Hanna Hasl-Kelchner: [00:00:00] Seizing a golden business opportunity is every entrepreneur’s dream, but how do you do it? Today’s special guest is someone who did, and when we come back, we’re going to talk about the journey of his remarkable business success story.

 

Announcer:            [00:00:14] This is Business Confidential Now with Hanna Hasl-Kelchner. Helping you see business issues hiding in plain view that matter to your bottom line.

 

Hanna:                   [00:00:25] I’m your host, Hanna Hasl-Kelchner, and today’s guest is Mr. Derrick Butler, the founder and CEO of Krisspi Technologies, an application-based company that connects barbers and hairstylists with clients who need hair services at home, office or hotel. Think of it as an Uber for barbers and hairstylists.

 

Hanna:                   [00:00:46] Now, Derrick grew up in a military and entrepreneurial household where his mother was a licensed barber and a publisher. He also started working in his mother’s business at the tender age of 11. And while those entrepreneurial experiences no doubt gave him a passion for his own business, he supplemented those practical lessons with formal business undergraduate degree and then an MBA from St. Mary’s College.

 

Hanna:                   [00:01:11] So Derrick is the real deal, and I’m delighted to have him join us now. Welcome to Business Confidential Now, Derrick.

 

Derrick Butler:       [00:01:17] Hey, thanks, Hanna. Thanks for having me. It’s a pleasure to be here today.

 

INSPIRATION FOR THE GOLDEN BUSINESS OPPORTUNITY

 

Hanna:                   [00:01:21] I love your business concept. This whole Uber for barbers and hairstylists bringing them to you instead of you going to them and waiting like in a doctor’s office because they’re running late. I think that’s great. What inspired this business idea? How did you come up with it?

 

Derrick:                 [00:01:37] Absolutely. So growing up, I mentioned in my bio is like my mom was a barber, a licensed barber. And oh my goodness, we would sit in the barber shop for hours my mom worked, and I just remember one summer looking out the window and seeing my friends out there playing, and my mom was very had to see you kind of person. So while she worked, we just sit there for hours and the back of my mind, I always thought that, hey, there’s got to be a better way to do this.

 

Derrick:                 [00:02:06] But of course, the technology wasn’t around then. And then when I was in my MBA at St. Mary’s, I actually was at a point, you know, one Friday, working late where I had just missed my appointment with my barber. My barber was very, very loyal. I’ve been with him for over seven years. But I had an event the next morning to go to. I actually had to go to a wedding and fly out at eight a.m. So I try to connect with my barber and I couldn’t connect with him.

 

Derrick:                 [00:02:32] And so I just thought that, hey, I’ll just get it done in Vegas. You know, that’s where I was flying. And so I was like, How hard can that be, right? And so I actually, went home, got packed. Next morning, I’m out and flying to Vegas. I check in at the MGM Grand of all places and literally how they looked at me like I had three eyes. I was like, I need a barber. I’ve got a wedding to go to. And they had no answer for me.

 

Derrick:                 [00:02:56] In fact, they sent me over to the spa. And can you imagine me walking over to the spa and the spa person, you know, had no answer for my type of hair and the person that in fact the type of service that I wanted. And so I was told to actually leave the hotel and find the service somewhere else.

 

Derrick:                 [00:03:14] The whole experience was a nightmare, and let’s just say I didn’t get the best haircut I ever could. And so I wound up going to this wedding, a very important wedding, not looking the way that I want it to look. And it was at that point where the two kind of collided. It was like, wait a minute, I experienced something like this with Uber, where they were able to invent a technology that brought the taxi to the client whenever they wanted.

 

Derrick:                 [00:03:41] And so because the technology was around and I had that experience, I started to formulate the idea in my mind that there has to be ability, a way for people to use tech, the current technology to allow them to get the service when they need it most and of course, when it makes sense for their schedule.

 

Derrick:                 [00:04:02] So a lot of companies have actually, you know, launched businesses like DoorDash is one that comes to mind, et cetera, that says, hey, you are now in control of when you want service, you just put it in the application and that particular product or service will come be delivered to you. And so that’s what we did.

 

Derrick:                 [00:04:22] We created an app that does just that. Literally, you download our app, you tap, you know, put in your schedule and you request service and then someone knocks on your door and says, hey, I’m here from Krisspi, I’m here to provide service to you. And that particular service is for men, women and kids. So the whole family can actually really capitalize on that experience.

 

Hanna:                   [00:04:45] Well, that’s wonderful. It brings to mind that necessity is the mother of invention, and certainly marry those things. Yeah, exactly. And not just that, but that you were thinking about technology and in a transferable way. How can we use this someplace else in a different type of application where the technology underlying it is the same? So that’s wonderful.

