Forums: Discussions for entrepreneurs and small business.

 

After lurking these forums for so long, I finally need to post and ask for advice.

 

We are a startup brewery in CO and over the past year we've been moving this from dream to reality. You can see a little about us at twinhops.com

 

We're pretty much at the point of no return. The lease is mostly settled upon, the floor plans are drawn and builder is ready, the equipment is ready to purchase, etc....basically we just need to sign the dotted line of the lease and then go down the line giving the ok to everyone. There's more to it of course, but you get the idea.

The problem is that one of our investors backed out just 2 days ago and now we're $75k short of what we thought we had.

Now fear has kicked in high gear and we're at a loss on how to proceed. Our emotional side is telling us to go ahead and sign and get started with the other money and we can come up with the other $75k over the next few months during the build-out, while the fear tells us that'll cause us to fail before we even start.

Any advice?

Oh, and the location is a big motivating factor in this. We love this location, got it close enough to the price we wanted, and quite simply don't want to lose it.

 

Thanks,

Rick

 

 

 

 

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X-Birdbander

Rick,

You are pretty far down the road for people to be able to just "back out". I don't know what percentage of the total the K represents but before I signed papers committing to a long term obligation, I'd be certain I had the capital (ie cash in the bank- after the checks cleared)

I'd also be sure that your personal life is not at risk with this action.

I'd also be sure the other capital sources where "in the loop" and in agreement with what decision you make.

 

Hope this helps. If you'd like to discuss your specific situation, feel free to drop me a PM or contact me directly.

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Business Growth Masters, LLC -
Capital Catalysts for Entrepreneurs
Home of the Scalable Business Plan and QuikStart Capital Programs
http://www.bizgrowthmasters.com
info@bizgrowthmasters.com

Robert,

 

Thanks for your reply. I guess I should have been more specific. It wasn't so much "backing out" as it was us counting our chickens. We've been working her for a while now and ran the gamut from maybe, to yes, to no. After getting the "yes" we kicked into high gear and began lining up all the things we'd already put much work into since she would be filling the last of the capital we needed. A few weeks later we still don't have her contract or check (she's in NY and we're in CO). We handle some more concerns from her and are back to a "yes"...

To make a long story short, we kept working under the assumption we've hit our mark and now find out we haven't. Just one of many mistakes that will, and have been made.

We know the answer, "step back to square 3 and find that money before you proceed", but it hurts being so close, having the cash from the other investor in the bank, money coming in from the Founder's Club, and everything ready to go. I guess I was just hoping for someone to say "pffft finding $75k during your build-out is nothing. Once people see progress they invest so much more easily".

 

Rick

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X-Birdbander