Kimberly King and her husband, Rick, have nearly 50 years combined experience in the custom picture framing industry. They have been framing professionally in their home for other businesses for many years as a sideline. Both had careers previously as frame shop managers (they actually met in a frame shop); but they had a long-time dream of owning their own shop.
In 2004, they decided to seriously pursue this dream, and began looking for the right frame shop business to purchase.
In late-2006, after two years of searching, Kimberly found an existing frame shop that was available. She liked the location, began serious talks with the owner, and was inclined to buy the business. But Kimberly and Rick felt they needed help in deciding if the purchase made good sense.
On the recommendation of a friend, Kimberly called SCORE and arranged an appointment with counselor Emerson Shank. In their first session, Em reviewed the financials of the business and concluded that its real value was far less than the asking price. He asked Kimberly to prepare a "Pro's and Con's" list of buying this business. After that exercise, with Em's involvement, the King's concluded that they were bettter offf trying to start their own business. So they began looking for a store front that met their location and cost criteria.
As a stroke of good luck, a friend of Kimberly told her that a small storefront just became available in Centerville in the same building as Bill's Donut Shop at 270 N. Main St. Bill's is a Centerville institution and brings in a lot of traffic. The building is easily accessible from the street and has adequate parking. The King's successfully negotiated a lease on the space in early 2007.
Working with Emerson, the King's completed a start-up checklist and start-up cash needs plan. Em set them up with an accountant who established a recordkeeping system for their use to facilitate financial performance analysis and tax preparation. Setting up the store went well, and on April 14, 2007, Centerville Framing & Gifts opened its doors.
The business mix is 90% framing and 10% gifts. The gift offerings are changed frequently to reflect the season. As hoped, Bill's Donut Shop customers are a great source of traffic. The business is going well, and the King's are very pleased with their decision. Kimberly say's: "Emerson Shank was very helpful in guiding us to the right decision and in setting up our business appropriately. More than a counselor, he was and is a mentor. I am a fan of SCORE, and in fact, I recently recommended SCORE to a friend."
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Centerville Framing &Gifts
270 N Main St
Centerville, OH 45445
9.7-433-1840
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