 Think Tech Hawaii, civil engagement lives here. My name is Dennis Kwak. I'm the director of the Veterans Business Outreach Center of the Pacific. Welcome to Adventures in Small Business, a collaborative effort between the United States Small Business Administration, the Hawaii Small Business Development Center, Ming Center for Business and Leadership, and the Veterans Business Outreach Center of the Pacific, where we explore and talk to entrepreneurs and small business owners here in Hawaii. We have a very special guest. Her name is Sarah Rice, and she's the owner of The Bucks in Beauty. Welcome to the show, Sarah. Hi. Yeah. So, you know, right off the bat, The Bucks in Beauty has a very unique name. Maybe you can tell me a little bit about your background. I know you're not originally from Hawaii and how you came to coming up with The Bucks in Beauty. Okay, so I am from originally from Oregon. I grew up in Eugene, Oregon, and I went to University of Oregon, got my bachelors in business, and then I moved to Portland for a few years. I worked in marketing. I also taught business classes to high school students, actually. I got my master's in teaching, and then I went on to get my MBA. Wonderful. But I'd always wanted to own a business, and when my husband and I had the opportunity to come out and visit, we really enjoyed the area here, and we looked at the possibility of moving out. And then at one point, I saw a job posted at University of Hawaii, and I took it, and we moved out here. Oh, wonderful. So, you're actually not only a small business owner, but you're also an employee with the University of Hawaii. Yes. Oh, very cool. So, that's your background. Now, tell us a little bit about The Bucks in Beauty. What is The Bucks in Beauty? It's a very unique name. Yes. A unique product. So, The Bucks in Beauty is a, it's Oahu's only bra shop that caters exclusively to women who wear size D cup and larger. One thing, though, that it's important to note is that it caters to all sizes of women that are D cup and larger, so we start at band size 28 and go up to band size 56. So whether you're a small band or a large band, any woman who's D cup and larger. Oh, wow. Very cool. So, you sell the bras, and do you do anything else? We have a bra fitting service with the business. So when you come in, you get fitted for a bra, and it's important to do that part, because studies show that 80% of women are wearing the wrong size bra. Other studies show actually that the average women's cup size is actually a double D. Wow. And so, we get a lot of customers that come in have either never been fitted for a bra, it's been a long time, or they were even perhaps fitted improperly. So it isn't uncommon for me to have a woman come in and say she's a D or a double D cup and then leave in a double G or an H cup. It happens quite frequently. Okay. So a lot of misinformation out there in terms of bra sizes, and you kind of mitigate some of that when they come in. So how did you come up with this business idea? I mean, it seems very, very niche, very, very unique. I've never run into a business where it's custom bra fitting. I know that, you know, there's other kinds of big businesses that do that, but maybe not similar to yours. So how did you come up with this business idea? So the short answer is I couldn't find a bra that fit on this island. Shopping online is really hit or miss because you don't know that you're even buying the right size. And it's no different than if you buy a pair of jeans online, when you go jean shopping, you might find a pair that's the right size, but it doesn't look good on you. Or you might find us, you might be in the same brand two different sizes. So bras are really the same way. I couldn't find anything that fit in most popular bra stores only go up to a double D cup. So that really left me with only the online option, but that's really, that can be really frustrating. And I thought if I have that problem, I am certain that there are many women on our island that have the same problem. So out of personal experience, out of your personal business idea came up. So what was the first step you took, I mean, in starting this business? Well, you know, you would think that having having MBA is wonderful because you learn the theory and you talk about finance with theoretical dollars, right? But you're not really thinking in terms of your money. When it's your money, it's a lot different. So what I really wanted to do is make sure for one, they didn't have sales tax in Oregon I ever. So that wasn't something I was familiar with. So I had to learn what that was. I had to learn, you know, how to get a business license. What's it like to hire employees? How do I do taxes? Finance was never my strong suit in school. It was always marketing. So, you know, it was really that I had to learn a lot of different things that were specific to the type of business that I wanted to start, which is a retail business, something I, you know, I'd always wanted to start a business and never thought it would be a retail business. But what I really, my first step that I took was reaching out just for local free services to see what was out there. And I stumbled upon the Patsy Mink Center for Business and Leadership, and I enrolled in their Launch My Business course, and they teach you so much in that class. You learn, you have people come in and talk about HR issues, talk about legal issues, how to file taxes, even how to just file business documents. And then after I spoke with them, I reached out to the SBA a couple of times and was, you know, attempting to get loans that didn't go well the first couple of times. Which was when I met you, and you helped me with my numbers, tighten them up a little bit. It's difficult to do the numbers when you, again, have theoretical sales. Your new business, you haven't sold a single widget yet, right? And in my case, it was bras. So, it was hard to say what I was going to be selling in year two. But we, you know, we sat down and did that, and I was, I got approved for an SBA loan. Yeah, which is wonderful. It was wonderful. Yeah, I mean, you know, looking back and thinking about, you