My business is a salon in Atlanta GA. I have had it since the end of August 2022. I am a Hispanic/black female, who is funding everything on my own. My salon offers eyelash extensions, eyebrow, and nail services. I have 8 employees who pay booth rent, or commission based. This salon is my dream I have worked very hard to get to where I am. It is so hard to be respected as a female and taken seriously. I have been told no too many times but that did not stop me.
I need all the extra help in funding I can get. I still need to purchase many things for my salon, including: store front sign, some equipment, products, supplies, inventory. Not to mention my rent is $4,900. However the biggest expenses will come from the initial buildout, (around $60k) which is where I need help with the most, and urgently. This money could help with any of those things and I would be so grateful for it.
This is my only project I have at the moment. All of my focus is going toward opening my salon hopefully by January 2023. I currently work as an esthetician out of my house when I am not working on building my business. I have a first generation shell, stand alone building. It is 884 square feet. It is completely empty, no HVAC, electrical, plumbing, duct work... It has been like this since I signed the lease. This salon will have at least 8 employees, comfortably. The projections of this salon are very profitable, it just needs to get up and running.
I have had other salons before but this is my first time having to build out. It is very costly. The goal is to be able to fund this project so I don't keep having to pay rent with no profits. The goal is to open by January, 2023 so I can start making money right away.
Rent is almost $5k, and I can't keep paying this while there is no buildout going. I could be using this money for marketing. My landlord isn't giving me any buildout time. I cannot afford a lawyer right now. I have to cover everything on my own. There is no plumbing, electric, HVAC, or anything in there. Since I am the first tenant, my landlord requires me to cover all of these costs, without extra time for buildout. I have been getting many quotes from many different architects and contractors, which I've paid deposits too. I have been going back and forth with them on the pricing or fitting into their workload, which I have finally come to a final proposal. I have definitely learned a lot from this experience, signing this huge lease and on my own with no negotiations and little understanding on the responsibility of an empty building. The rent is $4,900/month, which I have to pay each month on top of the 3 month I already paid plus security deposit from the start.
