Putting It All Together

All of the different tracks of Zoe continue to head in the same direction at the same speed!

As I noted in yesterday's entry, I had received the redline changes to the lease from my attorney on Thursday evening.  On Friday morning, I reviewed them and was very satisfied with the updates.  I forwarded the document back to my broker with the note that he propose that the landlord give us an allowance to do their work rather than they having to do all of it.  I'm very curious to see their response.  We did not substantially change anything in the document but simply clarified several areas in more detail.

I also received the MEP drawings from my broker and passed those on to Architect Michael.  We have two other sets of drawings outstanding that I hope to receive this upcoming week.

Work continued on planning my time at Market next week and I've scheduled more appointments for Zoe! One of the things that mentor Greer had told me last year when I met with her is that designers will not sell to you if someone else in your immediate area is already carrying their line.  That makes sense, as they do not want to cannibalize their sales.  So far, I have not had that as an issue although many of them have asked me my location so they can make sure this will not be a problem.

The AmericasMart website has a special login for buyers (I feel special!) that allows us to map out our market plan and see detailed schematics of the floor layouts and vendor locations.  It is really going to be an interesting experience.  They do not allow photographs inside the building so I won't have any fun pictures to share on the blog.  I can understand this - they don't want views of their lines coming out except those they control.

You are Now Qualified as a Buyer

Oh, what sweet words those were to read in an email from AmericasMart Atlanta yesterday afternoon!

A few days ago in the blog, I had shared a list of all of the requirements for qualification as a buyer at the Mart.  Knowing that I needed to do my buying for the store to open in Q1 of next year (spring fashions start shipping in January), I booked my flight and car in Atlanta for the Apparel Market to run from October 14 - 18.  When the work on the lease was moving forward quickly, I thought I would likely have it signed before market next week and have that as my final qualification piece.

When it became clear that the lease would likely take longer than I had anticipated, I knew that the only other qualification that I could obtain from the list would be an invoice from a Mart vendor.  Now, the logical side of me gets very disturbed when I think about the fact that you have to buy something to be qualified as a buyer.  But let's not dwell on that.

Now, a trip to Atlanta is never wasted, as I love getting to see my family.  And, if I hadn't been able to get my qualifications, I would have made to trip anyway just to spend time with them.  But I knew I'd be creating a big problem for myself if I didn't get my inventory on order.

I had been working with different wholesalers (vendors) and reviewing their upcoming lines.  Some types of vendors have what they call Immediates - these are items that they sell all the time because the styles are part of their basic brand and they don't change.  So, they can be bought anytime and sold anytime, regardless of season.  They have Immediates in addition to their seasonal lines.

So what doesn't change drastically over the course of a few months in fashion?  I settled on accessories because things like scarves and some jewelry can be fairly timeless.  Yesterday, I placed an order for scarves and bracelets from one of the Mart vendors and received a copy of my invoice.  I'll meet with this same Mart vendor next week to review their Ready to Wear (RTW) line of clothing and accessories.

Once I had the invoice in hand, I made copies of all of the other qualification items and headed off to my trusty Staples to fax everything to the Mart.  (No one hogging the fax machine this time!)  Within a few hours, I got the confirmation email!

It was a busy day with Zoe yesterday.  I completed review of the Home Page Wireframe diagram for Web Designer Mark and sent him my comments.  I received the formal quote from Architect Michael and signed off on it.  And, late last night, I received the new draft of the lease from my attorney, which I'll review today and, hopefully, be ready to send back to my broker!

When Email Brings A Happy Surprise

I am still an early riser, even though I no longer have a long commute to work.  I enjoy getting up with Jim, fixing his lunch, having breakfast with him and seeing him off.  After he leaves, I normally sit down at my laptop with my coffee to check my email and get the day started on the right foot.

Imagine my delight when I saw that I had an email from Web Designer Mark with the wireframe diagram of Zoe's home page!  He was pleased with the responses that I had given him in my website reviews and used that information along with the other information from our talks and email correspondence to create the diagram.  I'll be reviewing it today and providing him with comments.  I often get wonderful surprises like this in the mornings (as opposed to when I was in IT and was often surprised with an "Oh crap!" kind of email!)

I had a morning meeting with Buildout Manager Scott, Architect Michael, and Construction GC/Estimator Bob at Zoe's potential space.  We had a wonderful meeting and I was very impressed with my first meeting with Michael and Bob face to face.  I really got the feeling that they cared about my best interests and both were very knowledgable in their fields and in dealing with the City of Alexandria.

At the end of our meeting, we all had "Action Items" to follow up on to keep the process moving.  After lunch, I completed mine, one of which was to provide the team with the contact information for my attorney so Architect Michael and he could reconstruct some of the language in the lease to specify how the space should be delivered to me.  By 2:30, they conferenced me in on a call to discuss the changes!  I like this kind of service!

The Lease

Not long after I had posted yesterday's blog entry, I received an email from my attorney with his redlines on Zoe's lease!  I quickly emailed him back to see if he would be available to meet with me today to review it and he confirmed that 2:30 would work with his schedule.

Even though I was tired, I perked up after receiving his comments (of course, I had to read them right away).  Like my comments, there really weren't a significant amount of changes and he had included an Exhibit A that address the conditions required for delivery of the space to me.  In our face to face meeting this afternoon, he felt that the lease as a whole was very fair to me and wanted to make sure we addressed those areas that needed some clarification or additional definition.  I felt that he had my best interests at heart in his review and I was very appreciative.  Many of the people that I've worked with in planning and designing all aspects of Zoe have impressed me in that way and it really encourages me.

