For Las Vegas entrepreneur Richelle Shaw, dating three men in three cities didn’t add up to a winning proposition at first. No, this isn’t a Sex and the City rerun; it really happened and, after a few major bumps in the road, there is a happy ending.
Forty-year-old Richelle Shaw has a green thumb when it comes to turning a company into a mega-success. And it doesn’t matter if it’s a business she owns or someone else’s. For starters, finding out that more than 300,000 Americans lose their phone service each month because of missed payments was the premise for Shaw’s company.
As fate would have it, she built a multimillion-dollar company, and nowadays many fledgling entrepreneurs have her to thank for turning their businesses around. How-to advice can be found in her book, “How to Build A Million Dollar Business in Las Vegas Without the Casinos,” or you can check out Shaw’s coaching program. To read a free chapter of her book click here: FREE CHAPTER
No, this isn’t a sneaky sales pitch because Shaw isn’t your run-of-the-mill entrepreneur who turned to coaching to make a living. Quite the opposite, this single mom is incredibly successful in her own right and has a passion for helping others attain fame and fortune.
If you read the answer to the first question I asked her, you might be as curious as I was. And it takes a lot to get my attention. Bottom line, I just had to know. How can I be like Richelle?
Your six-employee firm reached $2.37 million in sales last year, what inspired you to start your company?
SHAW: I am the only female African-American public utility in the nation. I own FreshStart Telephone. I was dating three men in three different states and had a high telephone bill. I was selling advertising, and the vice president of a local telephone company asked me to come and work for them. I did–was promoted six times in five years and grew the company from $300,000 to $36 million. I ended up buying the company from my boss. Lost it all after the 9/11, World Trade Center tragedy and rebuilt it back to $1 million in about six months.
What is unique or special about your business that gives it an edge over your competitors?
SHAW: I understand how to market. The customers drive my business. Actually, the results from marketing campaigns drive my business. Not what I think, not what my friends or staff think.
Recent breakthrough?
SHAW: I understand that what I did was unique, and it was actually a template for business building. People kept asking me how did I do it, and I started coaching and consulting entrepreneurs to do the same things. The best thing is that now I have consulted with entrepreneurs in more than 47 different businesses and determined that no business is different. My strategies and techniques work for any kind of business.
Were there any challenges that you experienced along the way that appeared to be more difficult because you are a woman?
SHAW: When I first decided to buy the business, I went to SBA. I was approved based on my credit and experience; however, they did not like the business. SBA told me that I would never be able to compete with AT&T. Eight years and almost $100 million in sales between the two companies, I think I learned how to compete. Also, I found a venture capital group [that] was going to give me $5 million; they asked for an engagement fee of $75,000. I wired the money and never heard from them again. Just dumb! So when I bought the company I had to start with no money in reserves. I created a deal with my boss to finance the company with receivables, but I had to get new business fast. We sold off the less profitable divisions and laid off staff to make it work. Then, after 9/11, I was forced to start over. This time, with no customer base that I could leverage, no cash and no credit because I had to file bankruptcy; so I had to use my creative sales and marketing skills to rebuild. The best thing to ever happen, because when things turned around, I did not owe any loans or half of my company to any other investors. Were these challenges because I was a woman, I am not sure, but they were difficult.
Did you need to have a certain mindset to achieve success?
SHAW: I have had every obstacle I think there is, including being diagnosed with a pulmonary embolism. I tell entrepreneurs when I speak that I was young (27), black, female and a little chubby. What did I have to lose? I just kept my head down and kept working. Even after I lost it all. Was it hard? Yes. Did I cry? Yes. Did I stay in the bed for a week? Yes. But then my mind started working again, and I went back out there to put another deal together. I also became a true student of marketing. Not the kind they teach in college. . . . Funny story:
Went to UCLA and graduated with a history degree. So after my business failed, I thought maybe it was because I did not have an MBA. So I enrolled at UNLV for classes. Because I had no business classes, I had to take basic business classes. At the time I owned workz.com that I purchased out of bankruptcy court, and it contained [more than] 4,000 articles about small business and how to grow online. Back to UNLV, I opened the textbook and went to the internet section and it said–a great place to find resources and information about starting a business online is workz.com. What? The same website I owned, in the textbook? I decided that as an entrepreneur I could now focus on what works, allow the results to rule (not the textbook) and keep doing what I had been doing.
Has the media picked up on your story and what have you done to attract them?
SHAW: Yes, I have been featured in USA Today, Wells Fargo Online, Black Enterprise, Entrepreneur and Smart Money. Then, after USA Today and Smart Money, I began to write my book, “How to Build A Million Dollar Business in Las Vegas–Without the Casinos.” It is about my successes and failures building my business, and a step-by-step guide to build a business from scratch without money, without a big client and the essential fundamental skills to make it work every time.
Can other individuals reproduce your business model?