know, kind of where you started from and where you are now, it was a tremendous, you know, growth at a very short time. So I know that you use a lot of resources, SBA resources, but a lot of that was actually to the hard work that you did. So going back to, I guess, you know, the challenges that you face, you being a entrepreneur, you're having a full-time job, and being a military spouse, how do you juggle, you know, all these aspects of your life and still get up in the morning, you know? How do you, you know, being a military spouse? Some people look at it as a difficult thing, but for me, I have a business partner. Now he's not in there giving bra fittings, because that would be really inappropriate. But you know, he comes in and he helps me set up displays. He does the things that I don't want to do, which are incredibly helpful. So he really does a lot of the legwork in the background. That's very helpful. You know, working seven days a week, having a full-time job, and then running my business on nights and weekends does get tiresome, but I think taking time to relax is really key. Of course, of course. And is your husband still in the military? He is, yes. And he's facing out here? He is National Guard. Oh, okay. So he's an instructor out at Bellows. Okay, wonderful. So you know, maybe tell us a little bit how you see, I mean, like we said, this business has grown so, I mean, successful in such a short period of time. What are the next steps and what is your vision of success? My vision of success would be to make this full-time. Make a full-time job, okay. So do you have a time limit, or do you have a time frame where you would like to reach that goal, and what are the kind of the smaller steps that you think like you need to take? I would like to within a year, but if it takes five years, it's worth it. The reason why is that when you... It's a lot different to theorize what it would be like to run a business like the one that I have, but the simple truth is when somebody comes in and they feel uncomfortable in what they're wearing, and they feel like they aren't pretty, and you can send them out and they feel pretty, and at some points will cry, because it's the first time they've actually ever had something that fits that doesn't hurt them. There's nothing that really can compete with that. So however long it takes for me to do that, and the steps really are, you know, paying down a little bit of business debt that I have and making sure that that's taken care of, perhaps expanding within the same shopping area that I'm into, a little larger space would be wonderful, but making it full-time is really the goal. So you've had a lot of success in the short period of time, and you've had a lot of people that think very positively of your business. Looking back now in the year and a half, how long have you been open? It's a year and a half now. Okay, so in the year and a half that you've been open, what are the most difficult challenges, not only as a small business owner, but also doing business in Hawaii? Oh, that's a really good question. Inventory is a big issue. Okay, inventory. Inventory is a big issue, yeah. So when you say inventory, you're getting inventory into Hawaii, or maybe not getting your shelves stocked fast enough, or what is the issues with inventory? Well, in the broad business, margins are not very high. Okay. So you have to be very strategic about ordering. I can't go into a catalog and say, I love this and this and this, and so I'm going to bring them all in. I would love to do that, and I have a list a mile long of things that I want to bring in for my customers. So since the margins aren't high, I have to be very careful about when I bring in a new style, I need to know it's what they want. On the other side of it, so having the financing for that is really important, and then of course on the other side of that is just getting things shipped out here, and shipping is quite expensive. And so, and then of course, companies, if you order from vendors, they each have order minimums that you have to meet. So you need to have a certain size of order before you can place. So just challenges in maintaining it, definitely fun though with inventory, because I get to really choose what's featured in my store, and it's always very exciting when I get something new in, and I just got three new runs of products in this week that I'm very excited about. So I mean, I guess choosing the right type of inventory as well as restocking and paying for the right type of inventory is challenging, but do you feel like that aspect of the business has gotten better over time? Is this something like a trial, like a kind of thing that you have to kind of learn as you go along the way? Yes, it's really difficult because I have made mistakes before. Of course you have. So I made a mistake one time by bringing in a sports bra that for whatever reason just didn't fit my customers the way that I had liked it, and I tried it for months and months, and there were other bra boutique owners that I'm in a consortium with, and they told me that they sold it really well, and so I said, well, do you want to buy them from me? And so somebody else bought them from me, and I ended up bringing in a different line from a different vendor that did better here. So it's, you know, what may work for customers, you know, in the Midwestern United States might not work for the women in Hawaii, and you don't know that until you try it. So that was actually a really interesting experience, and that was the good thing about networking with other bra boutique owners is the fact that I'm able to do that, and you can take less of a hit from that mistake that you've made. So that's the nice thing is being able to share inventory. So you work closely with other boutiques? That's nice. We provide advice, you know, even venting sometimes, but providing advice, sharing inventory, you know, everybody's in a different stage of growing their business, so what are marketing ideas? What's a good idea for an event? So it's a really good opportunity. Yeah. So we're actually going to take a short break, Sarah, if you don't mind. We'll be back in about