 

2 PERSONAL HABITS THAT TURN A GOLDEN BUSINESS OPPORTUNITY INTO SUCCESS

 

 Hanna:                   [00:05:09] I’m wondering what personal habits you think contributed to your success because it’s one thing to have the idea. It’s another thing to implement and make it happen. So what personal attributes do you think helped you succeed?

 

Derrick:                 [00:05:23] Yes, so. I definitely believe it’s my corporate training that I’ve had for a number of years, but also, you know, my MBA did a great job of preparing me for executing a plan, but my organizational skills and my ability to communicate my vision in a high level. So part of really allowing yourself to build a product or service is that you can’t do it by yourself.

 

Derrick:                 [00:05:50] You’ve got to inspire and share your vision with other people that especially on the tech side where I’m not a formal coder, right? So I’m not a person that can, even though I can code, I can’t do extensive code. And so I had to be sure I could communicate that vision of mine with someone. In this case, I brought on a co-founder, Mario Goins, who was my co-founder and CTO, and he was able to take my vision and put it into code and create the first minimal, viable product, which we call an MVP so that we could launch it in the marketplace.

 

Derrick:                 [00:06:27] So you’ve got, having just an idea, unfortunately does not create the success that a lot of people are looking for. You literally have to take that idea. You’ve got to share your vision. And I hear some entrepreneurs saying, well, if I tell someone that it’s going to take my idea right? And no, I think people need to stop thinking like that because that’s not the way it happens, right? Number one people might not have that same passion that you do, might not have that same vision.

 

Derrick:                 [00:06:59] And then when it comes to the execution, that’s where it really comes in. Because if someone isn’t passionate and really want that vision happen, they won’t stick. They’ll just fall off because it’s really hard to do. And so you must have that vision and that passion about what you’re trying to create and that vision of how you’re going to implement it into the market.

 

Derrick:                 [00:07:21] And then you’ve got to be able to share that with someone that can actually create that vision for you. And then it takes a team of people. It takes people that understand your vision that can assist you in accomplishing that vision. And then you have to get those people, those fans and those cheerleaders and those people that are really rooting for you, have those people all directly going in the same direction to accomplish and execute a plan.

 

Derrick:                 [00:07:47] And so all those things kind of come together in order to get the success that people see and that they’re looking for in regards to building a business.

 

LEADERSHIP CHALLENGES OF EXECUTING A GOLDEN BUSINESS OPPORTUNITY

 

Hanna:                   [00:07:57] Well, you mentioned there’s a lot of moving parts there, and it requires some leadership to keep all those people focused in the same direction. What challenges did you face as you were growing your business?

 

Derrick:                 [00:08:09] Yeah. So there’s a number of challenges, number one, it’s disbelief. There And I want to say that you have to be careful of who you share your vision, your dream with because there’s a lot of people that you can you can tell or share your vision or dream, and they will be very negative.

 

Derrick:                 [00:08:34] They’ll even say that’s not possible or you can’t do that, or it’s never been done before, or they’ll give you some type of negative feedback like that. So you have to be careful. You need to share your vision, but you also need to share your vision with people that have accomplished things like that, that have experience in that type of arena, that have either participated or been involved in a startup and understand what it takes in order to be successful.

 

STRATEGICALLY TAPPING YOUR NETWORK

 

Derrick:                 [00:09:05] So you have to in some cases, you have to really take a look at your network. And I would say your network, your net worth is your network, right? And so when you look at your network of people that are surrounding you, it may not fit in to the direction that you’re going.

 

Derrick:                 [00:09:23] And that is the point where you really need to, number one, consider that network and you can still have a personal network and a business network I call it where you’ve got a personal network, but you don’t share your vision and your dreams. And those people, you just, you do your normal day-to-day life with and then you’ve got your business network of people that are on board and helping you to achieve your dream and your vision. And so you really need to separate those two.

 

Derrick:                 [00:09:52] That’s the process of really evaluating who’s in your network, and then some people are not going to fit into the business network. And then some people, you need to keep in the personal network, right? But when you look at the people in your business network, those people are all aligned, all on board and can assist you in accomplishing that vision and executing your plan.

 

Hanna:                   [00:10:17] That’s a really excellent point. I know an entrepreneur that brought in a family member because. A, they kind of wanted to find a place for them, they did have a skill set that fit, but they didn’t have a skill set that really rose to the level that was necessary and it wound up tanking the business. It really did. They had a grand opening. This person was pivotal. They couldn’t perform at the speed that was necessary and people were walking out the door and it was Valentine’s Day and they didn’t come back.

 

Derrick:                 [00:10:55] So, yeah.

 

Hanna:                   [00:10:57] Oh, it tanked the business. So your point is really well taken about. You may have a best friend, but do they really have the skill set and the experience? And if you want to include them, that’s fine. But it’s important to set boundaries and really do some good screening.

