Wade Dibbert, a military veteran, talks about his speciality tea Shop, Angelina’s Teas, located in Winston-Salem, N.C. With a selection of both organic and conventional teas numbering over 500, his company is truly unique in his community. He talks about a number of issues germane to entrepreneurship and small business development.
by Prince John Gaither-Eli
How did you become an entrepreneur?
I became an entrepreneur because I could not find a job. When thinking of what type of business to start, I did research on what was already in the local market. After I did about a year of research, I found out that tea was the business for me.
Getting started was fun because I got to meet people. I found out that advertising & marketing was much more difficult than I thought. I almost advertised myself out of business my first year. My background is in baking as I ran the backing department of a company in the Midwest when I lived there.
How long have you been in business and what “gems of knowledge” have you gained?
I’ve been in business six years. If you are going to start a business, model it after the successful businesses in your area. One thing I did not do was accurately estimate the ongoing costs of simply operating a retail business. You have to target the introduction of your business as well as advertising & marketing to the local population. The people in Winston-Salem look for away to get out of town which hurts a business like mine. Winston-Salem is a really “big, small town”.
Did you do a business plan before you got started?
No, I did not. This is one way I underestimated the recurring expense of operating my business. Insurance, advertising, electricity…all these things were costs I underestimated or did not consider. Things like accountants, I didn’t think of.
How does the retail aspect of your business change your operating dynamics versus your online part?
My business is recession-sensitive as people see what I sell as not necessary. The online part of my business is mainly for educational purposes now versus sales as before. In the past, international customers were a “decent” part of my business. Due to increased shipping costs, I’ve lost my customers in Europe, Australia, Brazil, and China.
What were some of the challenges you faced in starting your business?
Trying to get a coffee drinking population to also add tea to their diet but eventually switch to tea. Unlike tea, coffee kickstarts people while tea is more sustainable as an energy giver. The polyphenols in tea help relax the body.
Is coffee the most consumed beverage in the world?
Coffee is not the most consumed beverage in the world. For one, water is consumed the most, then tea, and then coffee. More people consume tea than coffee. Now, coffee may be consumed more than tea but we want to make a distinction between the amount consumed and the number of people consuming tea or coffee.
How has government helped your small business?
They haven’t. Winston-Salem only provides monies for downtown businesses. State money is mainly focused on women or minority businesses. The federal government hasn’t done anything to assist small businesses in the last five years.
Are you apart of the local “chamber of commerce”?
No. As the only employee, I don’t see the efficacy. If I had the time to make it to the meetings, it is a great tool to network and get your name out there. If you are going to start a small business, you should be apart of the local chamber of commerce.
What advice would you give people considering going into business for themselves?
Make sure you have money in the bank to survive while your business is growing. You must have money to invest into the business for it to be a positive long-term business. The number one reason why small businesses fail is the lack of reserve capital to operate as the company strives to grow.
What do you see as the future for American small businesses with a presidential election on the horizon?
Large corporations are trying to take out the small businesses in this country. These corporations have incredible lobbying forces that influence government to do what is contrary to the public good. I think Obama has an easy win because no intelligent person would want the problems this country has. Our problems are not just national they are global. The world is 350% in debt to World GDP. The lenders are borrowing to lend. There is going to be a global meltdown to the economy unless we find a miracle cure.
Does entrepreneurship offer a way to solve our governmental, economic, and social problems?
It’s not too late. The families that got rich got so by passing their busineses onto their children. This is wealth creation and transfer. If we have an economic meltdown, these big businesses will fail and small businesses will return. People keep looking to the government for solutions when the problem is how we’ve been programmed to spend our money.
What business networks are you apart?
Competition undermines the collaborative, cooperative, and coordinated synergy between businesses. We don’t build communities, person or business. It’s strange, it’s been my experience that businesses work together but I haven’t found that so far here. I’d like to partner with other small businesses to better meet the needs and wants of customers and increase sales in the process.
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