SHAW: Yes, absolutely. They can reproduce the business model even if they are not in the telecom industry. I have helped entrepreneurs including a performing arts school, a gynecologist, urologist, music store, CPA, solar screen provider–even a psychic!
What resources were most helpful to you when you were starting your business?
SHAW: Lots of books! I read daily. Lots of marketing books–anything by Dan Kennedy. The Ultimate Marketing Plan is my favorite.
What ways have you found to be most effective in marketing your product or service to get sales?
SHAW: I practice what I call the 5 Star System. It starts with the three R’s. Reactivation, Retention and Referral. Each one of these has a system to bring in business daily. The fourth piece of the star system is new-client acquisition through lead generation, and the fifth piece is a multi-media marketing funnel.
I don’t just do one thing. I don’t know one way to bring in 84 customers but 84 ways to bring in one. Currently in the telephone business I have 84 ways to bring in a new customer. From joint ventures with bankruptcy attorneys to charity events. It all works. What took my business from ordinary to extraordinary was when I implemented them all at the same time each month. This is what I teach business owners to do now.
What tips can you give others who want to embrace their dream but don’t have the confidence or who feel they don’t have what it takes to succeed?
SHAW: You have nothing to lose! If you are waiting for the perfect time, perfect never comes. I was waiting for the perfect time to have a child and it never came–but I was blessed when I least expected it, and everything is just fine. The same with the business. Just start! Every day you wait, you are losing money.
As you know I love getting feedback, so let me know how Weekend Entrepreneur can continue supporting your goals and aspirations with the best content around.
Cheers,
Michelle
This entry was posted on Thursday, July 3rd, 2008 at 2:51 pm and is filed under Work, Growing a Business, Women in Business, Mindset, Make It Up, Self-improvement, Information Marketing. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.10 Responses to “Mompreneur Hits Pay Dirt After Losing It All”
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July 7th, 2008 at 11:09 pm
I really agree with Mrs. Shaw about going after your dreams and goals. She went after something that she was waiting for and now she is a millionaire. Many people sit around and wait for that time to come. Mrs. Shaw can speak for many of us African American women who is making it in society today. She is now making it easier for people to call their loved ones who are thousands of miles away. Instead of spending so much money a month on your phone bills, invest in Mrs. Shaws plan where you can save half of what you would spend on a regular phone bill. I know I will.
July 8th, 2008 at 8:03 am
I enjoyed you testimonial regarding how you started your multi-million dollar business. My goal and aspiration is to do the same. I have a degree in Management/Marketing but still not sure where to start or what to start with.
July 9th, 2008 at 12:20 pm
[…] Weekend Entrepreneur: […]
July 9th, 2008 at 4:27 pm
Highlighting women entrepreneurs shares the knowledge that we don’t have to give anything up just because we’re women. In fact, we are actully better equipped to “have it all.” We just have to believe it’s possible. I love reading your blog because it encourages women to get off the hampster wheel.
July 11th, 2008 at 3:55 pm
It sounds like the bottom line throughout this article is that hard work pays off. Just reading this small article I can tell that it has taken a lot of hard work and a lot of time to be HUGELY sucessful not only once… but twice!
July 11th, 2008 at 6:01 pm
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July 12th, 2008 at 12:01 pm
[…] keep all of you updated. In the meantime check her out on WomenEntrepreneur.com SHARETHIS.addEntry({ title: “Check out my new client Richelle Shaw on Entreprenuer.com “, url: […]
July 17th, 2008 at 12:53 pm
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August 8th, 2008 at 12:58 am
What a great testimony of triumph over adversity. Mrs. Shaw is a hard working woman who is an inspiration to other woman entrepreneurs in similar situations. She’s living proof that it can be done.
September 16th, 2008 at 6:25 am
[…] Richelle Shaw is the country’s only female African American public utility owner. Richelle has extensive expertise in telephone collections and was generous enough to share some tips that she has used for years to collect on public utilities that have worked very well for her: 1. Treat each customer as if they are your only customer - make sure that each situation is considered individually. Review their payments and make sure before extending additional time to pay. This can only work if you empower your collection department to make decisions. The only decision should be to collect the money and make deals. 2. Ask for a small payment with a promise to pay. If the customer is sincere, they will agree to make a small payment. Normally we ask for 15% of their outstanding balance in order for us to extend their payments. The good faith payment goes a long way in showing commitment. 3. Don’t harass, the customer. They will just ignore your call. Blocking the caller ID function just makes it more difficult. 4. Even with the regulations regarding collecting, leave a clear message regarding the call. Don’t use language like this is the last call before legal, it just makes the customer ignore your calls or wait for your bluff. 5. Best Tactic for collecting - create a promotion for collection. It works with businesses and with consumers. We reward customers for paying on time. Not with the standard 5% discount because it is not enough to make some one take action, we offered free dinners for everyone who paid on time - we were able to get the restaurant to donate the gift certificates because they wanted new customers. No one eats alone normally so it was a win - win for the restaurant and for my customers. […]