From Scratch to Sold: Voices of Leadership | Leadership Stories | Women Leadership | Female Founders
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Join us for an inspiring conversation with Dana Shortt, the visionary entrepreneur who built a beloved business from the ground up, transforming it into a true community staple.
Dana shares the remarkable story of her journey, from her humble beginnings in catering to the emotional and strategic process of successfully exiting her business. This episode is packed with valuable lessons for anyone navigating the world of entrepreneurship, ownership transition, and planning an exit strategy.
Join us every other week for leadership stories from female founders, trailblazers in women leadership and entrepreneurs sharing their success stories.
Here's what you'll learn in this episode:
- The Genesis of a Business: Discover how Dana started her catering business with just IKEA bags and the subway, eventually evolving it into a thriving retail store. Learn about the crucial role of mentorship from family and professionals in shaping her path.
- Building a Brand with Purpose: Dana emphasizes the importance of quality food and a clear pricing strategy in attracting and retaining loyal customers. She'll share how she overcame early skepticism about her age and stuck to her convictions to build a business known for excellence.
- The Full-Time Job of Selling a Business: Dana pulls back the curtain on the often-overlooked realities of selling a business. She shares how the business sale process felt like "another full-time job" and the critical need to maintain business operations as if you weren't selling.
- Navigating the Emotional Journey: Selling a business you've poured your heart into – what Dana affectionately calls her "third baby" – is an incredibly emotional experience. Hear how she navigated these feelings and ensured a positive transition for everyone involved, preserving the legacy she built.
- Key Advice for Entrepreneurs: Dana offers invaluable insights for anyone considering their own exit strategy. From understanding your business's true value to the power of "If you don't ask, you don't get," her advice is practical and empowering.
Beyond the Business: Explore Dana's exciting new creative pursuits and future aspirations. She shares how her journey has highlighted the importance of family time and the freedom to explore new passions, reminding us all to "test our passions before committing to them."
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Speaker 0
I started, and then, like, after that first day, I'm like, I love this. And I did a couple months, and I'm like, I absolutely love this. I I I was just so passionate about learning. As I I cooked and baked a lot, but I mean, I look back, and I didn't know that much before chef school. I was just so happy to be in there ten, eleven hours a day. I think the the older chefs could see, and they were showing me more and more because I was, like, just soaking up any little ounce of information I could. Speaker 1
Welcome to Voices of Leadership, my podcast that tells the stories of women who are redefining success and thriving on the edge of change. Dana Short didn't set out to build a local institution. She was simply doing what she loved, cooking, creating, and connecting. Today, Dana shares her remarkable journey from her humble beginnings in catering, literally lugging IKEA bags on the subway, to the strategic and often emotional process of successfully exiting the business. We're not just talking about how to build something. We're exploring what it means to let go, to exit, intentionally and with grace, the very thing you poured your heart and soul into. Dana's story is a master class in entrepreneurship, offering invaluable lessons on how to build a business, grow a business, be a community staple, and the complexities of ownership transition and crafting an effective exit strategy. Beyond the business, Dana will share her insights on the power of mentorship, the importance of knowing your worth, and why asking for what you want is absolutely crucial. Plus, we'll get a glimpse into her exciting new creative pursuits and aspirations for the future. So how are you? We've been waiting to do this for so long. I'm so glad it finally worked out. Speaker 0
Me too, Amy. Thank you. I'm great. Speaker 1
Good. I mean, I guess I can officially say the former owner of Dana Short. Right? Speaker 0
Yeah. You can totally say that. It It's still strange. Speaker 1
How weird is that? Speaker 0
It is a little weird. Right? Because it's my name, and, it's what I've done my whole life. But it's good because the new owners are awesome, and the staff love them, and the store looks fabulous, and they're great with customers. So but it is like, I went to get my hair done at Control, which is in the same plaza. Speaker 1
Yeah. Speaker 0
Yeah. And it would that was the weirdest moment I've had so far since selling was when I went, parked my truck, which I wouldn't normally wouldn't park it even in right? I'm very particular about the parking spots because they are for the clientele and but which I was, right, at the hair salon. So I was walking towards the hair salon, and I see the sign, see my name. I actually saw my son because he works there. He was I was like, John, but he couldn't hear me. So I'm like, well, went in to get my hair done and didn't go into the store, and that's gotta be the first time for sure in over twenty years where I was in that parking lot and I didn't go in. That was kinda surreal. I made it feel really real. Like, oh, I'm here, and I'm not parking my car and going in even for two minutes to check on something. Speaker 1
Right. Well, yeah, it must have been very strange. I can imagine. I mean, so you, you started Dana Short twenty years ago. Right? Because I saw all the twentieth anniversary things in KW, which anybody who lives here, it's a staple that we all love. And so just tell me a little bit about why you decided to start it and how you moved initially out of sort of catering into actual storefront? Because those are two very different things, I think. Speaker 0
Well, they really are. So I actually started working for myself about twenty five years ago. I was in Toronto. I was at George Brown College for culinary. I finished at Guelph for hotel and food administration. And I started, catering on the bus and subway with those big blue giant IKEA bags. So people who think you can you know, it's impossible, to not to cater without a car, like, I've done it. And, Wow. Speaker 1
