Starting a business, in my case a hostel

Is it just me or what. This past week I received three requests to meet starting entrepreneurs on ‘how did I set up my business’.

I see it all around me; people are missing something in their current job and either want to start for themselves or have already made that step. Little pop-ups start appearing everywhere. I will confess; same here. 5 years ago my itch started.

Starting a business asks for dedication, stubbornness, flexibility, drive and the ability to listen.

It’s finding answers to all possible objections.

So for all of you questioning how I did it. Here are some answers to questions I get.

Where did you start?

To be honest, I have no idea. I guess I started writing down all the things that make me happy, everything you can wake me up for in the middle of the night. Of course that’s not a clear business plan all at once. It takes time, think, think, rethink. I made a moodboard, stuck it on the wall and looked at it daily. Once I put 2 and 2 together and knew I wanted to start a hostel, I started writing a business plan. I wanted to make sure I had thought of everything (yeah right is what I think now).

Ok step one is made. I want to start my own business. I want to open a hostel. I started putting things on paper. Some say a plan is overrated. I get that, a 40 page plan will only be read by nobody else but you. Just do it, get your thoughts structured.

Ready for step two: Get educated! Start picking brains online and offline. So much information is available online. But apart from that start talking to people. Every time you tell your idea; it is a pitch. Not always so much a pitch to the other person but for yourself. When you hear yourself talk; you know what’s right and not. Also the questions people ask you will get you thinking.

From there take one step at a time. The journey is half the fun. All you need to do is make a huge amount of choices. Choices about pricing, marketing, renovation, kitchen, matrasses, cash register, OTA’s, security systems, heating system, administration, HR, help exchange or not, cleaning etc. Soon you will be an expert on all these topics.

Obstacles

In a bar one evening I ran into an old classmate. He told me the following. ‘Well I started with a business plan with someone else. But our initial investor pulled back, so, you know…. What can I do….I am back to my day job’.

I have overcome 200 obstacles (guestimate). To name a few:

• The owner of my ‘first’ building decided, after I obtained the required permits, that having a first time business owner in his building was too big of a risk. I had quit my job when the permits were in place.
• Running out of money.
• Bank withdrawing two weeks before show time
• Permits not coming in on time (resulting in 9 months delay)
• Builders finishing way too early (oeps, had everyone lined up, no delays happen and is easier to deal with then needing things earlier)Things are not going to happen by itself. Just keep going and enjoy the ride.

How do you pay for it?

Well, what do you think? How do you plan to pay for it all. Your couple thousand euro savings won’t get you far. Think a bank is going to give you a loan? Forget about it. Go the trending way? Crowdfunding. Well give it a shot (looking for someone to help make you crowdfunding a success? Let me know! I can get you connected). Family and friends? Think about the consequences it can have when things go bad. Can you handle that?

So how I did it? I worked 3 jobs for a couple years, put every penny aside and paid about 2/3 of the investment out of my own pocket. The last part I had a bank saying yes for 2 years and 2 weeks before I needed the money say; Oh, well, eh, you need to rewrite your business plan because we need it in a different template (2 weeks before opening, like I have the time and what is the point, please), and, eh, we just decided we aren’t doing loans in the hospitality industry at the moment. But if you rewrite it we might look at it. Obviously that resulted in a small stress moment. But won’t get anywhere if you can’t deal with situations like that. I found a way. Within a week I found a private investor offering a normal rate to loan me the rest.

I did not take the fast route. If you are able to find an investor that is ok that you have a minimum amount of personal resources and is willing to loan you the rest. Go for it, it saves a lot of time. Do think about all the worst case scenario’s. And if you can live with that.

What’s your occupancy rate? How did you make sure you get guests coming in? How many people do you have working?

Answers to all these types of practical questions are available online. Find a forum on the related topic and take whatever information you need.

Do get all stakeholders involved from an early stage like the city council, the neighborhood and your creditors. You can do it. And if you really want to you will find a way!

Want to know more? You can always hire me. Want to see the result of my hard work? Come take a look in Haarlem!

Hello I’m Local. I’m the most local boutique hostel in the world. I’m located in the center of Haarlem, The Netherlands.

#helloimlocal #business #hostel #hotel #Haarlem #Holland #Netherlands #thingstothinkabout #gettingstarted #goforit #travel #traveltalk

Hello I’m Open. Going from mine to yours.

So for 3 almost 4 years I have been walking around with an idea in my head to open a hostel. Quit my full time job to go for it. Worked my … off to be able to pay for it, pitched my … off to find partners backing up my idea.

