Going for it

Bill Gonzalez of Worcester is banking on his straight eye, and an under-served niche for parking lot striping, to break free of the restraints of seasonal roadwork. Barbara Griffin of Sturbridge is using new strategies to attract customers to her flagging coffee shop and bookstore, but admits she could lose everything soon. Michael Morel of Leominster works such long hours to solve technical woes for home computer users and small businesses, he’s not sure how his company is doing financially.

Theirs is no small feat. Small business startups fail at an alarming rate — about half of the time, according to the U.S. Small Business Administration. But that didn’t stop an estimated 580,900 people in the U.S. from starting new businesses in 2004, with some 18,822 in Massachusetts alone. It also didn’t stop 576,200 companies — large, small and in-between – from closing that same year, 20,270 in the Bay State, according to the SBA.

Why do individuals take on such a challenge and what does it take to nurture a startup company in Central Mass? We asked five such entrepreneurs who launched their companies in the past year or so for insights.

Straight Arrow to opportunity

Bill Gonzalez had worked most of his life for other companies – installing guard rails, pouring foundations or painting road lines – before spotting a business opportunity. The large road paving company he worked for as a striper for two years repeatedly turned down requests from customers to stripe smaller parking lots. It was a demand, he decided, he could fill.

In January of 2005, Gonzalez incorporated Straight Arrow Striping Corp. of Worcester, operated from his Crest St. home. He stripes parking lots for $5 per line. Gonzalez used his personal savings to buy a $5,000 striping machine and some $1,000 in other equipment and financed a new pickup truck.

Straight Arrow gets jobs mainly by hooking up with regional seal coat companies. Gonzalez’ wife and 14-year-old son help out during the busy summer season. In the winter months, he works in construction to fill in financially. In its first year, Gonzalez says, Straight Arrow broke even. He’s expecting brisk business come March.

Gonzalez is hoping to add an employee and maybe another machine in the near future. But he will likely wait and see how this spring and summer go.

The take-home lesson of a startup business, he says: Do your homework ahead of time.

City Hall officials insisted he needed to incorporate, he recalls. He did so, paying $1,200, inclusive of legal fees. But he later found he could have pursued other, less expensive options.

Tech guy hanging in there

Michael Morel’s technology consulting company, Tech Guys on Call Inc. of Leominster, almost didn’t survive the year, before business began picking up. Now, Morel, a veteran computer specialist, is "as busy as I can possibly hope to be."

Morel had been running a one-man computer technology company in June of 2004, when a former colleague asked him to join Tech Guys on Call. The colleague had set up an office and initially paid the bills for the company, incorporated in January 2005. But only a few months into the startup, his partner had to leave for family reasons and Morel was left as the lone tech guy for Tech Guys.

By September of 2005, Morel was working 60 to 80 hours a week but had no cash to show for it. "I’m a much better technician than I am a businessman," he admits. He’d lost track of billing and collecting from clients. But after he brought on a bookkeeper, he was bringing in money by December. That’s when he found that he could actually draw a salary.

Morel says he’s not really a computer person – as in, computer geek – but likes to make sure systems work as they’re supposed to. So he can relate to non-technical clients’ frustration when their computers don’t work at a critical moment. The most common phrase he hears, he says, is "I was about to throw this [computer] out the window."

He compares helping such people solve their technical problems to "ministering" to them and wants to make sure he doesn’t lose that personal element as he grows his company.

While he’s considering adding staff and maybe even seeking outside financing to grow it, he’s still not sure of the company revenues or profit status.

Fit for a new career

It was a life-changing personal move to fitness, along with a dash of fate, that inspired Erica Meola to start Worcester-based Bay State Adventure Boot Camp Inc. in January of 2005, along with her business partner, Alexis Rougas-Ermilio. The Boot Camp – a cross between group fitness and personal training – offers early morning, one-hour workouts for women three or five days a week in four-week blocks, along with nutritional education. Devoid of a gym setting or fancy equipment, the camps take place at 5:30 a.m. in Institute Park in Worcester or in a church hall in inclement weather.

Meola describes herself as a true believer in the program. Her commitment goes beyond business success. Up until a few years ago, she herself had gone through life out of shape. Then she decided to take charge of her health and began her fascination with the empowering effect of fitness. She got certified as a personal trainer and attended a fitness boot camp for women. At the time, she was living in Arizona and working in newspaper marketing, and had no intention of launching her own boot camp business.

