There are a variety of reasons why some people are successful in business and some are not. Some won’t put in the hard work to succeed, others pick a business they are unsuited to running, yet others a business that would not succeed not matter who ran it.
An example of a fellow who appears to be succeeding in spades is Vince, the operator of the gym I use most days. This topic came to mind because Vince is threw a Christmas party for his clientele today. In fact the attendance at this little soiree is the reason this blog is being posted later than is customary on a Friday eve.
Now I have been a member of a gym virtually my entire adult life. I am quite sure this is the first time I have ever been invited to a Christmas event for a gym I am a member of. This is an operator who is thinking of ways to engage his clients. Such people usually succeed.
The Macquarie Park Plus Fitness gym Vince owns has been open roughly a year. Like many small ventures, I think the growth was probably a little slower than he expected and the cost of getting off the ground was perhaps a little higher than anticipated. Even though it was plainly a difficult time for the first 6 or 9 months as the membership base became established, members found Vince, from about 6am until about 8pm, virtually every day cheerfully greeting each and every one of them by name. Always up for a chat if that’s your thing, or to leave you alone if you look like you’re there with a single-minded mission.
He has succeeded through the brute force of will, hard-work and a personality suited to a customer-facing business. I am filled with admiration for the type of self-starters that operate such businesses; they are the main driver of our economy. Particularly customer-facing businesses, because I know although I have the will and would happily put in the work, I am quite sure maintaining a cheery face for customers 14 hours a day would eventually get the better of me. I keep my surly visage facing a computer screen doing research most of the day and the world is a better place for it.
He also succeeded because he was very clear about what his goals were, getting membership to 500 members was critical for the business to become viable and with the recent arrival of the new Metcash offices across the road, I understand he is comfortably beyond that now. Well done Vince, and may your business reach new heights in 2016, the capitalist system is designed so that those who provide a valuable service to society succeed! Any reader knowing people working or living near the Macquarie Park area, tell them to cancel their current membership and join Vince’s gym, they’ll enjoy it more. Or if they’re not yet a gym member, get busy, Vince’s place is a great place to start.
Speaking of young capitalists, my daughter Rachael launched her first business venture this week. Her entrepreneurial spirit took a little longer to kick in than my own, but finally at the ripe old age of 15, she has stuck a deal with the good folk at Australis Cosmetics (a high-quality inexpensive cosmetics brand targeting young women), just in time to provide for all your Christmas gifting needs. Visit www.australiscosmetics.com.au and use her code RACHAEL35AC when checking out and you’ll be eligible for a 35% discount. I am not sure for how long the deal will run, so act now and tell everyone you know!!!
The invitation to invest/redeem will be e-mailed this weekend for the final subscriptions and redemptions of 2015 based on December 31 prices. If you have not yet made contact and would like to receive it, email me at Tony@eternalgrowthpartners.com – Tony Hansen 04/12/2015
|
|
Apr 1st 2011 |
Jul 1st 2015 |
Current Price |
Since July 1st 2015 |
Since Inception |
|
EGP Fund No. 1 |
1.00000 |
1.57872 |
1.66093*1 |
5.21% |
95.35%*2 |
|
37333.23 |
50922.68 |
49939.71 |
(1.93%) |
33.77% |
EGP Fund No. 1 Pty Ltd. Up by 5.21%, leading the benchmark by 7.14% since July 1st 2015. Since inception, EGP Fund No. 1 Pty Ltd is Up by 95.35%, leading the benchmark by 61.58% all-time (April 1st 2011).
*1 after a 31 May 2013 dividend of 2.333 cents per share (cps) plus 1.000 cps Franking Credit, a 31 May 2014 Dividend of 7.000 cps plus 3.000 cps Franking Credit and a 31 May 2015 Dividend of 8.6667 cps plus 3.7143 cps Franking Credit
*2 calculated based on dividends reinvested