Yeah. That's amazing. Speaker 0
I don't miss those days. Oh my goodness. Thank thank goodness. I was like, you know, early twenties. Speaker 1
Yep. You can do anything in your twenties. Right? Speaker 0
Right? Oh my gosh. Totally. So long story short, I knew I wanted to move back to Waterloo. That's where I'm from, born and raised. So moved back, and my original goal was to be, a private chef. That led to people asking me, oh, would you be able to cater the shower for my niece for twenty people? And that led to bigger events. Would you be able to cater, you know, hors d'oeuvres for forty on the on the deck and, you know, by the pool and having absolutely no money? I said yes. So that led that led to catering. I rented a kitchen. So when you were a private chef, you're allowed to cook in people's homes. But, when I was catering, I had to rent this kitchen on on Margaret Ave, Bright Up Kitchen. If you know the Bright Up Community Center. Speaker 1
I didn't know there was a kitchen in there. That's funny. Speaker 0
Oh my gosh. Yes. Second story, very small. But I I had I finally had my first car, so that was a little bit easier. But I'm running around to Zehr's and the grocery stores and wheeling things up on this, up the elevator. Oh my gosh. My stand mixers, all my equipment, renting that kitchen, which then ultimately led to me, realizing I need to have an actual store where, you know, supplies can be dropped off and I'm not running around and up and down elevators and that sort of thing. But people then started asking me, would you just be able to do a really delicious soup and dessert for twenty people, or could you just do a great salad and an appetizer for ten? And that's what led to then me having the storefront, which then I could do these sorts of, pre ordered as well as people just, oh, they're gonna come in and pick up one liter of soup for that, you know, dinner with a baguette and some salad that night. So it kind of really evolved quite naturally, actually. And then when my oldest son was born, he's now seventeen last week, I stopped the full service catering. So no more of the catering with the bartenders and servers. And, and then when my second son was born, he just turned thirteen, I stopped the pickup catering as well. And I was able to focus on then the retail store. And then, of course, for years and years and probably to this day, people still say, oh, Dana short catered it. Because we do have so many options for appetizers and soups and entrees and brownies and you name it. And a lot of people, if they're picking up, you know, maybe they're getting too large size, so that's feeding, you know, eight to ten. They're grabbing some oils and oils and vinegars for salad. They're picking up, you know, scones for brunch, whatever it may be. We're not there beside them baking the scones or serving the mimosa or whatnot. But if the food is all entirely from the store, which a lot of our you know, a lot of the customers do, then in their mind, it's catered by Danish or Gourmet. So just a different just a different way of catering, but there is a need for that too as opposed to, of course, weddings and things. You're gonna wanna have that full service experience. Speaker 1
No. There really is a need for it to to run-in and get something you know is really good, and all the food is good. My kids love the chocolate covered pretzels I have. Speaker 0
Yeah. Who doesn't love those? Speaker 1
I know. They're the best. Right? So along the way, along this twenty five year journey, who are some of your biggest supporters and Speaker 0
mentors? I know. I love that question, when I was just thinking about, you know, some things you may ask. And, really, my biggest mentors were my parents. Dave and Ross, they both had their own business, totally different fields. But I learned a lot through them, a lot about HR. My dad, I remember him telling me that your customers are the easy part. It's the staff that are hard. And I I always had a great team. People sometimes, you know, move on or their you know, maybe their husband gets a job transfer or they go back to school or any number of things. We got this great person, and it's just that was one of the hardest parts was losing good people. And I certainly tried as hard as I could to keep them as long as I could, but that's life. Right? So, yeah, managing customers, keeping them happy, and things like that. I it's I thought it was pretty good advice. And whereas the staff and sometimes you do get a bad apple in the other. I learned very quickly, you know, if it's not something you can easily sort of work on, it's time to part ways respectfully and professionally and because it can kinda impact the rest of the team if you've got someone in there that's not, you know, working as hard or causing drama or whatever it may be. Speaker 1
It can it can change the culture for sure. Speaker 0
Exactly. So my mom and my dad, just different backgrounds, but great advice. So supportive and helpful. And, I mean, early, early days, they'd be in there sometimes at midnight helping me spew a fruit for an event or my dad would be in there. Maybe he'd be sweeping and my I don't mean not obviously. It was my business, but they you know, when I with those long, long nights, sometimes they pop by and help and and all kinds of ways, really emotionally supportive. And then I say my aunt Susan, who is now retired, she worked at Danish Road Gourmet for nine years. She had a big background in in, HR. She ran Princess Margaret Hospital. So, I mean Wow. She was a little overqualified to to to to help, but she was incredible. And I learned so much from her, and she was one of the reasons why in two thousand fifteen, I was nervous as heck, but decided to invest a lot of money into that renovation and rebrand. And we changed all our packaging and branding and opened up walls and opened up the ceiling tiles to the deck, and it just became more of a that quality of food that the experience inside matched the food. Speaker 1
It's a destination. It was a destination then after the reno, I think. Speaker 0
Yeah. Yeah. So that was since that's a she was a huge part of that. And, you know, when I was like, oh my god. Speaker 1
I guess we need more money. Speaker 0
You know, you gotta spend money to make money and all all those all those Speaker 1
