Hello dear friends,

I always thought when something like this would happen I wouldnât hesitate for a second, but now that is happening I donât know what to do.

I work full time in an office, great job, good salary, health insurance and all that, and I have a home based registered cake business for 5 months now.
I have booked 7 wedding cakes already for this year and 2 for next year; I have done tons of b/day and other cakes, so Iâm pleased with pace that my business has so far.

The âproblemâ is that a friend just told me that the coffee shop she owns it is still in the market for saleâ¦she almost sold it couple of months ago but the deal fall through at the last minute.
My friend opened the shop for her two older kids but her daughter went to college in California and her older son doesnât feel like taking care of if.

Couple of months ago when she told me she sold the store I was heartbroken, it is THE place for meâ¦great location, parking, not too bigâ¦not too small. It is a cute little buildingâ¦I just adore it.
It is already beautifully decorated, so I probably wouldnât change anything, except for buying a commercial oven and some cooling racksâ¦no big investmentsâ¦.and for now I could do the baking at home since I have a licensed kitchen.

There is apartment upstairs that is rented for $700.00 a month which pays for a good 30-40% of the mortgage; of course thereâll be other expenses such as electricity, gas, water, phone, internet, etc. that I donât have right now, but I think I can do it.

I have two options:
Either buy the building myself (Iâve never bought a property beforeâ¦so this scares me to death!) or let my dear b/f buy it and heâll rented to me at a VERY cheap price; he says that if I decide to buy it from him later on, within a year or so heâll sale to me for what he would pay today.

It seems like the opportunity of my life, but Iâm so scared to leave my job and start my business out side my houseâ¦.

Iâve been very conservative promoting my business because with my schedule right now I can only take certain amount of orders but Iâm almost sure once I fully advertise, my business will bloom.

Iâm so scared, my head is spinning, couldnât sleep last night â¦everything is happening so soon; I donât want to leave the security that my current job offers but I CANâT let this new business opportunity slip through my fingersâ¦.

Why canât I just have it all?!

What do you guys think? Iâm so nervous...I feel like in falling into the middle of the ocean (I donât know how to swim).

TIA

WOW...I don't think this is coincidence. I think you would really miss out on something if you DIDN'T take this opportunity. You really should jump.

You learn more from the fall than from the fear of the fall.

this is a personal question, you don't have to answer it on here, just think about it.....do you have very much debt?

the shop may not give you as much money as your day job, for awhile....if you have a big car payment, morgage payment, credit card bills....it might be rough for awhile....but it sounds like you have a great support system.


WOW WHAT A SWEET B/F!!!!....i wish i had me one of those!

Yes, my b/f is my sweet angel.
I have no debt, well my car payment, but thatâs only $325/ month and it will be paid off in a year or so.

sounds like you're good to go then....you're heart will show you which way to go.

i think you've already made up your mind.

GOOD LUCK!

In a New York Minute!!!!!!

I'd get it myself.

Lu

Sometimes opportunity doesn't knock twice. I would definetly give it some serious thought.

I'm going throught a simliar situation right now myself. I am renting kitchen space and doing pretty good and have to turn down orders due to lack of time because of my fulltime job. I am SCARED to death to quit my job. It's a tough call to make - I feel for you

I'm rooting for you - Good luck an I wish you much success on whatever you decide to do.

You know, at 32 years old, I am still trying to decide what I want to be when I grow up. (as if being a devoted wife and SAHM of three isn't enough!) I love to bake upscale desserts and decorate cakes and would love to some day own a shop, but the right timing or opportunity has not arrived yet. For you, however, the timing sounds impeccible, the start-up fairly straight-forward, and the opportunity amazing! I think it could be a life-changing experience for you, as long as you surround yourself with a support group of friends and family who can mentor and encourage you along the way. Of course, you have a HUGE support group here on CC! Reach for the stars, friend and don't look back!

Why don't you just quit your job advertise more, and not have the expense of a building?

Mike

You know.. I have read your post OVER and over again.. ever since you posted this...

This will be long but I feel the need to speak LOL..

