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YellowSocks

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email from an acquaintance said:
Hi Kathy, we met regarding {local possibility that apparently isn't happening}, you know {my friend}. I find myself in Cleveland, unemployed, and looking at the possiblity of starting my own business. I have not been able to find a job in nursing due to recent lack of bedside nursing. I am so excited about {religious activity she specializes in} and its possibilities. My question to you is about the B&B business. How did you go about it and how is it going? You have a great location there. I am interested in a B&B like business but with a place for students of {religious activity} to have a retreat. The property in Ashland is for sale and I am in no position to buy, so I had to move. I am staying with my daughter here in Cleveland till I find a job.
Any word of wisdom about starting out on my own?
Thanks,
Well? What shall I tell her?
=)
Kk.
 
UGH!
I am unemployed and have no money so I will become an innkeeper, must be easy anyone can do it and doesn't cost a cent.
 
AN ugh from me as well :-( IF she has no money...then tell her to forget it. I would advise she get some more nursing time / training in. There are loads of jobs out there for nurses and well paying ones. Tell her to use the skills she has and advance herself that way.
 
Tell her to take a refresher course in nursing at a local community college if she wants to go back to bedside nursing in a hospital or other hands on care setting. There is still a HUGE shortage of nurses in all kinds of nursing practice. Many can also be found with religious or spiritual affiliations. She should update her resume and post it on Monster. com and see what she finds.
Yes, I love that too.......I'm unemployed and have no money but it should be easy to open a B&B-like retreat for students who also have no money, right? NOT!!
 
Tell her to look into in home health care - they are always looking for people and you don't even have to be a nurse, but she would be one step ahead if she had nurse training. You are essentially babysitting older people in their homes and there is a great need for it.
 
Would you consider hosting her retreat at your B&B? You could book up the rooms and maybe offer her a percentage?
Or if you are not interested in doing that, maybe you could suggest that she offer her groups to someone in her area. I think we may have touched on destination B&B's.
I have considered offering something like that at my place. Maybe a Yoga retreat, bringing in a couple of yogis, etc., or like some people have suggested knitting clubs, book clubs, car clubs, etc.
I hear what you are saying about thinking she has no idea what is involved. She must have the rose glass, tea drinking on the porch image. Like those people they always show on the commerical- the twin peacock inn I think. Gosh it looks too nice!!
 
do you think she was hinting at partnering with you?
if she has no money to buy, not sure what she is asking.
 
"How did you go about it?" Seriously??? How much time do you have?
There is an incredible shortage of nurses, especially for home health care and nursing homes. It's all well and good to want to go in a new direction, and sometimes it takes getting to a really low point to make you want to pursue it, but she's basically asking you to tell her everything she needs to do...I know you'll want to be supportive but maybe you should remind her that it's a really tough time for b&b's with the "economy" and to really do it right she'll need to be on very solid financial footing to begin with, so she should spend this time getting a regular full-time job while she pursues the b&b/retreat.
 
Students are the market that are the least likely to spend the $$ on staying at a B&B. The ones here at UVA have daddy's credit card and seem to have unlimited spending but balk at my wine tour rates.
SHe wants to do a religious niche which will restrict her demographic even further
Does not look like a money maker to me.
The best thing to do is show her your expenses for running your inn - insurance, food, taxes etc. Maybe that will stop her. She is just thinking of what the room rate will bring in, not what needs to be spent before you even open, much less operating expenses.
RIki
 
I think the best way - if you answer at all - would be to say when you have your property and are ready to begin I will be happy to answer questions about running a B & B and getting started. Just tell her to be sure to check zoning before she buys. I would not say anything about operation costs because she does not even have the money to but property yet (from the sound of the e-mail) so that is giving info not needed.
I would also encourage going back to school for a refresher in nursing as that will give her employment opportunities to keep her afloat when she starts her retreat or whatever it is.
 
I think what she really wants is to continue with the {possibility here in Ashland that apparently isn't happening.} It was a pretty cool idea, and I was invited to be on the Board of Directors for it. I'm thinking she still wants to do something along the same lines. But the reality is... no way she can do it herself.
I haven't answered yet but I probably will later today. It's tempting to lay out just how much I've sunk into this business (pretty much everything), and how hard I work at it, but I'm not sure there's a point.
I very much like "Somewhere In Pa..."'s idea... That is, we've been wondering how we could have more business November through April. The seminary nearby does a seminar three times a year on this {religious activity she specializes in} and we've already said they need to have more of them so we fill more rooms. Perhaps we could partner with her to do these retreats... we do the advertising, provide rooms and meals, and pay her a portion for running the seminar. Her focus would be a little different (much more in depth) than what the seminary is currently doing, so they may even be willing to partner with us.
I agree that there are plenty of nursing jobs in Cleveland, so I'm definitely going to encourage her to go try some more.
=)
Kk.
 
Here's another idea: Tell her to go to her church and give them her idea of holding retreats - maybe they already have some place that would be great for that kind of thing and are just looking for someone to facilitate it.
Or go to the local B&B's (in Cleveland area) and try to sell them her idea - perhaps they are looking for a different niche too.
Tell her to figure out what she wants to do in life and then go out and make it happen!
 
I think what she really wants is to continue with the {possibility here in Ashland that apparently isn't happening.} It was a pretty cool idea, and I was invited to be on the Board of Directors for it. I'm thinking she still wants to do something along the same lines. But the reality is... no way she can do it herself.
I haven't answered yet but I probably will later today. It's tempting to lay out just how much I've sunk into this business (pretty much everything), and how hard I work at it, but I'm not sure there's a point.
I very much like "Somewhere In Pa..."'s idea... That is, we've been wondering how we could have more business November through April. The seminary nearby does a seminar three times a year on this {religious activity she specializes in} and we've already said they need to have more of them so we fill more rooms. Perhaps we could partner with her to do these retreats... we do the advertising, provide rooms and meals, and pay her a portion for running the seminar. Her focus would be a little different (much more in depth) than what the seminary is currently doing, so they may even be willing to partner with us.
I agree that there are plenty of nursing jobs in Cleveland, so I'm definitely going to encourage her to go try some more.
=)
Kk..
There is a point to letting her know a ballpark for what you've invested in your business. A lot of people do think that we rake in the dough in this biz. They have no concept of the overhead and slow periods, etc. She could probably pick up some kind of nursing work until the seminar idea really took off if y'all figured out a way to partner.
 
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