You gotta start somewhere. Right? Yeah. Yeah. Well, it was good advice because it turned out beautifully. And I I think having mentors is so important. And having mentors that are your family, that's very lucky. Not everyone has that, so I think that's nice. Speaker 0
I'm so lucky. Oh, and Doug Jones, my dent my former dentist. He's retired now, but, oh, man. He was awesome. I was in a goal group with him, like, twenty years ago, maybe eighteen years ago. He was he's a really big thinker and really smart man and really kind person. So early days, and then, of course, my accountants and my my, most recent accountant, you know, and yeah. Through the sale process, Brian Fisher, he's he's been a mentor financially because, oh my gosh, I I can read a recipe and, you know, quadruple it, but some of those, equations and those accounting principles, I need, someone to hold my hand through. Speaker 1
Yes. I think it's it's an expertise, and we all need some help along the way. For sure we do. On the on the flip side, did any did anyone ever tell you that you couldn't do it? And how did you respond? Speaker 0
Sort of. Yeah. I was thinking about this one. So one of my dad's friends who's in actually a very similar business, but much bigger scale, really nice person, really successful guy in family business in the food space, He had years and years ago, actually, I actually was renting his apartment above a Becker store, in Toronto when I was in chef school. And I I told him, I'm going to chef school. He's like, oh my god. Don't do it. Don't do it. Don't do it. Like, he was he was quite nice about it, but I understand now what he what he was trying to say. And he and he wasn't you know? But, I mean, I I did kinda what do they say? Take the wind out of my sails a little bit, but it you know, he sees how hard these chefs work. He probably has fifty chefs working for him or thirty, I mean, a ton of them. And it is in a traditional sense, it can be very outgrind. Right? If you're in a traditional setting where you're working twelve hour days regularly, you're you're there late at night, all of those things. So his advice was keep that as a hobby. Right? Do something else. But I anyway, I listened and then walked away and thought, no. I'm I'm going to jazz school. Right? But but, like, when I get it now even more, he wasn't wasn't really mean about it. But and then I had people for sure because I was so young when I started. I looked really young. I looked about sixteen, seventeen. People people thought I was a teenage mom when John was born because, you know, you have a fuller face. My freckles are more pronounced. Like, I just always you know, people were like, well, well, where's Dana? I'm like, oh, I'm Dana. No. Like, Dana on the sign. That's me. So junior. Right? So a few times people then, I think, sort of thought, I don't know if she's gonna be able Speaker 1
to do it. I'm just gonna be Speaker 0
able to pull it off. And I had one person I went one of the first times I went to someone's house to, quote for a catering event. And I look back, and I'm like, I I really do think my prices were always fair for the quality and the tension and the detail and, you know, that whole price surface triangle. She was quite stern with me. She was quite a bit older than me, and she said, your prices are really out of line, and I don't think you're gonna be successful. She was pretty harsh. I did not obviously get that that catering gig. I did not lower my prices, and it all worked out. But that was something that was sort of hard, but I don't begrudge it. But it was I think she thought she was helping, but I knew because I did my costing. So I had some people saying your, you know, your prices are too high, and I'm thinking, well, I wanna deliver that delicious amazing sandwich. And it's so it's gonna be fifteen dollars, not nine for this package. And I had a lot of people eventually come back and say, you know what? I've like, use someone else. It is was less expensive. It wasn't as good or was smaller portions. And so I I'm really glad I always sort of stuck to my guns up because I because I did my costing. Numbers don't lie. I knew what I had to charge, and I knew I wanted to be around in five years, ten years, twenty years. Speaker 1
Well, good for you for pushing through all of that. It can be hard sometimes, and you're not wrong. The numbers don't lie. And, also, you're you were catering, pun intended, to a certain market. Right? You you weren't trying to cater for everybody. You were trying to cater for the people you were going after in your sort of segment, I guess. Speaker 0
Right. And I I really wanted whatever we did. I wanted it to be, yes, they maybe spent a little more because of the quality and the amount of meat in a dish or, you know, the service involved customization, but I want it to be, like, the most delicious brownie they tried. I want it to be that I wanted people to say, where is it? Who catered this? And, yes, it might be a little more because it has to be a little more so that everybody here can win. Right? Speaker 1
Yes. Speaker 0
You know, this was in a charity. That worked, I think, for me. And that's not for everybody, but for people who value the quality and are willing to spend a little bit more, they they understand this. Especially when you try it, you're not like, oh, it's not just a price tag for nothing. You know? It's it's you're paying a little more because you are getting that quality. Speaker 1
Okay. So let's come all the way to recent years because I think talking to I don't get to talk to a lot of people who have had an exit, a successful exit. An exit they can talk about, all of the things. And I think that talking about how someone sells and exits their business is very valuable, and there's always a lot of wisdom in everybody's story because it's a challenging process, and there's a hundred and five ways to do it. How did the conversation about exiting the business begin? Speaker 0
