Ivy Hartman: Welcome! We’re here at the National Association of Women Business Owners Conference in Atlanta, Georgia. I’m Ivy Hartman and with me is Diane Simpson of My Home at Last. Diane, you have very interesting story to tell us because this is an actually your initial career as being a business owner.
Diane Simpson: Yeah.
Ivy Hartman: So, you’ve been a business owner in your previous career. Can you tell us a little bit about how and what you were doing then?
Diane Simpson: I owned a consulting firm called contemporary solutions. And I specialized in organizational development and enterprise trainee solutions. I have companies orchestrate big organizational changes.
Ivy Hartman: And we’re talking big business?
Diane Simpson: Big business, 400 to 500 company.
Ivy Hartman: Now, you are a small business owner.
Diane Simpson: More like, is it?
Ivy Hartman: It’s basically you and your partner and you have something for you soon, I guess to help you with your business. I’m sure that you don’t move all that furniture yourself.
Diane Simpson: Oh, yes. I’ve made it.
Ivy Hartman: How about moving furniture in my home at last?
Diane Simpson: Well, we just don’t move maybe grand pianos anymore. We’ve tried that but now we have. In fact we have retired policeman that helped us. If we come to a job and there are huge pictures of furniture that we cannot manage on our own and they come and help us.
Ivy Hartman: Okay! So having been, working with 400 to 500 companies for a number of years and having 22 years, a very full career.
Diane Simpson: Yeah.
Ivy Hartman: And you talked about moment having an ultimate plan which is your retirement years as we’ve said.
Diane Simpson: Exactly right. I think every woman should have an alternate plan. Something that she’s really passionate about that she wants to do and that you develop it. I’ve been doing interior decorating for friends, family, neighbors for years and years and years. I’ve studied it. I’ve prepared myself for it. Even though I enjoyed my other career, this was another dimension.
This was another area that I was very interested in. And so when the timing was right four years ago, when my business partner and I were both at the stage in life that with the advent of grand children, it was the right time on our life to try something new. And so we did. We developed a very simple button that’s just model because again it’s the retirement business that we want to enjoy. We don’t expect it to go to a million dollars. We’re doing very, very well. And very, very pleased with our result but we wanted to give our business small very simple so that we would really truly enjoy it.
Ivy Hartman: And you’re marketing probably very originally I would guess, are you staying in the San Antonio area to do business?
Diane Simpson: Oh, we’ve had clients in Chicago.
Ivy Hartman: Really?
Diane Simpson: And we’ve had them in Dallas and in all the surrounding areas around San Antonio.
Ivy Hartman: And how a woman in business, a woman business owner for over 22 years or along those lines what advice do you have for someone who might be looking to join NAWBO or start their business?
Diane Simpson: Oh, I would encourage them to check out NAWBO because you are associating with your peers. Other entrepreneurs that came up with a wonderful idea and made it happen. They’ve taken a lot of risk. You can gain so much knowledge by being associated with other women business owners. And in fact, before I started my first business, I formed a—my own little board of advisers. And a retired executive from—very seasoned person with a large advertising firm and then two other consultants and I said, “Would you just come. May I buy you a breakfast one from that for few months and just tell me what I need to do start a business?” And that’s what you can get through NAWBO if I say, “This is my idea. This is what I want to do. What are the ins and outs of it?” And you learn so much that helps prepare you to launch your business successfully.
Ivy Hartman: And as a small business television, we like to pride ourselves in being the small business experts.
Diane Simpson: Yeah!
Ivy Hartman: And I think that that’s a wonderful resource. We like to try to provide that as a resource to our viewers.
Diane Simpson: Excellent!
Ivy Hartman: As well but that’s great. When you’re looking for help it’s nice to know that it’s kind of a one stop shopping and you can reach out and ask for help.
Diane Simpson: It is.
Ivy Hartman: I think I actually heard our speakers from last years conference say from—publications, she said, “Strong women, successful women know to ask for help.”
Diane Simpson: That’s exactly right. And also women that you’ll find in such as NAWBO is that the women are ready to teach. They are ready to share that knowledge because they want to give other people a helping hand. That is our responsibility is that we need to give other women a helping hand in that.
Ivy Hartman: So, you’re with the IADA which is?
Diane Simpson: Interior Arrangement and Design Association.
Ivy Hartman: Okay! And that’s actually very limited that did a notation for people?
Diane Simpson: That’s right! That’s right! We went through extensive training and being able to do one day, one room makeovers because there is definitely a technique and definitely an art because you’re working with things that you’ve never seen before. And to create a room that if all put together that makes your client come in it’s like, “Wow!” And so we’re very proud, we submitted IADA has very, very strict guidelines in how you attain professional status. And it includes a portfolio, it includes letters from your client, it includes your business plan, your marketing plan and all of that is just in becoming a professional member.
Ivy Hartman: Well, it’s been a wonderful talking with you.
Diane Simpson: Enjoy that Ivy.
Ivy Hartman: And if you really want to walk into your room or you home, “My home at last.”
Diane Simpson: That’s exactly what we want our customers to say.
Ivy Hartman: Then log on and you can get a hold of them at myhomeatlast.net. And we’re going to teach more business owners here at the National Association of Women Business Owners Conference 2007 in Atlanta, Georgia here on sbtv.com where small business is our only business.
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