 

In that time I had a lot of thoughts, ideas, mega long to-do lists running through my head. Trying to explain to friends and family what I was working on. I guess that was one thing I am not so good at. From the day I opened till today as people still walk in daily to come take a look, people are surprised. Surprised on how big the whole project actually is, surprised how I managed to get it all together, surprised how unique the hostel turned up to be……well what do you think I was doing all that time?J

 

June 2012 Stadsherstel Amsterdam, my partner in crime, started remodeling the 4 buildings Hello I’m Local is located in. For 23 years these buildings had been empty, waiting to be brought back to beauty and shared with the world. Of course all kinds of things went bad, thank god for giving me a dose of flexibility and endurance. Normally building projects are always delayed. Well guess what, mine finished early. I was still working full time at a Strategy Consultant on a contracting project with no option to stop before the committed end date. I had everyone lined up for a couple weeks later; the guys to lay the floors, install the kitchen, build the bar, website up and running, beds, curtains and the list goes on… I had one end goal April 25^th at 10 a.m. That was the due date, the date that the mayor of Haarlem was coming to officially open Hello I’m Local.

 

Now I start writing about this period I realize I can probably write a whole book about it. I will leave that for later…

 

From March 13^th till April 25^th I have no recollection what I actually did day by day. It’s a blur. Working 24×7 with the help of my dear family, my manager, his family, the occasional friends popping by, diners together, way too many beers. We were like a big family together in a very big house, our house, our space, our project, all working on my ideas, my dreams, my to-do lists, my wish to take on this crazy project.

 

As it all started to fall in place, for the first time I could actually show people what was in my head, what I was trying to explain for years. (Now I have a greater understanding for people with a creative career like my loved one. Always creating in their thoughts, trying to explain, but we humans just can’t totally grasp it until we see the finished product.)

 

April 25^th comes …..

 

Now what happened then was something I did not see coming…..I received guests….yes, I received guests. Now you might think of course, it’s a place to stay, that’s your core business, for sure you will receive guests. But that is not what I mean. What I mean is that I was surprised by the feeling having guests gave me, I didn’t like it. They felt like intruders, coming into my private space, my space, my own 3 year project that was safely locked up in my head. People were now just coming in, disturbing my peace of mind, all having an opinion. One of the strangest realization moments in my life! Working so hard and so long for something and then actually disliking it.

 

Fortunately that lasted a day. As my guests started coming in, I talked with them, drank (yet another) beer with them I was back to where my idea once started. Opening a place where people from all over the world, all walks of life come, enjoying themselves, proving them with a place to just ‘be’. It soon turned into a holiday for myself. Like I was also on an adventure with my guests, only I had to get up at 7.45 in the morning to make breakfast for them.

 

Realizing going to bed every night at 4, getting up at 7.45 and working all hours in between is not a sustainable venture, my holiday turned into my work. Mine turned into yours. My home turned into my business and I am loving it!

 

I’m grateful for every person that steps foot into my business. Each and every one of you brings a story, a vibe and a new memory to my life. It’s no longer just a random thought in my head. It’s real, it’s open and the doors are open for you here in Haarlem!

Interior Design Competition LOCAL Hostel

BACKGROUND INFO

Those living in Haarlem often take a quick train ride to Amsterdam, so have I. from the train you can see a school; wood, furniture and interior design school. In the past when I was fed up with my corporate job I would dream of a different career, to do something creative or become a helicopter pilot. Every time I passed the school building I would think just that. About 18 months ago I visited the school to see their graduation projects. I was surprised! Seriously amazing what they make and think of. You should check it out. July 9, 10 & 11th 2012 the school opens its doors to the public again.

When the LOCAL Hostel project started taking off I wanted to find a way to give starters a platform to show their talents. I contacted the school to see what we could do for each other. That resulted in ‘The Interior Design Competition’!

THE COMPETITION

February 2012 the interior design competition started. 100 students of the HMC Amsterdam school started working on their proposals for the interior of the new Boutique City Hostel LOCAL in Haarlem, The Netherlands. For many of these students it was the first time they worked for a ‘real’ client. It was the first time they could put theory into practice. Some did this very professional, some acted like 18 year olds;)

In February I visited the school so the students could ask me what ever questions they had. Funny thing is; they surprised me with detailed questions about things I had not noticed or even thought about the past 2 years, even though I know every inch of the building by heart.

Mid-February we had a fieldtrip to the LOCAL buildings where the students measured everything and could let their imagination go. The builders were very surprised to see 20 beautiful young girls walking around and mentioned they wouldn’t mind seeing them come back!

