Feb

21

True Stories: AMEX OPEN + Make Mine A Million WINNER!

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This past week was an amazing Amexexperience. A General Contractor in a field of 20 sharp, talented women business owners, all in business more than 2 years, with earnings of over $250k and less than $1m, we appeared at the American Express OPEN Women’s Business Summit to demonstrate to the more than 600 attendees exactly how a successful 3-minute “Elevator Pitch” for our business is crafted when you are vying for the attention of an investor, a business partner, store placement, or just quickly letting someone know exactly what it is you do.

The Event objectives were to provide real advice and useful content to help women business owners grow in the current economy. Here are a few statistics.  Women  Count me INowned businesses constitute approximately 28% of all business in the US. Of those, 70% gross $50K a year annually or less. 2.6% of all women owned businesses ever reach the $1m mark. The goal of CountMeIn.org, headed by philanthropist Nell Merlino, is to create a million women millionaires, a mighty goal, and a wonderful way to get the economy moving.

Other groups attending in addition to Count Me In members were The e-Women Network, the National Asssociation for Women Business Owners (NAWBO), the Houston Chambers of Commerce, and the Women’s Leadership Exchange. I had an opportunity to be interviewed by MS NBC for the early Sunday AM Show, Your Business, sponsored by AMEX OPEN.  It’ll be aired in about 3 weeks.

Oh, I should mention that HB Building + Design made it through to the Winner’s Circle! What an uplifting experience. Look forward to hearing about a few of the other contestants here in this column later on. There were a couple who have great complementary products to what we do best, remodeling your kitchen and bath! Others were just great people like Jillian White, from White Picket Fence Appraisals in New Rochelle, NY, and Maggie Weldon, Maggie’s Crochet & Lace Pottery from Kernersville, NC.  We’ll keep you posted on progress with the program. In the meantime, we’ll be moving forward with our BathPacks on-line product as quick as we can, so we can help more clients get great bath designs installed for a quality price by a quality installer, and put people to work!

Feb

9

True Stories: M3 Race Finalist Cross Between American Idol + Shark Tank

Filed Under Aging In Place / Aging At Home, True Stories | Leave a Comment

Okay - a little background for my readers. This past year, I have been participatng in the Make Mine a Million $ Business Race. It has helped our company grow in mamy different ways, most of all, through tracking our financials and completing a full business plan with 5 year goals clearly stated. I have participated in sometimes weekly, sometimes monthly, webinars with Count Me In, the underlying sponsor, a philanthropic company run by the dynamic and inspiring Nell Merlino, who many of you are familiar with as she fought for and started the first Take Our Daughters to work day in 1992.  The goal of the program is to create a million Million$ women owned businesses! I like the sound of that, and in spite of last years hardship, we scraped and worked to follow our business plan, and were unbelievably selected across a number of criteria to be one of the top 20 women owned businesses to be a finalist in this year’s competition.  The top 10 finalists get amazing marketing help, business support and guidance from a professional teams, and lots of publicity to help them get past that $1M barrier. We are confident in our ability to do that, and are so excited that the judges found our specialization in green bath & kitchen design for people Aging In Place worthy of this honor. The entire press release is below. Keep your fingers crossed!! We’re off to Houston next week for the judging. Can’t wait!!  Keep us in your hearts as we keep you in our hears every day!   

 Local Business Woman Jane Regan Named As Finalist for the Make Mine a Million $ Business Competition ™ in Houston, Texas

 ~20 Finalists compete for business coaching and other prizes to help catapult their business revenues to a million dollars~

Houston, Texas February 8, 2010 – Business growth program, the Make Mine A Million $ Business Competition selected Jane Regan of HB Building and Design. Inc., Montara, CA as one of the twenty business women finalists to compete for an awards package at the Houston, Texas event on February 17 and 18 at the American Express Open Women’s Business Summit. The exciting event will feature female entrepreneurs from across the nation who will compete for business development packages that include business coaching, marketing, PR, and technological assistance to help their businesses grow into million‐dollar enterprises. The event also includes educational and networking opportunities in addition to a keynote speech by Count Me In Founder, Nell Merlino.

Described as a cross between “The Apprentice” and “American Idol,” the competition provides these twenty finalists with the opportunity to present their business in a 3 minute “elevator pitch” to a panel of business experts and a live audience. Ten winners will be chosen by the audience and judges who collaborate on the selection process.

Jane provides for the care and safety of others through beautiful, affordable design. An experienced Network engineer nominated for a Smithsonian Award in the field of medicine in 1988, the Internet brought global responsibilities at Symantec; then a long time role as Principal Citrix Systems Engineer, leading to Sr. Director of Business Development. She switched to an Interior Design career in 2002, and is now CEO of the NKBA and a Build It Green Design design/build General Contracting firm serving San Francisco, the Peninsula and the East Bay. She was named a Silicon Valley Independent Business Woman of the Year 2009.

Finalists will receive several of the key components of the Make Mine a Million $ Business Competition awards package that will help their businesses break the million‐dollar barrier, which includes inspiration, community, and business coaching from a “dream” team of coaches and business experts from Count Me In, and select discounts from national sponsors.

Launched in 2005 by Count Me In for Women’s Economic Independence and founding partner American Express OPEN, the Make Mine a Million $ Business Competition was created to help post‐start up, women‐owned businesses grow to one million dollars in annual revenue. Since its inception, the program has hosted 19 competitions in cities around the country and grown into a nationwide movement. In the history of the program, thousands of women entrepreneurs across the nations have applied.

“We are thrilled by the eagerness of women across the country to grow their businesses, create jobs in their communities, and create stability for their families and the national economy,” said Nell Merlino, Founder and President of Count Me In. “The number of applicants mirrors the growth of our entrepreneurs, businesses, and their desire to take them to the million dollar level.”

NellThe Make Mine a Million $ Business Competition has garnered support from organizations who are all joining hands in order to make an impact in women’s lives and strengthening the US economy. The impressive list of national sponsors includes American Express OPEN, FedEx, WIPP, and Sam’s Club. Sponsors provide an array of products and services that serve as invaluable tools for growth.

For more information about how women can grow their businesses please visit www.makemineamillion.org.

About Count Me In

Count Me In for Women’s Economic Independence is the leading national not‐for‐profit provider of resources, business education, and community support for women entrepreneurs seeking to grow their businesses to million dollar enterprises. Count Me In launched the Make Mine a Million $ Business Competition to inspire one million women entrepreneurs scale their businesses to a million dollars in revenue in the next decade by providing tools, skills, and the support of a nation‐wide community of peers.

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