Below is the story of how Lisa Zakar turned her dreams of making money and spending more time with her family in a reality.
This is the story of how a mother of
3 became a “Mompreneur,” starting a weekend business that not only brought in
extra part time income, it became the love of her life while letting her stay a
full time mom.
When I first started raising a
family, my life was probably much like yours is today. I had high hopes and
dreams, no prior business experience, and I was falling behind, but life wasn’t
waiting for me to catch up.
I was a youngish mother of 3,
experiencing doubts about my ability to balance a strict 9-5 with managing a
young family. Sound familiar?
In reality, I wasn’t so concerned
about my ability to handle the juggling act. Somehow you manage. It came from
something deeper, having everything to do with a mother’s desire to be there
with the kids.
There are pluses and minuses with
everything. In looking ahead though, this was only going to get tougher.
The anxiety was all too real when I
realized I could actually miss out on the kids going through their changes and
growing up. The thought of showing up too late was what I couldn’t handle.
I wanted to be fully
involved because I believe that if you do a poor job raising your kids, nothing
else really matters. Managing their social media is challenging enough. You
can't let it replace you.
But we needed a second income too. I
needed an ideal work situation.
Click here to learn how to start a Princess Tea Party Business.
We were hoping I could find
something to bring in an extra $20,000 a year. With my work experience it seemed
very doable, and it was. But most things come with strings attached making them
less attractive, especially when it involves working for someone else.
I decided to take the plunge and
become a “Mompreneur.” That is, a mother in business for herself, managing her
own time, making her own decisions with family at the center of her life.
We didn’t have a great deal of money
to risk and, quite honestly, I didn’t want to completely re-invent the wheel. I
was just bound and determined to do it better.
I chose what turned out to be the
best business idea ever for moms and women who love children. The Princess Tea
Party Business.
In tapping into the enormous
$3Billion birthday party industry, my job in this niche is to help a little
girl’s princess dream come true. Pure and simple.
What makes it wonderful is that we
share the same dream.
Having daughters of my own, I knew
this was a winning concept. What I didn’t know was that it would become the joy
of my working life and mean so much to my family’s well- being.
My first store opened after nearly a
year of preparation with about a $12,000 investment.
I'd never had so much fun, searching
through second hand stores and antique shops looking for princess dresses and
the unique fixtures and decorative pieces I had in my mind’s eye.
That was just the tip off for the
joy that was to come.
Click here to learn how to start a Princess Tea Party Business.
Every business has it’s rhythm in
terms of attracting and satisfying customers, so I endured a lot of trial and
error with advertising, different packages to offer, what food to serve, when
to hire help, etc.
There was no one there to hold my
hand or a guidebook I could follow with step by step instructions to avoid the
pitfalls.
I had to figure it out as I went
along. In retrospect it is pretty simple, although it didn’t always seem like
it at the time.
Being in Honolulu, we asked a
Hawaiian “Kahu” to bless our space before opening our doors. It covered me with
such a warm feeling of safety and protection which has never left.
I admit I was nervous when my first
party of eight little 5 year olds and their moms showed up with expectations
sky high. This was it. I’ll either be the talk of their kindergarten class (not
to mention Starbucks) or, I would go the way of your average backyard clown.
I must have nailed it because word
spread quickly about this great new children’s party place in town. My bookings
began to stabilize and our investment was returned within the first 18 months.
I’m still in the same location and
have never looked back.
That was 17 years ago. Since then,
we’ve made over 5,000 little princess dreams come true and generated more than
$2,000,000 in total revenue from a weekend business!
I’m not saying you’ll become a
millionaire from a weekend Princess Tea Party business, but you can see that my
$12,000 investment has turned into much more than ever expected.
I like to think it is because my
thoughts were aimed in the same direction as my desire. It is the surest way to
reach your destination.
My kids have graduated college and
I’ve been there for just about every milestone moment in their lives. Knock on
wood they are good kids.
The business has also been rock
solid when the ground beneath us felt like it was shifting under our feet.
I’m not saying it is immune to hard
times, but much less so. Birthdays happen once a year, and, like birds in
spring, they faithfully return.
That's the beauty of this business.
Every day is someone's birthday and their little friends want to celebrate with
them.
Click here to learn how to start a Princess Tea Party Business.
I have learned that most young girls
between the ages of 4 and 9 want to be princesses, and, their parents are only
too happy to try and make that dream come true.
It makes the role of my business all
the more valuable. We provide what everyone wants. The girls, their parents,
and me. Win! Win! Win!
Over the years I have added services
and additional revenue streams such as Children’s Etiquette and Social Skills
training, re-fashioned clothing, and others, making the business even more
lucrative.
My newest effort is to help women who
are looking for an opportunity like this to bring in extra income and more.
Many years ago I decided that
being a full time mom was, at the end of the day, what I really wanted. I also
understood that I needed to help support my family.
By digging deep to find where
my interests and desire came together with determination, a wonderful, life-
long endeavor blossomed beyond what I dreamed at the time.
You can turn your interests
into a business too by being determined to see it through no matter what the naysayers
try to tell you. Ignore them.
The direction you are facing
determines your destination. Fine tune your sense of direction.
To Your Success!
Lisa
Lisa Zakar is a wife and mother of 3. She is the owner
of Lisa Rose, a popular Princess Tea Party venue. She has a 17 year track
record in the Princess Tea Party business. Lisa had a 10 year history in higher
end retail with Nordstrom before launching her business. Lisa Rose is an award
winning party venue with Best of Honolulu/children’s parties/Honolulu Magazine,
and, Winner of Best Children’s Parties/Island Parent Magazine. Lisa Rose has
locations in Honolulu. htttp://www.PrincessTeaPartyBusiness.com/shop
Comments