Yesterday April 4^th 2012, 17 groups presented their final proposals for the hostel. We were very excited to see what they had come up with! A lot of effort was put into it, all the miniature rooms, the drawings…

The hostel was divided into 6 areas and we chose a winner for each area. But of course we couldn’t choose! Every team had something we want to use! In the first group, the grand prize winners, Justin, Martin, Lisa and Iris came up with a design for ‘bedstee’ bunkbeds, we love them! And they had great ideas for three areas. The second group came up with a bicycle room; they put their creativity in the details and for sure you will be seeing this @LOCAL! We also loved the really Dutch ideas that came from the ‘Milou’ and ‘Joyce’ teams!

Now we do not want to spoil all interior design results. You will just have to come see for yourself!

We really enjoyed working with them and hope two students will do an internship @LOCAL at the end of the year to actually realize these ideas!

Do you have great ideas yourself? Are you Dutch or have a connection with Haarlem? Feel free to contact us!

Why Local is called Local. Local Hostel Haarlem, The Netherlands.

Seems like an easy question, but in all honesty there are a million other concepts with corresponding names one might think of.

When you go to new places you always run into locations, people, interiors, drinks and foods that you love and inspire you. You want to take them home with you, put it in a ‘glass box’ in your living room to look at, to remember the great times you had. So you can, even if it is just for a second, be brought back to that one moment in time, that happy moment.

That is exactly what I had in mind when I decided to open a hostel. I wanted to make each room a ‘glass box’ with all my favorites I collected from visiting every continent. The idea for ‘Global’ was born; I would have an Asia room, a South-America room etc.

The good thing is; it takes damn long in Holland to start a new hotel is that you have all the time to think, think, rethink, check, double check and why not… triple check! And one beautiful summer day after a boot ride over the Amstel, we were having a Heineken in the sun with some ‘’bitterballen’’ and the best steak in the country. I realized; I don’t want ‘Global’ when I travel, I want ‘Local’. It’s about my hotel guests, not about me showcasing my ‘best of Saskia’s travels’. They too are travelling and looking for ‘glass box’ moments.

We asked ourselves the simple question: ‘Why do we travel’? ‘What experience do we hope to gain’? With the help of some Heineken beers we spent hours thinking about this and this resulted in the ‘Local’ concept.

Local is our ‘glass box’ of Haarlem and The Netherlands. Everybody that works with us has a story and is from the area. Even all the products you will find are local, from the paint to the door keys, from the cleaner to the furniture. All done by locals, for locals and the rest of the world. We have tried to collect interior design, food and drinks that we find worth sharing.

We hope you will love your experience at our Hostel in Haarlem and that your stay with us will inspire you in some way!

Opening February 2013, Local is a Boutique City Hostel in Haarlem, The Netherlands. But what’s in a name; hotel, guesthouse, bed and breakfast or hostel – Local is just a great place to stay!

The start of Local Hostels in Haarlem, The Netherlands

Years ago I wrote my Master Thesis on internationalization, at that time a huge trend. Now with internet and social media learning about what is happening on the other side of the globe is easy…just a couple mouse clicks away… but still that’s not the same as actually ‘being’ in a new place; smelling, eating, seeing and experiencing all you read about beforehand.

SOME BACKGROUND INFORMATION

I grew up living in Amsterdam (The Netherlands), London (England) and Nashville, TN (USA), and because my parents always thought we would only live somewhere for 5 years they did their best to have me and my brother see as much as possible in those countries and everything in a 1000 km radius. During university I got to spend time in Australia, Asia and South America. That is about the time my travel bug really starting going! And about then I decided I wanted to visit every country in the world before I die.

After university my job took me to Africa, Eastern Europe and the Middle East. I was doing well on my ‘obtaining as much stamps as possible’ list. I got to live in hotels and I can tell you; I have stayed in all kinds of places. From dodgy hostel rooms without windows in the tropics, to a mud hut sleeping on hay in the middle of national parks, to the most picture perfect honeymoon getaways overlooking the ocean.

But as you might have experienced as well; love and growing up does strange things to a person. For me this resulted in 1) wanting to stay close to my loved ones and 2) wanting to have corporate career. But the seed that was planted in me years ago just wants to grow; that seed being the need to explore, gather new experiences, meet great people and find inspiration in the small things around me. That seed resulted in alot of travelling. For those who have travelled alot know that you can actually get tired of travelling, even if you are in one of the most beautifull places on earth.

Two years ago I made one of the most (that’s how it felt at the time) difficult decisions of my life; quiting my great paying job in the middle of a financial crisis. Why? To let my seed grow. And this time I am not going to let the wind blow me to what ever place on this planet, but to start a business that enables all the things I love without having to travel all the time.

After 3 years of finding my way through the maze of bureaucracy I can finally say: I am a Hostel business owner.

January 2013 I will be opening the doors of a Boutique City Hostel in Haarlem, The Netherlands. The hostel will be able to host 50 guests and I hope to welcome as many ‘stamps’ as possible!

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