So my, the benefits specialist, Dana Short Gourmet, so, I met he's really interesting guy. I love talking to him. He's just I just love his perspective on things. He said to me, you gotta meet Simon Fallows. He's the, CEO of Freedom for Founders. He does some really great, business insights, kinda like the health of your the med can for your business. You know? That's what I like to think of it as. Like, let's do a check-in. Do you wanna meet with him? Met with Simon. I liked him right away. He's passionate about life, super positive guy. And, essentially, it was this program we did together for six weeks called discovery. And we went week by week. No homework. I was like, is there homework? I don't want homework. No homework. We met for an hour at his office, and we went through a series of questions. It's a software, program called mouse, I believe, and went through a series of questions that led to, results on eight different metrics in terms of how, owner dependent is your business. Is your business dependent on, you know, several like, just a few really big customers, which which mine was it? But some businesses, that's that's kind of a weakness. That can be a little, you know, scary if you lose that huge customer. Went through a number of things and spit out results in a report, and also it gave you a certified business valuation. And then depending on your scores and what your goals were, there was recommendations for what you could do to make your business worth even more, you know, less vulnerable, all sorts of things. And that when I got that report, I realized, you know what? I've taken it as far as I want to. I was staying there for a while as I can, and I'm like, no. Actually, that's not true. It's I've taken it as far as I want to because I I've had many offer I had many, many offers to go into various locations and open second, third stores and just for myself with my own, you know, commitment to my family and what I I loved this with the store. I was very passionate about the store and working hard, but I also am very passionate about being, you know, a really great mom. And, you know, like, John just messaged me, mom, can you get me a three fifty, not four o'clock? And even when I had the store, it was, you know, struggling. But my my family yeah. And working out. I love spin class, and I I just I wanted to fit those things in. And I saw a lot of people when they expanded rapidly or quickly. It's just really hard, right, as we all know, to get everything done in a day. Speaker 1
Well, that's interesting. I I like how you make the distinction between what you can do and what you want to do because I think that's important when we get to this stage of our lives too is what do we wanna do for the next act, be it the second or third act, and how hard what kind of work do we wanna be doing? And and so for you to make that distinction, I think, is really important because I think you probably could have scaled, and you could have opened lots of places. But did is that what you want with your life? And it and it wasn't what your values were right now, and I think that's important to know. Speaker 0
I didn't have to sell. So that was a really good thing. That was power. And that if I did take it to market, which we did and went to brokerage, if I wasn't finding that I, you know, if I didn't get the number that I wanted or that I thought the business was worth, then I wouldn't help. Right? Or if but there wasn't you know, Simon talks about a lot of times owners are forced to sell pretty quickly because of they they think there's the five d's, divorce, dispute, disease. There's there's several of them, and that wasn't the case. So I did feel a lot of freedom there and that I could, you know, obviously quietly take this to brokerage, see what might be out there. I was open to if if there was an offer that people wanted me to stay on in a smaller capacity, but I did have an offer like that as well. Ultimately, I sold to my Contania, and and I am helping them. I'm consulting with them. But, it was something where I thought, you know, I I'm open to seeing this, and I'm I'm kinda open to I'm forty seven. I'm like, oh, what am I? I'm forty seven, and I'm happy to keep consulting with them, but I'm excited to try something new within a completely different space. So, it was just I think it was the right time for me. But it wouldn't have been in the world either if went to brokerage and it was you know, if I didn't get if it didn't work with the right fit with people and things like that, then that would have been that would have been fine too. And I think that was really great that there wasn't some, you know, one of those five d's where I think that Right. Make make it very difficult if someone's in a position where they don't want to when they have to. Speaker 1
And and it's interesting that you, you got to, I guess, pick the buyer. So I guess you knew that in your best guess, the business would be in good hands. Right? Speaker 0
Exact which is so important because it really is my, like, third baby. I mean Yes. Speaker 1
It is. Speaker 0
I have put so much time and years and years and years and blood, sweat, and tears. I know it's such a cliche, but it's true. Ups and downs and highs and lows and everything in between. And I found early days, the highs were really high, like winning an award or whatnot. The lows are really low when a, you know, a freezer break free freezers break down in two weeks and, like, a thousand or two thousand dollars in those years were, like, devastating. Speaker 1
What was the hardest part about the sale process? Speaker 0
Oh my gosh. So selling a business is another job. I did not realize that. But then I thought about it. You know? Like, of course, it is. I mean, there was hundreds of documents in the data room. There was so much information I couldn't believe, but makes sense. Right? If they wanna see every single thing they can, due diligence whatnot. Thank goodness I have the most amazing bookkeeper who's been with me since before I even had the store. Deb said to me one, honey, good thing I love you so much or I'd quit. So it's just a lot of back and forth. A lot of, it was all positive and whatnot. And then I guess, yes, there were there were, I believe there were four offers in total or five. Oh, wow. Yeah. Which is great. It's just, with that, there was a lot obviously, a lot of store tours that happened in the evenings behind the scenes. And then there were some people that I thought, oh, I did you know, I think it might be them and and, you know, things change and, like, that's that's I'm sure just all part of the process, but that kind of, you know, ups and downs a little bit. And and, I mean, overall, it was very positive experience, but it was a lot of work. I didn't think it would be no work, but I didn't I never I'd never been through it. So I I didn't realize how many I mean, sometimes there were twenty, thirty emails a day, and I'm also running the business and was, through our busiest fall and Christmas period, and good thing I can do things quickly. Speaker 1
