RE: Down, but not out - An update from The Steem House!
I have a stake in the game and I have faith in your word, things happen and while it might be behind schedule and not looking exactly promising at the moment I can sense the passion in our words to make it happen.
I don't have any of the talents to help in here on discord or manage the website stuff but I will keep an eye out for a candidate that might.
I do believe if you can get the Makers Mall up and running here on steemit where people can sell what they are making would be the best move and should be a priority. Taking on a physical location without the needed funding would be a disaster, please don't think you can do it for $20K when the numbers are realistically $40K, all projects run over cost projections for the most part. Trying to do it on a shoe string is in my opinion a recipe for failure waiting to be implemented.
You might check in Lexington if there is any grant money for projects like this that involve community improvement and such, or minority type grants and get your wife in as a minority principal in the business, there are funds like that in a lot of cities .
The key is patience, you probably are only going to get one shot at this, so be patient, and take good aim before pulling the trigger on a brick and mortar building.
Thank you very much for your confidence and advice. The Maker Mall is definitely something I have plans to get up and running sooner rather than later. Getting people personally invested in the success of the project by selling their products through us will certainly help boost all aspects of the project. A post will be written soon looking for people to start listing their products/designs on our website.
I'm currently working on a post searching for writers for both those sorts of posts, and some regular content centered around our topics of interest. This will simultaneously serve to increase awareness, engagement, and funding for the project.
The reason I believe it can be done for less than the original ask is cutting back on my own already modest salary of $15k to $7.5k, supplementing that salary with a second job, as well as choosing a "less lavish" location outside of our downtown district. I understand the concerns about going over costs, and would hate to bite off more than I can afford. One thing that's an absolute must within the starter budget is the first year's rent on whatever building we call home. This would at least give us an open space to generate revenue with, even if it's something as simple as some of the basic crafting workshops we have planned, and some 3d printing classes and commissions, until we can afford some of the more expensive machines we would need within the space. I've seen 100 different ways the space could be opened, from an incredibly small workshop that caters to a few dedicated locals, to something of mass proportions. Believe me when I say that this is my baby, and I wouldn't want to set it in motion on a path to destruction, because as you said, I'll only get one shot at this.
Thanks a lot for sticking by me, and this endeavor. While I certainly want this to happen so I can have a cool job for the rest of my life, I do most of this to put a smile on as many faces as I possibly can, and it's always great to hear that I'm working in the right direction on that front.