 

Speaker 2:             Absolutely.

 

Hanna:                   And that’s not taking away from, like you said, the friend network. You could have great friends…

 

Derrick:                 Right.

 

Hanna:                   But they may not be the best fit for your business in order to advance your vision.

 

Derrick:                 [00:11:25] Absolutely. Absolutely. So you’ve got to separate those two, and I literally have seen, just like you, instances where you bring in a friend or family member or someone that that wasn’t qualified for a particular position. And then it’s so critical. And you know, I hear it all the time, but those first 10 and even the first, 25 people that come into your business are so critical to the success of a business.

 

Derrick:                 [00:11:55] It’s almost either make it, win or make, scenarios where you think, Oh, it’s just one person, but they may like that instant that you gave have a critical role in that next step of success. So you really have to put the best people forward for your business in order for it to succeed.

 

LESSONS LEARNED FROM THE GOLDEN BUSINESS OPPORTUNITY JOURNEY

 

Hanna:                   [00:12:17] Absolutely. So if you had a chance to start your entrepreneurial journey over again and grab this golden business opportunity, what would you do differently knowing…?

 

Derrick:                 [00:12:27] Start sooner.

 

Hanna:                   [00:12:29] Start sooner?

 

Derrick:                 [00:12:31] Yeah, because there was a time where I didn’t or had the idea…

 

Hanna:                   Yeah.

 

Derrick:                 …and I shared it, but I was number one, I was hesitant and really putting a 100 percent foot forward, right? And I know people say, well you just got to do a little bit at a time, right? In order to, you got to be able to see if this is something that’s going to work.

 

Derrick:                 [00:12:56] But I literally would literally put a little bit of time in it and the other time I would be working for another job or doing something within organizations that I’m involved in. And then I would come back to it and then work a little bit more and then put it back down. And if I really could go back to the beginning as soon as I got the idea and I started moving forward, I would have just moved forward then because that time is so critical to market, right?

 

Derrick:                 [00:13:28] But it all worked out that we want to launching and building a product the time that the product was needed in the marketplace. Right. But if we would have built a little bit sooner, we would have had a better product. But hindsight 20/20. But if I had a chance to do it over again, I would have just started a little bit earlier.

 

Hanna:                   [00:13:50] And looking back. What was your worst moment and how did you overcome it?

 

Derrick:                 [00:13:55] Oh, my worst moment was there was there was person that was that I wanted on my team and I felt that they could contribute a lot. They were energetic. They had great vision, they were considering joining the team, had great experience and I didn’t put as much effort because I didn’t see down the line how important that person could be in saving us money and time.

 

Derrick:                 [00:14:29] And so I didn’t put as much effort as I could have in developing that relationship and letting them see the big picture and really giving them the true vision of what we’re trying to accomplish. And then that person wound up deciding to go someplace else, and I look back on it, it’s like, oh, that one right there would have really been an amazing contributor to what we’re trying to accomplish. So that’s the one that got away.

 

HOW STARTUPS CAN OPTIMIZE THEIR OWN GOLDEN BUSINESS OPPORTUNITY

 

Hanna:                   [00:14:58] So what would be your advice to entrepreneurs or people in a startup mode to avoid that type of thing?

 

Derrick:                 [00:15:05] Yeah, I think you really you have to be strategic about even your team, the people that you want on your team. And there are great mentors and people that again, accelerators you can go to. That’s another great thing where you can get into an accelerator, getting to even an incubator.

 

Derrick:                 [00:15:27] If you don’t have an idea yet, you’re just formulating the idea and you can get surrounded by some really good mentors. I think mentorship is really important when you’re doing a startup and the reason why is and again, I say, you can’t do this by yourself, but there’s literally thousands of mentors across the country that have been in your shoe.

 

Derrick:                 [00:15:49] They’ve built businesses. They have had challenges in building business. They have built teams. They’ve launched Park in the marketplace. I really believe that finding the right mentors is super important as you go along on this journey. I tell all entrepreneurs that you need that advice because it’s going to save you so much time and don’t feel like you need to be an island.

 

Derrick:                 [00:16:13] Make sure that when you’re starting this journey that you join a group of people you know that have the mentors that can help you succeed. And then you’d be surprised the type of the mentors that I have right now. Some of them, it’s like I never thought they’d be my mentors is like. And then you start reaching out to them and say, oh, yeah, absolutely. This is something I definitely know about. I definitely can help you.

 

Derrick:                 [00:16:36] And then you take all those, those great pearls of wisdom and you just put them in your tool belt and you use them along on your journey.

 

Hanna:                   [00:16:45] How did you find your mentors?