one and a half minutes with Sarah Rice, the owner of The Bucks and Beer. Thank you. My name is Andrea Gabrieli. I'm the host for Young Talent's Making Way here in Fintech, Hawaii. We talk every Tuesday at 11 a.m. about things that matter to tech, matter to science, to the people of Hawaii with some extraordinary guests, the students of our schools who are participating in science fair. So Young Talent's Making Way every Tuesday at 11 a.m. only on Fintech, Hawaii. Mahalo. Welcome back to Adventures in Small Business. We have our guest, Sarah Rice. Sarah, just, you know, a couple more questions. You know, I have, I really want to know, actually, you know, because it's such a unique and, you know, a niche business where you actually cater and customize brofittings, that must take a lot of time. How do you scale a small business like this? And do you see yourself growing this business by opening up more stores or adding more services or products? Or I know that you said previously that to me, you know, and private that you don't plan to sell online. So how do you grow this business in this type of market that we work in? Okay, that's a great question. So I should probably address the reason I don't plan to sell online, because for most people that's the obvious way to scale a business. The reason that selling online is not attractive to me is that there are already online retailers that sell bras. I, of course, couldn't compete with Amazon. I couldn't compete with any of the, you know, bra chains that sell bras online. But they couldn't compete with me in the fitting service. And so what I want to make sure is that when a customer leaves my store, that she leaves with something that fits her, that makes her feel beautiful. And that is going to be, that's exactly what she wants. And when you, you know, my experience buying online was that it was really hit or miss. And most of the time it was a miss. And so scaling online isn't something that I'd like to do. But the way I would scale this business is to expand the location that I have, hire employees and then potentially open additional locations on this island or maybe elsewhere, maybe beyond. Okay, maybe beyond. Do you ever think about opening a different, like you said, how does that look because it's such a customized business? I mean, you can't be two places at once. I mean, how does that, you know, expansion look like to you if you open a box in beauty, let's say, and maybe your home state in Oregon or something. Okay, so what you would want to do is make sure that you're training people to fit properly in bra fitting. And it's not, you can find bra fitters in many places. So I would just want to ensure that whoever I trained was, you know, following the brand and making sure that they were doing things in the same way that they were taught to do it. I probably wouldn't open a location in Oregon, but other locations on the island, I could watch closely, locations even on other islands could be a possibility someday. But, you know, as long as you train your staff well and they understand the brand well, and they have the same passion for it, I believe that it is something that's absolutely scalable without me having to have eyes on everything at all times. Of course, yeah. And I think that's one of the challenges of actually being a small business owner, especially when it comes to ramping up for expansion. You know, you can't be at four places at once. And, you know, these are probably challenges that you'll probably have to face hopefully sooner than later. Yes, and I think that one of the challenges will be giving up some of that control, because I'm used to, you know, I run everything. I do all of my own accounting. I do have a wonderful accountant that helps me when I screw up. But I do my, you know, my own books, and I do all of my own marketing, and I have my hands on everything. And taking them out, I think will be a challenge, but something that for expansion purposes, I would absolutely be willing to do because I do want to work for myself. And that's why I started this business. Plus, now I love what I do. Of course. So if I was, let's just say, I mean, you know, I wanted to know you, who is your biggest demographic? I mean, who do you cater to most? I mean, age-wise. I mean, obviously, females. But in terms of, yeah, age, maybe even ethnicity, have you, do you have like a very, very core demographic that you work with? That's a really odd thing. No. You don't. No. I mean, really, I have customers as young as 18. I even have girls that are in high school, middle school even, that just developed earlier in life. 18 to 75. Of course, they're not, you know, typically most of my customers are between 25 and 55, but I really do get a wide array. I have customers that are local, military families. So really all ethnicities too. It's really actually, when you start paying attention to it and noticing it, it's less creepy when I do it, of course. But when I'm walking around sometimes, I will, I begin to notice when something's not fitting properly and I've even actually used sometimes I have little coupon cards that I'll give to people. Are they a little taken back when you give them coupons for expression? I don't usually, I don't approach them in a public space. Yeah, it's like if it's somebody that I know or that I've already been in a conversation with, not just randomly approaching them. But actually it's been, it's been a good opportunity and I do get a lot of customer referrals as well. So I started a customer referral program so people can get money off for referring another person. So that's actually where a lot of my customers, my new customers come from is from referrals. Oh, that's a wonderful marketing technique and I know a lot of small businesses use that. Going back to the process maybe about your business, when let's just say a woman comes in, she's kind of shy, maybe timid, how do you go about, you know, making sure that she's well fitted and how long does that process take? You know, maybe walk us through, you know, what happens and how long it takes, you know. It's a really good question because some people don't know what to