Well, you have to run two lanes when you're doing it because you think you're selling it, but you're not sure. So you still have to run it like you're not selling it because it could fall through. Speaker 0
Oh, that's so true. Oh, yeah. And all my ordering. Yeah. You're right. I order in January, February for Christmas. Speaker 1
Which totally get I I can't get over that. That's so weird to me, but I understand why. Speaker 0
Sometimes I lose December ordering for the next December because your suppliers are gonna give you incentives. And, but I that was a good thing. You know what? I because, again, there was not this pressure or this distress, I ordered everything and did everything as if I was gonna continue having it for ten years. And I don't and I wanted to do that because you don't you're right. You don't know. And, also, I wanted whoever did if if I did sell, I wanted whoever was a couple, a single person, whoever to have an amazing season. And I do my absolute best in the sense that I was ordering as if it was gonna be me making those profits. Speaker 1
Right. And then and that's such a great way to leave it too. I mean, it's part of it. You have to have a good exit, and that's part of a good exit, I think, too. Well, I Speaker 0
think what you said to some people, if there is that distress situation, if it's a health issue or something, they may not be able to run it like that. They might be in bed or who knows? So, that was you know, I'm I'm very glad for for many reasons that it it wasn't I wasn't in that position. Speaker 1
And how long did it take? So from the first sort of, I guess, offers coming in, are you finishing that report to the final hand off? Because I know you did some work, and then you finally were out. And I don't it was, like, six months ago. I'm maybe not that long. But, anyway, how long did it how long did that entire process take? Speaker 0
So I met with Simon early May of twenty twenty three. That's when I did that discovery, and that was a couple months. And then I decided I wanted to take it to brokerage and see, you know, see kinda get a sense of what what, you know, what's out there because ultimately, is your business sellable or not as if someone's willing to buy it. Right? And then the closing date was a year and a little bit later. So the closing date was August thirty first. We made the decision, to we didn't have a big, oh my gosh. The business is sold. And because it's my name, it's been over twenty years, I was staying on. I still am helping them consulting and, you know, helping with the newsletter and creative aspects. So it just kinda made more sense for a whole bunch of reasons too. That they were Tanya and Mike were in the store. They were at the anniversary event. They, you know, made an investment into the business. If people ask who are they, oh, you you know, here's my continue. Either involved now in the business, but it wasn't sort of a you know, like, sometimes it's like owner retiring or, you know, it it wasn't that sort of thing. Speaker 1
Well, there's a hard cutoff date sometimes. And then to have a slow transition like that, I think, is probably better for you and probably better for them. Speaker 0
Yeah. And and for customers and staff because we wanted people to know that, you know, there's no need to panic here. These it's gonna be even better. Right? They've made some beautiful changes to the interior of the store. They've got some great new product lines. This is kind of, you know, DSG two point o. Like, what's next? Right? Growth and, there was no reason reason to think that the recipes weren't changing. The staff weren't changing. It was that they liked how the business was run. They really liked the staff. They liked the products. Just wanting to kinda put their own spin on it over time. Speaker 1
So here's the question. Did they buy the recipes? Like, are they proprietary and then you can't do anything with them? How did that work? Speaker 0
Yes. They bought their recipes. Speaker 1
That's cool. Speaker 0
I never I never gave out recipes anyway because I I did give out recipes if something was off the menu, off the food truck menu because that really is like a you know, it's it's unique to the business, but they did. They bought the recipes. So, those are now their recipes. Right? I developed them. I created them. But that's that's that's fine with me. Right? Because people love those recipes. They go in for the cheese sorts and the scones and the shortbread and whatnot. And if I ever wanna do some more recipe development in time for just my own creative, you know, pursuits and family recipes, I'm helping my son, John, bring how to cook. I mean, cooking is infinite. Right? You know, you never stop learning. So, yes, they bought the name. They bought the recipes. Speaker 1
And what did it feel like the day the sale was finalized? Not the day that, you know, you knew it was done, sort of, I guess, the day you didn't have majority ownership anymore. Well, it was a Speaker 0
whirlwind, Amy, because the day it actually signed, I was it was in the middle of inventory. So I was I was in the basement helping and directing and oh my gosh. There's so much to count. We do it over four days, and even then that's a bit of a stretch. And then I get this panicked call from my lawyer saying, what's going on? You have to sign this. And then I I'm like, oh my god. I kept looking, but not I I think I was down there for an hour. And so that was just a whirlwind. And then we like, I took a couple days. I was really tired because inventory was and, again, I I I always wanted this to go well, but I I think I logged thirty seven hours in in three days, because I I I we triple counted everything. I wanted it to be perfect. So when they took over, everything was as it should be and as I, you know, said it would be. So then the I took a couple days, and and then it was right into training and Thanksgiving and Christmas. So I really didn't have I really didn't even think about it. Like, I knew it had happened, and I, of course, now who Tanya and Mike are in the office, and we made this announcement to the staff that they're part of, you know, Dana Short, and they're, you know, gonna be excited for great things to come. But, like, it I don't know if that makes sense. And I guess I had time over the last the year or two, but it was again, I think I was ready. I was excited. This was a happy thing. This wasn't a distress thing. So I didn't really have any moments of like, I definitely have never had any moments of, oh my gosh. What have I done or anything like that? But, I mean, going like I said, going to get my hair done and being like, oh, I'm in the plaza, and I'm not popping in to just say, hi, Anne. Hi. Like, even sometimes I would just just pop in to say hello if I'm dropping John off and I'm going to the gym or something. And so I'm I'm sure every owner or former owner has a different story on that, but my companion, I get along so well too. And, it was all very, very positive and no, no specific moment that I can share with you where it was like a or a Yeah. No. And not everyone you're right. It's not everyone has Speaker 1
