Q&A talks small business with Don Jones, founder and CEO, Verite Capital Partners LLC. Jones recently spoke at a Connecticut Development Authority symposium for the state’s entrepreneurs and small business owners and will speak again at a second CDA-sponsored business symposium on June 21 at the Graduate Club in New Haven.
Q: At CDA’s symposium, you offered insights for small businesses. What was the gist of your message that day?
A: My number one passion is applying what I have learned — starting from the ground up as a retail porter, making my way up in retail, and from the management and executive positions I’ve held at Target, Macy’s, Ikea and The Gap — to give small businesses big business acumen.
As the founder of my own company, I also bring an understanding of how it feels to be an entrepreneur in this country and what we as entrepreneurs must live by to help our businesses thrive. In addition to co-founding Verite Capital Partners, my wife and I own a small flower shop on Main Street in Litchfield, so the insights I offer to entrepreneurs are also grounded in our day-to-day management of this business.
I have developed a laser focus on five major tenets for life and business: Choose your passion, mental positioning, self awareness, micromarketing and business planning and analysis.
Most entrepreneurs didn’t go to Harvard, get an MBA, and then come up with that great idea. Small businesses today, especially minority and woman-owned businesses, have had to bootstrap themselves to where they are. My support comes in the form of helping business owners analyze themselves and what they are selling.
I ask them: Are you self-aware? Are your businesses marketable? The five tenets are the key. No one owes you a living — not your country, city, state or town. Just because you make it or create it, people won’t automatically buy it.
Q: One of the insights you shared that day had to do with micromarketing. What is that exactly and how does it benefit a small business?
A: Micromarketing is the ability to dissect and understand in a deep way how your offering is going to play out in the market you want to serve. You need to clearly understand how well your product or service will actually reach your intended consumer. You must understand both the demographics and psychographics of your target audiences. Marketing within Hartford is very different than in East or West Harford. Very often, when I’m called to advise a group, participants may understand technology but don’t understand micro marketing. A person may want to open a liquor store not understanding that people may prefer to go to the Sam’s Club liquor store nearby. Someone may want to establish a men’s clothing store not understanding that sales of formal business suits have declined 75 percent in recent years. You need to be passionate, but you also need to understand market receptivity. Businesses have to be self-aware. They have to be willing to say, “This may not work” and look at other options. For example, in Ridgefield, there are seven real estate businesses downtown. You have to ask, “How many new real estate businesses can the town support?”
Q: You also talk about choosing your passion. How does that help an existing small business owner? What do you do when your passion ebbs as a small business owner?
A: I think that business owners must frequently go back to their original vision and assessment of why they want to be in the business. Our company’s passion is fashion and retail and the consumer and all the things around this industry. To rekindle my passion I talk to young people who have new ideas and are developing innovative practices. I walk Madison Avenue. It is the greatest street in America. I start around 90th Street, end up at 42nd, look at what’s new in the windows, and that gets me going. I regenerate passion when I’m working on a new project, or help a young person get their career started.
Q: The CDA forum was positioned as helping business owners get back on track and rescue their businesses. What’s the first step on the road to recovery for a small business?
A: It’s really assessing the financial health of your business model and idea. Sit down and ask, “Where am I?” to assess your financial viability. Can I move this forward? Do I have enough cash on hand? Are the products and services positioned in the right way to sell? Then, quickly, lay out your plan to correct course.
When I consult with a business, the first thing I do is say I am about to tell you the truth. When people come and talk to me, they may feel ready to hear the truth. But hearing an honest, objective assessment is often the hardest thing for a business owner — they often view it as a personal indictment. I find that of the five tenets I described earlier, one or two of them are always stumbling blocks — that applies to all businesses, large and small. Look at the competition. Borders vs. Amazon. Circuit City vs. GameStop. Borders and Circuit City are going out of business because they didn’t understand technology trends and how people are buying early enough.
Bottom line is that if you are under 35 and want to succeed as an entrepreneur, you must embrace technology in a big way. You must speak at least two languages. You must understand what’s going on globally…
My model is a brand of business self help, inspiration and motivation — all work in concert to support the small business owners.