 

Derrick:                 [00:16:47] Yeah. So I just for me, I start, you know, researching the type of companies that I not necessarily have to be in the same industry, but they have to be companies that you can aspire to be like, companies that and for me, it was just more than building a big business.

 

Derrick:                 [00:17:05] It was about how do they build a business? Are they respected in regard to the way they treat their employees? Are they, do they have a philanthropic on where they get back to the community? So those type of people are the ones that I want to emulate my style and what I believe in in my business around.

 

Derrick:                 [00:17:25] And so those types of people I literally built a list, went on LinkedIn. I started reaching out and I was super surprised at the feedback I got, I received and also the people that decided, Yeah, I definitely would love to be a part of this.

 

WHAT KEEPS DERRICK BUTLER IN HOT PURSUIT OF HIS GOLDEN BUSINESS OPPORTUNITY

Hanna:                   [00:17:42] Very nice. What was the best piece of business advice you’ve ever received, whether it was from a mentor or someplace else?

 

Derrick:                 [00:17:51] One of the best pieces of advice actually came from one of my customers.

 

Hanna:                   Really?

 

Derrick:                 And yeah, actually came from one of my customers. I give you the story is that they download the app. She was a single mom and she had three boys. She has three boys and she had in the past had been a huge ordeal in order to get became like a production of getting them dressed, getting them ready to go to the barbershop right and getting out of the house.

 

Derrick:                 [00:18:20] And then they’re sitting there for hours on end. And then they of course they’d be busybodies, be, not want to sit still and all this stuff. So it became like this huge production. And then when she found our app on the App Store, she literally called up in disbelief that we even existed.

 

Derrick:                 [00:18:38] She was like, you really have an app where you’ll come out to me? You will provide service for my three boys? And I was like, yes. And the advice that she gave me was like, this is such a needed service. This is going to change lives, and I want you to know that you’re that you’re on the right path and that that people will value you and what you’re doing in the marketplace.

 

Derrick:                 [00:19:07] Because for her, she couldn’t even envision something like this, that it even existed. And for her, it sounds like all of us that go through the process on a regular basis where it’s just one thing but when you’ve got multiple people, multiple responsibility, you’re leaving the home, you’ve got three kids, that just adding that one technology tool literally changed her life.

 

Derrick:                 [00:19:34] She said, keep going. She was like, you’re changing lives. Keep going. And that became the mantra of our company and even my co-founder Mario, he says, keep showing up. That’s a way that he can interpret it that saying. That is kind of the word I want to give to entrepreneurs out there. You keep showing up. You’re going to have difficult days, you’re going to have good days, but you’ve got to believe in your vision and you’ve got to keep showing up and then amazing things will happen.

 

Hanna:                   [00:20:04] There you go. You’re right. It not only changes lives, but you know what, even for those people that aren’t challenged like that mom with three boys where they’re fidgeting and you know, you get one to sit still and the other two are doing things.

 

Derrick:                 [00:20:16] Good.

 

Hanna:                   [00:20:17] Right? And you’re like, Where do you go?

 

Derrick:                 Right, right.

 

Hanna:                   I mean, that’s just that is a life changer. That is that’s huge. But you know what, even for like other folks, you’re making them feel like rock stars. I mean, seriously, you’re bringing the service to them.

 

Derrick:                 Yes.

 

Hanna:                   The way a celebrity would have, which is. . .

 

Derrick:                 [00:20:37] Absolutely.

 

Hanna:                   [00:20:38] Cool.

 

Derrick:                 [00:20:38] And that’s a great point because celebrities have been doing this for years.

 

Hanna:                   Yeah.

 

Derrick:                 They have been literally doing this for years. And now we’re allowing anyone that has the app to get that type of service brought directly to them. This is going to change lives.

 

Hanna:                   [00:20:54] That’s right. Thank you. Derrick, thanks for giving us a sneak peek into the experiences of a successful entrepreneur and the grit and determination that’s needed and the team that you need to assemble and communicate with well in order to make that dream a reality.

 

Derrick:                 Absolutely.

 

Hanna:                   [00:21:12] So if you’re listening and you want that kind of rock star treatment, check out that Krisspi app. Contact Derrick. You want to learn more about his amazing business or schedule some grooming. You can find that information in the show notes at BusinessConfidentialRadio.com.

 

Hanna:                   [00:21:29] And if you know someone who’d be inspired by Derrick’s story in addition to looking for his services, tell them about today’s episode. Share the link to the show! Leave a positive review on your podcast app or @Lovethepodcast.com/BusinessConfidential so others can learn what you just did.

 

Hanna:                   [00:21:49] You’ve been listening to Business Confidential Now with Hanna Hasl-Kelchner. Have a great day and an even better tomorrow.