We have a couple of items related to the delivery of the space that I will review with the architect and general contractor tomorrow morning.  Once I've gotten those answers, he will finish updating the document and send it to me to forward back to the landlord.

As I was preparing to leave his office, he asked me if I had ever worked in Alexandria.  I told him I think I had worked everywhere in the DC area BUT Alexandria!  He stated that he felt that I would really enjoy it and I shared that I was already beginning to identify a "small town" feel even though we were in the midst of a large metropolitan area.  That's a nice feeling and harkens back to one of the things I hope to create with Zoe.

I Know It When I See It

Former US Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart uttered one of my favorite lines (in reference to a case about something that I don't want to mention on my blog lest it attract the wrong kind of followers!)

"I know it when I see it"

That describes me well.  I can have a mental picture of something that I'm looking for and, when I see it, everything crystalizes and it all becomes concrete.  That's how I felt today in two different situations.

Last night and today, I completed the homework that Web Designer Mark had given to me - review the seven websites that he thought were similar in nature to what I might be looking for (based on our conversations) and share my likes and dislikes.  Of the seven, I had two that I did not like at all (both popular sites), two that were "fine" but left me somewhat indifferent, and three that were excellent and most fit the kind of web presence I want Zoe to have.  Of the three excellent ones, all were for smaller organizations that were very design focused.  It was really fun to consider the overall design and functionality of the site, rather than racing through, ordering something or looking for information (although those were definitely things I considered as I looked at each site - the ease of doing so).

And, in between rain showers, I made a grocery shopping trip and did a side trip to Treasure Trove, which is a consignment/donation store benefiting Inova Hospitals here in Northern Virginia.  As I had noted in my Charlottesville report a couple of weeks ago, I've been looking for items to use in decorating the store and have certain things in mind.  When I walked into Treasure Trove today, there was one of the items sitting right in front of me!  I was so thrilled to find exactly what I was looking for!

More very positive news on the space front - I'm set with a meeting with Build Out Manager Scott, the General Contractor and the Architect for Wednesday morning in Zoe's (hopefully soon) space.  I'm still waiting for the final comments back from the attorney on the lease but REALLY hope to have them tomorrow.  (No one wants to see me get impatient!)

Build-Out

On Friday, I received the proposal from Build-Out Manager Scott, signed off on it, and sent it back.  He has lined up an architect who has done work in Old Town Alexandria previously as well as a General Contractor.  We hope to meet in the space on Wednesday or Friday of this upcoming week so that they can get started with their work.

I also spoke to my attorney and discussed his review of the lease.  There is one clause in the renewals section that he feels puts me at a disadvantage, especially if it were invoked during the original term of the lease.  I contacted my broker to see if we could remove that clause (it was not in the original Letter of Intent) and am waiting to hear from him.

I also confirmed the design for my stickers on Friday - Zoe Girl will be gracing the stickers with all of her gorgeousness!

On Saturday, I printed a small number of business cards at Staples (no crazy fax machine hogging lady in sight!) in preparation for market.  I also confirmed another appointment time with one of my potential suppliers/wholesalers!  So exciting!  And my family is very excited that I am coming, even though I will be busy in Atlanta for part of the time.  I'm going to stay a few extra days so I can spend some time with them.

I hope to finalize the lease this week and hold the meeting with the GC/Architect.  I am preparing to do my web design homework so that I can have answers ready when Web Designer Mark returns home.  Somehow, all this doesn't really feel like work!

Getting Ready for Market

In addition to enjoying our much needed rain yesterday, I spent most of my Zoe focused time on getting ready to go to Market in Atlanta in October.

Here are the requirements to attend Market as a buyer (and my status):

   Wholesale Retail Businesses

   All of the Following:

•      Current retail business license or federal resale tax certificate (DONE)
•      Imprinted business check (IN PROCESS)
•      Corporate credit card or proof of merchant credit card ID #  (DONE)
•      Photo ID or passport (one per buyer) (DONE)
•      Personalized business ID (business card or cancelled payroll check) - One per buyer                                required (IN PROCESS)
•      Internet businesses must also provide print out of search engine with web-site and proof of URL registration (N/A)

   Plus One of the Following:

•      White or yellow page business phone listing 
•      Current year executed sales tax return or sales tax coupon book 
•      Lease agreement for commercial space (IN PROCESS)
•      Photo of retail store front with company name/logo/signage clearly displayed 
•      Current Invoices showing you purchase Mart-related Merchandise in quantity for resale

I had to hold off on getting the business checks imprinted (and yes, I know, there aren't many things I'll be writing checks for) and business cards (I'm going to have some temporary ones printed up but am working with Cori on my formal cards) until I had a better feel for my location.  The business bankers at Wachovia/Wells Fargo are always so helpful in answering my questions and getting me on the right track.

As you can see, they don't just let you waltz in there and "start shopping"!  I've confirmed my meeting on the first day of market with TKE Sales, who rep two of the lines I plan to carry in the store.  I'm hoping to continue setting up meetings today.  You don't have to have an appointment to meet with the wholesalers but it does make the process more focused and efficient.

I faxed in approval of the tissue paper proof as well as my sticker order yesterday.  There was an interesting "encounter" with a woman at Staples who did not want to "share" the fax machine.  I'm starting to question my decision to save money by getting rid of my home long distance service!