I have let 2 opportunities slip through my fingers...

I had a friend get a hold of me a week after a fully equipped bakery sold out at 50,000.00 !!! That was ALL brand new equipment and a 1100 sq. ft. building by itself... complete with my dream pink and brown awnings .... 2 weeks after my friend called me a lady from who knows where called me and told me another lady sold all of her baking supplies (about 100 pans, cookie cutters, tips etc) for 300.00....

NOT more then a month after all of that happened another lady went out of business and when we went to the auction we were 10 minutes late the building, equipment and everything went for 75,500.00 ...

I think when things pass you up it isn't time.. but when it sits on your front door knocking at you you need to take a hold of it... girl this is a dream... your dream.. it could turn into something HUGE... yes maybe you won't have a cushion like insurance RIGHT now.. but doesn't mean you won't be able to get it.

I say go for it..but make sure that something is drawn up if something happens between you and your bf.. just for safety reasons


(((((((hugs))))))))

it does sound like its an opportunity too good to pass up.

and if it does fail you can always go back to the same or similar job your doing now. but will this chance fall in your lap again??

SOunds like a perfect opportunity. I hate to be that person, but I think I'd try to purchase it myself. I know you love your BF, but you never know with these things and god forbid anything goes sour at least the building is your. Even have him be a co-buyer if you have to.. but if you have good credit you should be fine to get the loan.. especially if there is already income there.

I can say that I'd jump on it in a heartbeat, but I know I'd have reservations too, but nothing in life worth having is going to come to you easily. Good luck!!!

Do it! You don't want to look back five years from now and have any regrets.

I am a firm believer in striking while the iron is hot, however I think that you should think about the economy right now. At present, it seems like you have the ideal situation with very low overhead. If you have never bought property borrowing now may be difficult. So many financial institutions are hammering down on loaning money. Even though you have been in business, it may not have been long enough for them to feel secure about the loan. I kind of agree with Mike, you have already gone to the trouble to set up a registered business in your home. Based on your sales thus far, if you were doing this full time, would it equate to what you are making now on your job? Of course you would lose the benefits unless you can pick up your insurance after you leave the company. I do not know your personal situation, but if you have children on your policy will you still be able to cover their medical needs? Starting any business takes time to build, could you survive? You already have a customer base at your home. Anyway I wish you success in whatever your decision ends up being.

I can understand your fears. Just make sure that you don't talk yourself out of something that you'll be kicking yourself over down the road. Also to consider, are you ready to immerse yourself in the cake business? This will require a tremendous amount of time and work on your part. If you are passionate about it, it won't seem like work but be prepared to put in some long, hard hours.

Sounds like a great opportunity!! However, I would shy away from having your BF buy the building and rent it to you.If anything were to go wrong with your relationship....the shop would be in jeopardy! If you can afford to buy it...I would look into it but like others have said...do your homework first!! Good Luck!!

what's the logic of having the BF buying it instead of you? I missed that somewhere.....

It's a huge opportunity! It is easy for us to say "do it!" But we aren't the ones fronting the money. I think you will need to sit down and come up with a good business plan. Consider the monthly costs of your home based business vs a store front. Are you getting too big for your home based business? are you willing to leave your job and health benefits? You would probably need to increase you sales for a storefront to cover the costs of rent or mortgage. Are you willing to hire employees? There are a lot of things to think about.

I would look at this way. If you are the type of person who doesn't like risk, and tends to more conservative, which it sounds like you are then I agree with Mike, stay in your house, advertise more until you get enough business to quit your job and in time, re-evaluate your position.

For one, you will be so stressed out it doing this then would it really be worth it constantly having to worry, then considering the ecomomy etc. it might not be the way to go right now, is your boyfriend's financial position secure in this economy, have you done your numbers on paper to see if you could withstand a few months of not making enough money, is your relationship solid and secure, what happens if things go sour between you could you make it through and land on your feet? There are many factors beyond your control that could happen and unless you start from a better solid footing to start, the risks could start adding up.

