A Business Worth Saving: ColourBum

WHO WE ARE:

COLOURBUM is a unique salon, specializing in organic skin care, and an assortment of beauty treatments. Known for our precision, we began as a small team of independent contractors, serving a tight knit community of clients, and are built like a family. We have always been firmly rooted in our belief that quality over quantity matters in any business, and twice as much in the beauty industry. More importantly, we don't just say it - we live it. We are not your typical fast paced, in and out style salon; no client ever leaves wishing they could have received a more thorough service. Our treatments are designed to make YOU feel how WE would want to feel if we were our own paying customers. 

OUR STORY: Humble Beginnings and Dreams for Quality 

In 2018, COLOURBUM was birthed in a tiny studio, with about 120sqft of moving space. I, Alexis, founded COLOURBUM after discovering a genuine lack of quality within our industry. After working at various salons across the Bay Area, I recognized a genuine need for a true, quality focused salon. More specifically, I realized that our industry had learned to view clients as numbers, and not as people. 

Born to be a meticulous tasker and perfectionist, I abhorred the fact that no salon (or job, in general) directly reflected my values, and the level of quality that I desired to offer the world. Desperate to make a difference, I retired from continuing my education, working as an esthetician part time, and set out to become a full time entrepreneur. I dedicated every resource I had available to the development of my first studio. 

With an unexpected amount of support from the community, my small business launched and outgrew its tiny 120sqft home in less than 6 months. By early 2019, we had secured and began construction at our new location, which would become the salon that I had always envisioned. 

Finally - A salon built with love, and fueled by love. A gift for both the community, and other working professionals who shared the same values. 

A dream come true, it would be. 

As we entered into 2020, we were months away from wrapping up this vision and sharing this gift with others. We were well beyond our deadline, and far above our budget, as expected with any passion project. However, we knew we had a tremendous amount of support from loving clients. 

It was worth the gamble. 

KNOCK KNOCK:

March of 2020 arrived on our doorsteps, like the Amazon package we had never ordered. We were abruptly required to close the doors to our salon mid-month, along with the rest of the Bay Area. Initially, we imagined that this fork would be lifted from the road within a short, two week to one month timeframe. Thus, we eagerly shared with clients that "all would be well" within a very short time period. Never did we imagine that we would spend the next two years trying to revive this dream.

Unfortunately, our doors were closed for nearly all of 2020. Subsequently, we were forced to spend the following year painfully attempting to climb out of salon related debts, while attempting to revive our business, and stay afloat. 

It's a miracle that we survived any of this.

DREAM TO REALITY: 

No entrepreneur ever wants to admit that their initial plan, or dream has failed in any way. While Covid-19 has presented many challenges to small businesses all over the world, it is still difficult to admit that we have found ourselves in this boat. The reality today is that we are hanging on by a thread to keep our salon alive, and are fighting to keep all that we have poured into our new home from completely washing down the drain. 

The chase to revive our business in 2021 taught us many things. For starters, we've realized that the day to day routines of many people have drastically changed. After adopting a lifestyle of working from home full time, for many people, visiting your favorite salon is no longer a reality, or a priority. A worldwide pandemic is a reasonable excuse. We also recognize that independent contractors and freelancers across the board have been tremendously crippled. They, along with us, need support to revive their businesses and clientele. 

Today, we can easily acknowledge that the community we've counted on for support from the beginning, truly needs support from us as well. Beyond business related matters - our clients, friends, and families have all been shattered from the loss of loved ones, and ultimately, their livelihoods. Much has happened in the last 24 months that our words could never fully describe.

We have felt a deep calling to address this need over the last year, but with an insurmountable number of hurdles in the way, we have struggled to do so. 

YOUR SUPPORT AND WHY IT MATTERS:

The devastating effects of Covid-19 have certainly shattered our salon dreams. Not only are we scraping away at debts, like hamsters on an endless wheel, but we also do not have the resources to complete the construction of our salon or pivot our business. We are unable to move forward in our dream of reviving this business without your support. We have applied for a countless number of resources in the last 24 months, but have been granted very few. The amount of financial support that we have been given, as a whole, has only kept this ship from sinking abruptly. We are definitely approaching the need to throw lifeboats overboard, if we do not receive a significant amount of help, soon. The lower deck has flooded, entirely. We're all just hanging out on the roof, at this point.

COLOURBUM IN 2022: The Vision 101

Much has changed in our world today, and as a result, so have my aspirations for this business. While I initially dreamed of presenting the community with the most caring salon on the planet, today I recognize that there is a much deeper need than just beauty alone. Clients are regularly having mental breakdowns in the middle of appointments. More tears than ever have been shed on my massage table. I've practically retired from being an esthetician, and have become an unlicensed therapist. 

Today, I yearn to redesign my business from being a full service salon, into a place of refuge for clients, working professionals, and the community. My sanity, your sanity, and your neighbor's sanity are all asking for this type of space. 

I stress the importance of providing independent contractors and service providers, who are in desperate need, with a landing place to restore their businesses. How this looks is providing them with the opportunity to work rent free for a period of time, while they restore their clientele without the stress of monthly operating expenses. This is where it counts. More service providers than ever are offering mobile or at home services today, and many of them cannot afford a commercial lease for their business. In the same way that I would love to provide customers with a place of refuge, I also yearn to spread love and support to my fellow service providers within the community. I've watched many of them suffer, lose businesses, and clients over the last two years. We can't move forward unless we do this together. 

FUNDING: The Breakdown

Additional funding would provide us with the capital necessary to do the following:

x Pay Off Covid-19 related debts: Unpaid rents, Outstanding bills that were a result of our extended shelter in place.

x Construction Costs and Materials: Our shop was around 75% complete, before our doors were closed

x Rehire Contractors who were previously let go, to complete building renovations: With our business being forced to close, and all construction related plans halted, we did not have the capital necessary to keep contractors employed

x General Expenses Related to Business Operations

x Furnishing: Roughly 25% of our entire space is fully furnished

x Help from the community, for the community: Hiring local artists, and/or other small business owners to supply our needs: artists, designers, wholesalers. Everything from our first website, the creation of our business logo, business related photography, murals/salon art, were all completed by small business owners/gig workers within the community. 

x Help for the community, from the community: In order for us to offer a free working space for our peers in the industry for any length of time, our business needs guaranteed income to be able to provide this.

REFUGE, NOT SALON:

Much opportunity still remains, in the expansion of our business. Rather than solely dedicate our entire space to a list of services that many of your loved ones no longer prioritize, we'd truly love to dedicate this space to the health and wellness of the community. Today, the world does not merely need a fancy, high quality, salon. In 2018, I was a firm believer that it did. Our community is screaming for a place of refuge, and many of us are hanging on by a thread. A facial once a month is lavish. But to be a part of a tight knit community at this time, surrounded by love, is priceless. We've deeply cared for our clients from the beginning, and have always wanted to be set apart from any other business. It's in our roots. Today, our clients have reached an even higher level of priority that we imagined. Their livelihoods, along with ours, depend on the saving of our business. The vision, to see people as more than numbers, has always existed, from the beginning.

If you believe that our business is worth saving, we sincerely ask for your support, in any amount.

We wholeheartedly believe that our business has much to accomplish, and will be a blessing to every single person involved. 

Every contribution counts towards a greater purpose than what can physically be captured in photos, or a description box. 

Small businesses that are dedicated to serving the community are worth saving. 

We need your support, and everything counts. 

Sincerely,

COLOURBUM