it, and it's always so and this is also why I wanted to talk about it because people need to hear about positive exits, and people need to hear that it's possible, and then it doesn't always have to be, a negative situation. It can be a positive if you're ready in the right situation. And on your part too, if you did your part to exit well, then then you feel better as well when that happens. Speaker 0
Yeah. I I mean, I heard through some people, like the broker and different people, that sometimes when people make the decision to sell, they just check out. Mhmm. And And then and then the new owner comes on six months later, and they can see it. This isn't done. That's not done. Well, I never got to that stage. I never got to the stage of burnout. I never got to a stage where I was like, not that I think I would have been like, oh, I, you know, just get rid of this as fast as possible. But, you know, some some businesses, you know, it could be someone's not in great health or they're quite a bit older than me. Not that I'm I'm not twenty five anymore. Yeah. Speaker 1
Or it's their personality. They're just like, I'm out. I'm done. You were you're much more thought you're much more thoughtful about it. And I think that's the lesson is if you do exit thoughtfully, whether you're selling a business, leaving a job, whatever it is, it's it's always beneficial to you. Speaker 0
Yeah. And I really, for a million reasons, want Danish short gourmet to live on for a long time. I don't I don't often look back very often or sort of give too much thought to how I did really create this from bright up kitchen or the subway, but we really are a part of a lot of people in the community. Like, they're special, you know, whether it be Christmas morning scones or every Friday night, they have a, you know, DSG entree or some people are in there every day or two. Speaker 1
Teachers gifts. That's why I always Speaker 0
got it. Teachers gifts. Yes. Yes. Yes. With your amazing pink purse and red purse. I always see that in the in the in the cart. Speaker 1
That's right. Speaker 0
But yeah. So it's that's pretty cool. Like, that when I think about and just certain stories I've heard over the years. Like, this one lady said, I don't know if you know this, which I would have no idea. Her husband has dementia. He was young too, like, early fifties. It's just like because of your meals, I was able to keep him home for another couple years. Speaker 1
That's nice. Speaker 0
Yeah. So I like that. Stories like one lady said, I lost a hundred pounds because your meals are single like, it's like they're they're they're portioned out for her. I mean, some of the food, like, the mac and she three cheese is I wouldn't call it diet diet food. But if you're having that with a salad and and and if you're you're she was buying only single servings. I love when I would hear those stories of how we impacted people in in little ways, big ways, all kinds of ways that feels good. Speaker 1
And so what advice would you have for entrepreneurs thinking about an exit strategy? Speaker 0
Okay. So it's your biggest asset for most people, not all, but most business owners is their biggest asset, and they I would say, you know, doesn't have to be through Simon necessarily, but take the time to just get that kind of met that that evaluation done. And because I think from what I've experienced, an accountant, sometimes depending on your business, may have a different valuation than a than a a business evaluator who's doing that for a living, who is a broker. You wanna, of course, find the right fit. But I think sometimes it's like when you're running a small business, especially early days, it can be, oh, I'll do that next month, next year, you know, in time. So with your biggest asset, just to have a sense of every now and then even having a sense of not just what it may be worth and what you need to do if you have a number in mind that is your retirement plan. Knowing that number knowing and then knowing what you have to do to get to that number or knowing where your weak spots may be. So if you're a food manufacturer, for instance, and you, you know, let's just say you're selling to Costco and they're eighty percent of your sales, if Costco drops you, you're in big trouble. Or maybe instead of two, you wanna have four or five. So if one or two drops you, you're still okay. So that would be my advice would be even if you're not thinking of exiting, if you're no matter what age, you're like, no. No. I got ten, fifteen more year good years than me. That's great. But it's like anything. Have just know some information. Have a bit of a backup just in case the worst happens. If you have a sense of this or then you can work towards that goal. Because you may a lot of people I learned this through Simon when I've been helping him with different events in this fast track to freedom event we just did. He was chatting with a group of, say, sixty people, and he said a lot of people that he sees I wouldn't have seen this, but they go in, they think, oh, my business is worth a million dollars. Let's just say easy math. And they do these metrics, and and they look at the numbers. It's not just pie in the sky. They see what their sales all are are and, you know, what their expenses and everything else, and they go, oh, actually, we think it's we think it's worth more like four hundred and eight thousand or whatever it is. And then if you don't have that knowledge, you don't wanna learn that when you're thinking, oh, I'm I wanna be retired in two years. And it takes it takes a while too. Depending on your business, it could take a while to sell. It may be very specialized. It may be in a rural location that not a lot of people wanna live in that area. So knowledge is power. Speaker 1