If you can figure out you will be able to do it financially and handle the stress with a few worse case scenerios, then go for it. If not, and there are more questionable scenerios than not, perhaps it would best to wait. You will still be doing what you love and you can break out into a place later when you have a better client base and proven track record to make it all affordable.

This opportunity will not make you or break you. There will always be other opportunities that will be available to you. So, try to calculate the risks and than make the move that best makes sense for now. I wish you all the luck and hang in there! Things always find a way to happen when they are supposed to.

lsienna

Once again Mike strikes to the heart of a matter.

If I could expand my business at my home, I would do it in a heartbeat. Buying into such a debt would not be my first choice, although it sure is attractive!

Think if your home could meet such growth in business, or would you need remodeling? Would that be possible, or better cost effective than moving into a storefront?

Since I am not allowed to run my business from a home annex, I'm forced to look for a location one of these days. I hope that I have such a sweet deal offered to me.

Gosh, best wishes to you in figuring this all out!!! Be brave...we're all behind ya!!!

While I agree that economic factors ARE a factor in any decision we make, if you wait until the economy is "Right" for opening a business (or having a baby, or buying a house, or getting married, or buying a car, or going on a big vacation, or......) then we'd NEVER do ANYTHING! Too many naysayers who are always ready to tell us how bad everything is. Pretty soon, everyone is believing them!

I moved to my own shop this past January (how nice not to have to transport equipment anymore!) and my sales are 142% of last year's total sales .... and it's not even June yet.

As my friend kansaslaura says .... yeah, I heard there was a recession ... I just refuse to participate.

i wish i could say- quit your job and open that store i would in a heartbeat!! yes i dream and drool over the idea of opening a store and although i only work pt it pays like some ft jobs so i find i'm torn. i would have to say since you have been running a home business for 5 months and things are getting busy, continue to build that up. is there a way to cut back your hours at work so you could keep that security while building your client base? i too would hate to pass up what could be a golden opportunity but i think unless i won the lottery there are a lot of expenses involved when you own a store. i don't think that helps at all but know that you have support here

I'm with you Debi. Especially since there's an apartment above it that would be pretty much guaranteed income.

Like I have said before.. when you invest in yourself.. you take your business more seriously and other people will follow.

Make a list.. pros and cons.. check it thrice.. don't pass up something that could be wonderful unless there is just no way.

I work at home in a licensed kitchen.. I'd love a shop but there really is no way right now. If I could.. I would though. Good luck with your decision.

it sounds like an awesome opportunity. i would weigh the pros and cons of quitting your job and opening the new shop, quitting your job and working from home and just staying as you are. I talked to a guy who had a deli/cake shop and said he thinks you can't run a shop on cake alone. He also had a coffee bar/area. He also said (while i'm standing in his closed up shop that is for sale buying his used equipment) that it takes a lot out of you to run it. many hours, lots of stress and paperwork after all the decorating is done. I know it would be a hard thing for me to say yes to only b/c it would take too many hours away from my daughter and husband. But, if you are in a situation where you don't have to worry about that and are SURE it is what you want to do. I think I would give it a try if I didn't have that much to lose. I see myself having a shop in 5 or so years when my daughter or maybe other children are in school and I can devote time to something like that. Especially if you are planning on just working by yourself with no help. You will be really worn out. Overall, I would do it if you have the time and money. I'm sure other jobs can come along if for some reason the shop doesn't work out. hope this helps. just some thoughts. I definitely would do as the other people said and draw up some kind of contract to keep everything legal if something did happen between you and your friend.

oh ya, and definitely let us know what you decide. i know i'm eager to find out. good luck with whatever you decide.

Are you hiring Jeanne? I could drive if you pay for the gas!?!?! LOL

oh i completely forgot about the apartment!! that kindof changes a lot for met. there's extra income that would help. and you have no kids/commitments? it would be a lot easier to devote a large amount of time to running a business when you don't have a lot of other commitments/responsibilities pulling you in other directions as well...i'd take it-but find someone you know who has a store who could maybe help you with some of the nittygritty's to make a pro/con list-an insider!