Really Trying.  fun times.

but getting into a tradeshow without an established business is like getting into a popular Vegas nightclub (i imagine, i don’t actually go to Vegas nightclubs!) at 1:00am:  difficult, but not impossible with the right tools.

the NSS has a laundry list of acceptable forms of entry – the only two that i could possibily muster up before opening would be my (1) business registration and (2) a website.  but a coming soon website doesn’t count.  hmph.

the only other thing i can provide is a Letter of Intent on the official stationery of a bank or attorney.  you’d think i’d be able to find the verbiage somewhere online – but have not been successful.  does anyone have a copy i could use as a boiler plate?

finally – i’ll need business cards – which means i’m starting the design process.  more on that in another post….(this i love)

i figured the business registration would be pretty straightforward.  not so.  there appeared to be a pretty simple online form – but when i got to my SS# – the whole thing shut down and said “it’s already in use”.  huh?  the same person can’t open more than one business?  and which am i supposed to do first:  register or FBN?  the city website is a maze i can’t seem to find my way through (i’m not good at corn mazes either, go figure).

anyway – i’m sure it’ll all work out – but my time to devote to these matters comes in such small chunks – that i need to be able to do things in the evening  – on my own – when the kids are sleeping.

wish me luck (and send me your boiler plate!!).

starting a business involves a multitude of decisions - and it can become overwhelming.  i remember when i was getting ready to open ooma (the boutique i opened in san francisco), and i realized that EVERYTHING was up to me.  i freaked out trying to decide what color of carpet to get for the dressing rooms (i knew i wanted plush for bare feet).  pink?  red?  green?  yellow?  why do i have to make every decision (by the way – i chose red – which was later changed to pink rugs on pergo floors)???

but as overwhelming as it can be – it’s also amazing to create something that comes from your head and bring it into the world.  it’ a little piece of you!  and that’s fun to share.

i’m really looking forward to making all those decisions when the ball really gets rolling – but for now, i’ve made a pretty boring one.  i’m going to start out as a sole proprietress instead of an LLC.  why?  because i won’t be starting until the end of the year (assuming i find a rocking awesome location) and i just don’t want the expense right now.  perhaps i’ll change over once i open – but for now – my goal is to keep it simple.

i’d love to hear from others who made the decision – and if you think i should change my mind!

(peeking around the corner)

uhm….hi!  it’s me again!  it’s been forever and a day since i wrote….

but i’ve been enjoying my newest mini and my almost 3 year old and coming up with all sorts of brilliant ideas -  just not computing as much.

(so there)

but they’re both napping….and 2011 is my year to start a new retail business!  yiipppppeee!

so i thought it would be kinda fun to chronicle my progress.

what am i doing?  i’m planning to open a charming and modern little stationery and gift boutique.  i’ve always loved stationery (can spend literally hours in a card shop) and i have a flair for gifts.  i think it will be a great combo – and though i still adore fashion – i’m in a phase where jeans and a sweater are all i really want to wear.  so onto something new.

my hope is to open around November…so there is a lot to do until then.

my first 2-do is determine the NAME of my new business.  i actually already thought of one – but not ready to share yet.  still need to get myself registered.  still need to decide if i want to be a sole proprietress or an LLC, yo.

please share your thoughts with me on my new journey!  though i adore retail and have done it before – the stationery/gift model is new to me.  i love suggestions!

xoxo

if you have a shop – or create something to sell – don’t you wish you could just collect credit card payments anywhere? like at a holiday fair, or a sidewalk sale, or a pop up shop or a shop within a shop, or at a trunk show?  the list goes on  for places to make potential sales.  i remember declining to be involved in off-site group sale because how would i collect payment?  take an imprint of a credit card?  how totally old school.  checks?  they’re usually bad in my experience.  cash?  most women i know don’t carry a lot of cash.

but that was before iphones.  i was thinking how cool it would be if there was an app that could allow people to collect credit card info on the go.  and voila!

check out Square Up (cute name too).  there’s a teensy card reader that you plug into your smart phone (in the ear phone jack).  that part is free.  all you pay are swipe fees (which you do anyway when you accept credit cards).  no contracts – just pay if you use it.

seems like this has the opportunity to open a lot of new doors!  what do you think?  has anyone tried this?