That's very true. That's very good advice. So I wanna hear what you're doing now, but first, I'd like to know. I've heard you say if you don't ask, you don't get. What does that mean to you, and why is it part of your philosophy? Speaker 0
Well, yeah, that's a good question. I I say that because way back at George Brown, my my chef instructor, John Higgins, amazing man, who I just saw at Conso College, Dan from Red House, our former Red House, was putting on an event. The Italian Trade Commissioner was there. It was really, it was really cool. So I saw him after, like, it's been at least twenty years. And I went to him years and years ago, and I said, when I was in chef school, and I said, chef, do you think my academic advisor would let me apprentice for myself? Because normally you'd go apprentice in a restaurant. You'd be juicing lemons for eight hours or whatnot. Nothing against that, but I knew I wanted to then start this private chef business. So I asked them, do you think they would let me apprentice for myself? He goes, well, if you don't ask, you don't get. So I went to my adviser. She had never heard of this before, but I then explained my plan. I wanted to finally lease a car. I wanted to write menus. I wanted to, develop meal plans, put a business plan in place for this ten entree service as I called it. And she said, as long as you send me what you're doing every week and keep me up to date and what you're learning and what you're spending your time on, which I did, she said, okay. But it's kinda cool because she'd never heard that. So if you don't ask, you don't get, which was which was chef Higgins. Because if he said, I don't think so, that sounds like a crazy idea. But he trusted in me. He knew that I was responsible student and that I would wouldn't just be an excuse to then sit around at home and watch Young and the Restless, like High School Days. Speaker 1
Right? Yes. Speaker 0
So it was that. And then that that led to asking for discounts, asking for testimonials. Right? Like, when I was starting out, someone had a good experience, I would ask everyone, would you mind writing a testimonial? Sometimes they'd be really long. Sometimes they'd be really short. But putting that on the website, I I really honestly I I really didn't. I I had one job before working for myself, which was I was a receptionist in a tech company, which is hilarious because I am the least technical person to this day, but my brother worked there. And long story short, they met me and said, she's really outgoing. Do you mind if we interview her for the front desk position? So I didn't I learned so much as I went. And I just learned to say, well, maybe if I ask for better terms, maybe if I say if I order in advance, well, like, can I get five percent off? So I'd ask for a lot within reason, and most times people wanna help. I didn't hear a lot of no's, or I'd ask for, hey. We we we love doing your Christmas baskets last year. You know, big corporate orders for a hundred baskets. We'd love to help you again. Would you have any interest? Absolutely. Thank you for calling. You've been on my list to get in touch with. Stuff like that. Speaker 1
Wow. That's amazing. It's a good philosophy to live by. It can really help with your success. Speaker 0
Yeah. Totally. You know? And sometimes if they can't say yes, they might say, well, here's what I recommend or try this place or most people, I believe, are good and wanna help and wanna see you see you do well. Speaker 1
And it opens doors. Speaker 0
Yeah. Absolutely. Speaker 1
So now today, how are you being creative these days? Speaker 0
Well, yeah, I am being very creative because that's just in me, and I have to be. I'm learning a lot about edible flowers. Oh, interesting. Yes. And gardening. I've always wanted to have time for some gardening and learning about flower I I love flowers. You can't see because it's dark in here right now, but I have flowers all over the house. I always have. I like to make my own arrangements. I'm taking a course actually. The Harvard School of Flowers, it's called, Florette. She they're based out of Washington. Speaker 1
Wow. Speaker 0
So I'm doing that just for my own pursuit, but I don't know where that'll lead because I really and I still love food. I'm cooking all the time. My kids oh my gosh. I'm you have teenagers. Speaker 1
Yes. Speaker 0
I cannot believe how much Speaker 1
All I do is they eat. That's all. Speaker 0
Yeah. So a little bit of that, but right like, I'm actually, I passed my travel advisor exams. I'm learning about that. Like, I mentioned that to you just to be I'm planning some trips and I might do some food tours, and I'm kinda just taking a little break helping with the new owners and taking a little break, but just diving into new creative pursuits. So right like, I've got a book right beside me called taste buds, and it's all about edible flowers in savory and sweet dishes and foraging. Oh, I did a foraging event in Stratford. That was super fun with anyone's listening who's interested. His name is Peter Blush. He does weekly tours in around the Stratford area. It was amazing. We found wild, ramps, wild leeks. Really? Mushrooms, viola, like little violets that I use for decorating. So doing lots of things. Speaker 1
That sounds so exciting. It's so nice to hear you doing things for yourself. Speaker 0
Yeah. And I and I I'm I'm kinda curious because I am very entrepreneurial. So I'm I'm just I haven't I I really am trying to just enjoy it for the sake of learning, but I just have this, you know, I have that personality where Yeah. I what what's next? Speaker 1
Well, that's my next question. So what's next, and what excites you about this next chapter in your life? Speaker 0
Yeah. Lots of things excite me. So what's next? I'm not exactly sure. I really wanted to have even more time for my kids. Like I mentioned, I always was a a yes mom, you know, for the most part. No. You cannot play video games till two in the morning. But, a lot of my time also in the winter was, mom, you drive us to Chickpea? Back and forth, back and forth, back and forth with other friends. And so a lot of that time was spent there. And it's always that. Like I said to him, I'm taking my son wants to go to Costco this afternoon and pick up a two hundred dollar, he's he's buying it. Some sort of smoothie concoction for fourteen shakes and stuff. So I did wanna have this. He only has a year and a half left. Speaker 1
It's a short time. You need to spend time with the almost more time with the teenagers than the toddlers, I think. Speaker 0
