24. Business Plan
TWENTY-FOUR
Business Plan
TARA
“Good morning!” Tara greeted Celeste at Baba’s when the last of the books were put in their places. They were meeting to discuss some business ideas for the bookstore. Of course, they were also there for an excellent Bulgarian breakfast.
Thanks to dating Kiro Marinov, Celeste had become a connoisseur of tasty Bulgarian cuisine. It turned out Kiro was pretty good at recreating some of his mother’s recipes, too. Celeste always talked about how happy that made her. She grew up working in her uncle’s confectionery and ice cream shops and knew a lot about making candies and other sweets but not much about anything healthy she needed to eat beforehand.
“Have you ordered yet?” Tara took off her jacket and dropped into the booth across from Celeste.
“For both of us, yes,” Celeste confirmed. “Here comes Anna now with the mekitsis .”
Baba’s Diner served the best breakfast in town, combining Midwestern favorites with traditional Bulgarian dishes such as mekitsis , a Bulgarian donut usually served covered in powdered sugar or with fruit preserves to spread over the top and banitsa , a flaky buttered pastry rolled up and filled with feta cheese.
Anna Marinova set the plate on the table and set down glasses of water and filled their cups with hot coffee.
“Thanks, Anna.”
“You’re welcome,” she said, dropping milk and sugar on the table. “How’s your father doing? He’s getting out soon, yes?”
“He is. Mom’s bringing him home later today.”
Anna smiled and squeezed Tara’s shoulder. “I’m sure you and your mother are happy to have him home.”
“Yes. And I’m sure he’ll be happy to sleep in his own bed again, too.”
“Well, don’t worry about dinner. I’ll bring that over tonight.”
“Thank you.” Tara accepted, knowing better than to argue since Anna would bring dinner over, regardless.
“I’ll be right back with the rest of your breakfast.” With a whoosh, Anna disappeared behind the doors into the kitchen, but not before stopping at no fewer than three other tables to take care of her customers.
Tara grabbed a donut off the plate and took a bite of sugary deliciousness. “So good.” She closed her eyes and enjoyed the culinary treat before her. “How does Kiro not weigh three hundred pounds?”
“I have no idea.” Celeste wiped her lips with a napkin. “His mom is always encouraging him to eat. I’ve learned the hard way that I should never fully clean my plate when I’m over for dinner. If I do, she’ll automatically refill it and sit there until I’ve eaten it all. But if I leave at least one bite, she’ll know I’m full!”
Tara giggled. “You’re both strong women. I can only imagine the stare-downs between the two of you as you eat another plate of food.”
Celeste laughed. “Not a mistake I’ve made twice.” She picked up a cup of coffee and took a sip. “And she won’t tell me where she gets her coffee, either. It’s got a superb flavor.”
“Trust me. Coffee at Mocha’s is equally as delicious.”
Celeste smiled in appreciation. “Thanks!”
Tara licked the powdered sugar off her fingers. “So, where is Kiro?”
“Late night.” Celeste eyed Tara with mischief. “He’s still upstairs catching some Zs.”
Able to overhear just about everything, Anna joined the conversation as she set plates of food on their table. “My boys work so hard.” Anna always referred to Kiro and his fellow firefighters as her boys.
Celeste cleared her throat.
“You ladies do, too. Here you go. Dobur appetit.”
They voiced their thanks and took a bite or two of their banitsa with a side of scrambled eggs before getting down to business.
“Have you heard from your boss in Chicago?”
“Yes. I sent her a fairly comprehensive plan for Between the Lines, and she thinks a lot of my ideas will work out well.” Tara took a sip of coffee. “She’s helping me fine-tune some others. I just need to convince Mom and Dad to continue them after I’m back in Chi-town.”
“Did you bring it with you? Your business plan?”
Tara swallowed a gulp of coffee. “Yes.” She reached into her bag to retrieve a small binder and placed it on the table in front of Celeste. “I didn’t have time to get a fancier binder or anything, but this is it so far.”
Celeste perused the plan while Tara told her about her ideas. The thing Tara was most excited about was starting an organization that would encourage the downtown businesses to work together for their mutual benefit. “Shoppers shop online or are drawn to places like Easton or Polaris,” Tara referred to the large, outdoor shopping centers around central Ohio. “…which we can all counter to a degree, but working together, we can promote each other’s business by way of certain products we each sell that are complementary to each other. I think that will help draw customers to the entire downtown area and not just to one shop, which will make the drive out here more worth their while.”
Tara’s eyes lit up, and she talked a little faster, letting her excitement get the better of her.
“In other words,” Celeste confirmed, “and this is just an example: coupons at your bookstore for a dollar off a cup of coffee at my place. And at my shop, something offering a ten percent discount for an in-store purchase in your bookstore that is good through, say, close of business the following day.”
“More or less, yes,” Tara confirmed. “We can also work together for occasional weekends when everyone runs a sale, but we all help to promote the entire square that weekend. That would allow us all to benefit from the extra foot traffic.”
“We’d have to run this by the other business owners.”
“Exactly.” Tara finished the rest of her breakfast. “I spoke to Sherilyn in the Mayor’s office this week. She said there wasn’t a women’s business group in town, but she could help with some examples of a charter if we wanted to start one up.”
“That’s a great idea,” Celeste said, finishing off her coffee. She flipped another page. “You put this together as if you’re ready to take over your parents’ shop now.”
Tara and Celeste both dreamed of owning their own businesses, which is why they both studied business and marketing together at Ohio State. Tara knew Celeste would recognize the plan, knowing it was a format they’d been taught in their classes. It was more refined and professional looking now that they’d both gained some real-world experience.
Tara let out a nervous laugh. “I’d love that, but financially? Not there yet.”
“You’d be surprised at what you’re ready to do. I wasn’t ready for my shop, but now look at me.”
“You’re right. An empty table is definitely a hot commodity at Café Mocha.”
Celeste caught Anna’s eye and waved her over. “Let’s ask Anna about the business association.”
“Anna.” Celeste started. “Mind if we run something by you?”
Anna topped off both their cups of coffee while Tara and Celeste took turns explaining their women’s business association idea.
“I like it,” Anna said. “When do we start?”