expect. Sure. And I do have my fair share of women who are not at all sure about somebody they don't know seeing them in a bra. Of course. What I usually do of course is first introduce myself. I usually ask them what size they're currently wearing and what they're looking for and what they like and don't like about what they're currently wearing. And then I usually measure them and I bring them something to try on. And then I just let them know I'd love to check the fit as we go along if you're comfortable with that. And I haven't really had anybody that's refused that once they got going. You know, so usually they're, they might be slightly unsure when they first come in. But typically when I explain to them, this is what I'm doing, this is what I'm looking for. And this is how I know that a bra is fitting you. Then they're calling me to come into the fitting room to check the fit on something because they want to make sure that it fits properly. So it usually even the uncomfortable customer will sometimes start asking me to come in and will realize it's just a bra fitting. And it's just a bra and she's just looking at my bra and that's it. And there isn't anything to be ashamed of. And I think being very body positive is also really helpful too. And reminding everyone that, you know, everyone is perfect the way that they are. And just making sure that what we're doing is making whatever it is that they do have look its best. Sure. Of course. And when customers come in, do they look for more aesthetics or comfort? I mean, is that both? Both. It's got to be both. Interesting. Okay. Any other insights or kind of stories that you want to share? And maybe especially when it comes to actually the day to day of running the business, the challenges you face or the joys that you face too. And I know that you take great pride and great joy in making sure customers feel very, very comfortable and look very nice when they leave your store. But any kinds of like personal gratification that you might feel? Well, I think it's more in general. And I think that, you know, we have all have a customer that will come in and be especially self conscious about a part of their body or a skin condition that they have or something like that where they're not used to being vulnerable to another person. But I did have a customer that came in from Australia, I believe, and she had never had a bra that fit her in her entire life. And what she was wearing was closer than some that I've seen, but it was not fitting properly. And I could tell that she was uncomfortable. And she had a very, very large cup size, but not a very large band size. And within, I don't know, a few minutes, we got her fitted into something that fit. And she just stood there and stared at herself for a really long time. And I thought maybe something was wrong. And then she started crying and told me that she had never actually had something that had fit her before. And she said, I can't believe this only took 15 minutes because I've been in bra stores before, where I was in there for two hours. And then they finally told me, sorry, we don't have anything that fits you. So somebody who was dreading coming into my store but knew that she needed to find something and then left very happy was those are the experiences that really stay with you. And those are the ones that that's the reason that I enjoy what I do. You know, it started off as an idea that I had and it started off as well, I can't find a bra this would be a great business idea. I'd love to work for myself. And then I knew it might be like this. But now having the opportunity to really make people happy and change them in a way change the way they felt about how they look for women is huge for me. And so it's what makes me love what I do. And this might be an odd question, but do you ever turn down women? Because they might be too small because you say they might come into your store. I mean, it is a bra shop, but maybe they don't know that it's for, you know, I won't turn anybody down because as I was explaining, studies show that the average woman's cup size is actually a double D cup. So there have been plenty of women that have come in and brought their friends in as tag-alongs. And I'd say, you want to come in for a fitting? And they're like, sure, why not? And then they find out they're an E or an F cup. So I've never had to turn anybody away. I've had customers that maybe weren't quite in my size range, but I could always recommend something for them. But I would still, you know, offer to help or at least give suggestions. Maybe you could share with the customers, with the viewers today, where you're located, as well as your hours and how to get in touch with you. Yeah, of course. So the Buxom Beauty is located at 1540 Maca Lois Street, which is near Kaomoku Walmart and Alamoana Center. We do have free parking. We're open Monday through Thursday evenings by appointment only. And then Saturdays and Sundays, we're open from 10 to 4 by either appointment, or you can just walk in anytime on the weekends. You can find us at BuxomBeautyHNL.com, or you can just give us a call at 462-3036. And I'd love to make an appointment for a brafitting. Awesome. And, you know, one last question. I know you're a military spouse. You know, our program really works with, you know, veterans of transitioning military as well as spouses. As your husband transitions out, or if he does transition out, and let's say he has to be somewhere else at a different location, do you plan to stay here in Hawaii and see this business through? So he's National Guard. Oh, okay. So we won't believe it. Oh, I got something. Right. So we're staying. So we're staying for a good. Yep. Okay. Well, I wish you much continued success. Thank you so much. Thank you so much for coming in. I know you're a very busy lady. You got, you know, business. You got a full-time job, so I do really appreciate your time today. Yes. Thank you very much for having me. Oh, thank you. And thank you for joining us in the, for the adventures in small business. My name is Dennis Kwok. I'm the director of the Veterans Business Outreach Center. Have a good day. Thank you.