Oh, it's so true. Like, they're so they're so busier in a different way. Mhmm. And they really need you. When they need you, they need you. Right? Speaker 1
Right away. Speaker 0
And then sometimes they so, yeah, sometimes they don't talk to you. And then so he always is they're my both my kids are very sweet, but when they wanna have those, you know, hour long discussions, I, like, grab it. But so my point in saying that, I guess, Amy, is that I don't I'm not looking to go rush out into some sort of hectic, hairy, you know, fast paced career, whether it be starting something new or working for someone else. I'm exploring some options. I'm having fun. I'm creative. I'm doing some work with Simon, the broker. Speaker 1
Oh, good. So That's exciting. Speaker 0
Yeah. He asked me to he it was really cool. And Eric thought I'm doing that. He asked me to to to join in on his team, and I'm doing a little bit of that and and bringing people into his network who are interested, who were like me, who were like, well, maybe I would like to learn a little more. There's nothing pushy, nothing pressurey, but so I am, helping with that. And then as I said, I did this travel advisory. I booked a few trips there for some friends. And the flowers and then taking this course, which starts end of May, I'm doing the consulting for the new owners. Like like, it's a break, but I I'm really like, my brain is working because I'm I'm just learning so much so many new things and taking these courses, and and I will see where all goes. Speaker 1
Well, good for you. I I think that's so fantastic. I mean, it's so nice to see that you've exited and you can pursue your own passions now. And, I mean, I think every entrepreneur wants to get to that point. So, like, what advice would you give someone who wants to pursue their own business idea? Speaker 0
Oh, I would always encourage people to, you know, to if they have a dream to to to work on it. I would say something that someone told me a long time ago. Okay. LCBO magazine, food and drink magazine, it's been around for twenty five years. Speaker 1
We all love it. Speaker 0
Yes. And I and I have my mom, you know, my mom and dad. Like, when I grew up in, you know, Colonial Lakers, I remember my that's when it first started. So I would look through that. Of course, I always loved baking and cooking, but this is before chef school. And then when I was in Toronto at that apartment above Becker's, I had those magazines because they were free, and I was broke. Right? I'm looking through, and I and I called, like, Lucy Waverman, Bonnie Stern, Ted Reader, Jennifer Maclegan, who's an amazing food stylist. Like, everyone called me back. Wow. I know. Isn't that amazing? Speaker 1
That's amazing. Wow. Speaker 0
So Jennifer Maclegan, the food stylist, said to me I was thinking about food styling, and I really do like food styling. But as a profession, she said, are you the type of person that wants to look through four cans of of, kidney beans to find that perfect bean? And I'm like, wow. So when she said that, it's very aesthetic, very detailed. And, anyway, I think it was Ted Reader who's the king of the queue. Like, he's a really big barbecue guy, Canadian barbecue chef. I believe it was him who said to me, you should go work. Go work in a professional kitchen before you commit to going to chef school because baking brownies or cookies or whatever you're passionate about is very different on a on a on a big production scale, as opposed to, you know, baking Christmas cookies with your mom or, you know, brownies on a Tuesday night for your kid's lunchbox or whatever. So I took that advice. I call I looked in the phone book. Right? This is a lot lot longer. Speaker 1
Phone book. Speaker 0
Wow. Pages, and Speaker 1
it and Speaker 0
it was a, like, a catered affair called, hi there. I'm wondering if you're, you know, hiring at all. This was in the fall, so perfect time. Come on down. They they got they're like, they gave me an apron, like, on the spot. Come in. So that was kind of a shock. But like I said, it was January. It might be a bit different story, but I started, and then, like, after that first day, I'm like, I love this. And I did a couple months, and I'm like, I absolutely love this. I I I was just so passionate about learning. As I I cooked and baked a lot, but I mean, I look back and I didn't know that much before chef school. I was just so happy to be in there ten, eleven hours a day. Just I think the the older chefs could see, and they were showing me more and more because I was, like, just soaking up any little ounce of information I could. So that was really good advice, though. So my advice and all that, I'm sorry I take sometimes a long time to answer one simple question, is just make sure that whatever your passion is, is it a hobby? Because maybe I would have done that and said, you know what? I don't really like this. My I don't think I wanna be in an environment that's hot and I'm on my feet all day or whatever it may be. I think I want an office job. So just I would say before you make a big commitment into schooling or setting up a business, can you is there a way you can try it on a smaller scale just to see? I would say if you're really you know, connect yourself right away. I had a great bookkeeper. I knew that that's gonna take me ten hours to do what she could do in an hour. So know your strengths, and if you can't afford it to get some help with the areas you're not as strong or the areas you you really don't enjoy so you have that time and passion and energy to focus on your core product. Speaker 1
Well, that's great advice. I think, new entrepreneurs or experienced ones can heed that advice. So thank you for sharing, and thank you for sharing all of your stories. I was so excited for this conversation because we've been talking about it for years, but you were in transition, which I knew, for a couple of years. So we had to kind of wait until you came out the other side, and I'm so happy you did. And I love that you had a beautiful exit and that you're on to new a new chapter in your life. So congratulations. Speaker 0
Thank you, Amy. It was so fun talking to you. Speaker 1
Voices of Leadership is part of the Bespoke Productions Hub network of independent podcasters. If you are interested in partnering with us as a sponsor or if you have a podcast of your own, please visit bespoke productions hub dot com for more information. This episode is hosted, produced, and edited by me, Amy Schluter. 
