Tragedy caused Paula Anderson to become an entrepreneur in 2006. Her brother had just passed away and her family was stressing about what to do with his furniture and possessions. With support from her husband, Paula decided to create a business that would help families take care of their departed loved ones’ furniture, thereby making the transition process easier and providing a great showroom to display the items in. She started her business and called it Paula’s Treasures.

Before becoming a business owner and entrepreneur, Paula worked as a cosmetologist. Since she’d never owned a business, she was having a hard time understanding how to manage her business, especially a business that was constantly changing. She also needed more space for her inventory and was struggling to show a profit. She knew the business had great potential, but was unsure how to reach it. She needed help putting together a business plan and completing the paperwork to apply for a loan through the SBA’s Rural Lender Advantage program. She also needed to update and change her accounting system and processes. She soon found the help she needed at the North Central Iowa Small Business Development Center (SBDC) in Fort Dodge.

The North Central Iowa SBDC assisted Paula with cash flow management training, business plan creation, loan paperwork completion, and accounting technique advice. SBDC regional director Lisa Shimkat helped Paula understand how the cash flow operated within her business and how a few changes would improve and impact the business’ profits and operational cycle. Along with providing individualized business counseling, the SBDC provided onsite training to Paula and continued to review the business’ financials over several months.

Paula says, “Lisa’s knowledge and expertise helped guide us through a very stressful transition. She was able to explain different techniques to help us increase our cash flow and really utilize our building space. The SBDC was so thorough when helping us put together the business plan. Their help really made the business plan exceptional. I really appreciated the time and effort they put forth to help me succeed.” With advice from the SBDC, Paula contracted a CPA to continue to monitor her cash flow and taxes on a monthly basis.

Paula increased her inventory threefold. She was also able to secure a loan for $105,000 from Northwest Bank to purchase the building housing the inventory, which made her monthly payments less than what her initial rent payments were. Throughout the recent economic downturn, Paula’s Treasures was actually thriving. Sales increased twenty percent because of proper cash flow management, a better understanding of the operating cycle, and focusing on customer service. Owning her own business at its current location also gives Paula the opportunity to continue her cosmetology work, but on a smaller scale.

Today, Paula’s Treasures is doing extremely well. She has three family members that work with her and several part-time employees to help her when she picks up inventory. She is also very active within the Fort Dodge community; since she sometimes has inventory or stock that does not sell, she works with local non-profit agencies to provide the furniture they need. She is also involved with the local YWCA Holiday Showcase.

“I love what I do and cannot picture myself doing anything else,” Paula says. “This is my dream.”