THE TRUE STORY OF A DREAM DEFERRED
As we approach Thanksgiving and #SmallBusinessSaturday, we were reflecting on the ups and downs of our entrepreneurial journey and the reality that The Bridal Helpline almost didn’t happen. The quest to launch this service almost resulted in us suffering the same fate that so many would-be entrepreneurs face of having their dreams and business concepts ending up in the pile of ideas that will never happen due to not having the financing to support your goals. Although it was not the easiest path, we are so thankful we were able to get the guidance and funding we needing to launch the Bridal Helpline from PeopleFund, a local community lender.
We started The Bridal Helpline earlier this year, but the seed of our journey started almost two years prior when we developed our concept and finalized our initial business plan in 2015. When we got to this point, we were beyond ecstatic - everything seemed to be falling place! We talked with our business mentors and solicited feedback in local pitch competitions all with the goal of preparing our package to request the funding to license and develop the technology needed for launch. After a rigorous stretch of refinement, we submitted our package to PeopleFund and started the waiting game. Our PeopleFund counselor was great to work with. She kept us updated at every step of the process and gave us realistic expectations about what we should expect during the approval process. And then we got the call...
It was October 2015 and we were planning an event for a client in the DC area. We received a call while we were picking up flowers for the event and delivered the news that we hadn’t been approved for our funding. Our hearts sank and no words could describe the emotions that surged all at one moment. Despite attempts to console and ensure us that we should try again, it seem as if our dream was not going to come to fruition. We had worked so hard to get to this point and it almost didn’t seem realistic to hear that we hadn’t gotten approved.
One of the biggest lessons we have learned through our entrepreneurial journey is the lesson of patience and trust in God’s timing. A few months passed and we were in the midst of a busy season with our Posh & Private clients, when we decided to pick up our business plan to see if this was something that we still thought was even worth pursuing. We talked with our business mentors and they encouraged us to not accept the first “no” as the final “no”, so we reached out to PeopleFund and asked her how we could improve our package and probability of approval. As expected from our first engagement, our counselor was extremely helpful, and provided more suggestions on things to do to improve our likelihood of receiving the funding we so desperately longed for. And then we got the call….
WE WERE APPROVED! We met with almost immediately to discuss next steps, sign the necessary documents, and most importantly take this picture. The rest as they say is history... #BridalHelpline #WeddingPlannersOnDemand
Tags // DIY Bride, DIY Wedding, Bridal Helpline, Wedding Help, Wedding Advice, Bride, Engaged, Bridal Help Session, Wedding Planner, Certified Wedding Planner, Wedding Consultant, People Fund, Wedding Planning Help