But in November of 2004, after returning to her home town of Worcester to be closer to family, she ran into Rougas-Ermilio, an old high-school classmate, and the pieces began falling into place. The two women discovered that they’d grown up across June Street from each other and would probably have been childhood friends if they weren’t forbidden to cross the busy roadway. They were also both into fitness, and now lived just a few streets away from each other.

The boot camp idea began to take shape. There was nothing like it in the area. After six months of planning and after attending a training program in California, Meola and Rougas-Ermilio launched Bay State Adventure Boot Camp, beginning with a website. They used personal funds for the $8,000 in startup costs. "We didn’t know if we’d get anyone," Meola says. Their first class in January of 2005 drew just 8 women.

The latest boot camp has 18 clients and the next one is booked for 22. The goal is 45. While business has been slow, the company has managed to pay its bills and have a little left over, largely due to an absence of debt and low to no overhead. "I know that this works, I know this is fun and I know this will empower women," Meola says. "I hate even calling it work; it’s a blessing."

Thinking outside the aisle

While Arthur DiGeronimo Jr. had worked for years in his family’s 81-year-old company, Victory Super Markets of Leominster, he always had a passion for music. So when the Victory chain sold to Scarborough-ME-based Hannaford Brothers Co. in late 2004 for $175 million, DiGeronimo, its former president, decided to launch a startup business that resonated with that passion. He’s now president of Wavelengths Pro Audio LLC.

The Leominster business, incorporated in February of 2005, is based on the expertise of 25-year sound engineering veteran Alan Redstone, a long-time friend of DiGeronimo’s and Wavelengths’ executive vice president of system design engineering.

Wavelengths’ intended market was in providing state-of-the-art sound systems for indoor/outdoor concerts and corporate events. But business took an unexpected turn during its first year, DiGeronimo notes. While landing sound system contracts from its restaurant, bar and other commercial clientele, it had growing demand for installations of high-definition plasma television/sound systems. The plasma system business grew to include home installations, eclipsing the original sound system market. Wavelengths brought in $250,000 in revenue in its first year — enough to make a small profit. DiGeronimo expects revenues to reach $350,000 to $400,000 in 2006.

He says work at Wavelengths isn’t all that different from the supermarket business. While he managed more people at Victory, "at the end of the day, it’s about organizing the work." Besides, he expects to be dealing with more people soon. With three full-time employees and four per diem staffers, Wavelengths is currently looking to add two full timers to its staff.

The company has installed sound and plasma systems in a range of establishments from bars and lounges to churches. "We like to say we do sound systems from heaven to hell," DiGeronimo quips.

The company is now simultaneously pursuing its original target market as well as the unexpected niche in plasma systems. DiGeronimo says it doesn’t want to give up the plasma market that has emerged and will strike a balance between that and the high-end sound system market.

Books, beans and challenges

It has been a "horrible" startup year for Griffin Books and Beans Inc., a coffee shop and book store on Main Street in Sturbridge, admits owner Barbara Griffin. From disappointing customer response to a flood during last fall’s torrential rains that wiped out $10,000 in inventory and supplies (she’s seeking a FEMA loan), the 50-year-old businesswoman has watched her $170,000 in personal startup funding dwindle into debt.

The idea, says Griffin, who moved to Sturbridge from the North Shore where similar establishments were flourishing, was to create a place where neighborhood people would hang out. In fact, she initially wanted to create a "small, funky little book store," until a friend from the area convinced her to rent a larger space than she had initially wanted. That is one of the lessons Griffin passes on to prospective entrepreneurs: "Trust in your own gut."

Griffin incorporated Griffin Books and Beans in February 2005. But the community response was not what she had hoped for. She tried a book club and a "stitch and bitch" group sewing program. No one came. Santa and crafts at Christmas brought four kids.

She has cut her eight part-time staff to four and reduced the store’s hours. She has maxed out her credit cards and taken a small loan from a friend. Nonetheless, she is striving to make her idea work, revamping the menu, faxing to area companies and continuing advertising efforts. Griffin admits competition from Internet sales and low mark-up on books have made her venture difficult. She even wonders if peoples’ busy schedules mean they no longer have time to sit and share coffee — or read.

Still, Griffin is not ready to give up. If she can sublease a portion of her store’s space she may be able to make ends meet, she says. If she can’t, she is glad she didn’t just sit on the sidelines.

As she struggles, Griffin offers uplifting praise to entrepreneurs who take the risk: "I’m glad I went for it. Even if it fails, you can still be proud of yourself."

Micky Baca can be reached at mbaca@wbjournal.com.