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A Publication of The Handmade Beauty Network
ISSN 1530-9630 | Vol. 3, Issue 9

Designed to encourage and inspire you to Create The Life You Love! Tapes Now Available at this link:

1. Introduction To Contracts. Hot off the presses, our newest Beauty Call™ audio tape comes with a 10-page sample contract with paragraphs you can edit to suit your needs. In this Beauty Call, Donna Maria, provides an  introduction to contracts from a layperson's perspective, along with information you can use when preparing a contract for your business. Among the topics discussed are: (1) what is an enforceable contract; (2) how to prepare your own contract; (3) what things should a contract contain; and (4) what sorts of contracts should you avoid signing.

2. Legal & Regulatory Challenges Facing The Handmade Toiletries Industry Today: Applying Yesterday's Laws To Today's Marketplace. Includes the latest on cosmetics, trademark and Internet law. Perfect for online toiletries and aromatherapy businesses! 2 90-minute tapes. To order, click here.

3. Planning NOT To Fail: How to Prepare A Business Plan That Positions You For Success!! Handmade toiletries/aromatherapy centered business planning tape with tips for making the most of your small business. Selected by the College of DuPage for use in their continuing education aromatherapy course!! 1 60-minute tape. To order, click here.

4. Audio Tapes Of Several HBN Beauty Calls™ are now available, including Aubrey Hampton (natural preservatives & the FDA inspection process), Melody Upham (transitioning from manufacturer to supplier, general business tips) and Kim Baron (how to design and maintain a winning Web site.)

Several other informative tapes are available, creating a library of information you can use to help grow your business! As always, your satisfaction is guaranteed! If your tapes don't benefit you, return them for a full refund. What have you got to lose??!!

For details on these and other tapes, click here.

Last Week's Question: "First of all, cultivate a contented spirit. Recollect that nothing so soon fixes disagreeable lines upon the face as habits of scowling, or facial contortions of any description. Keep your soul above the petty trials of life. Look up, my dear friends, and forward. Above the roughness of the earth you will always find a bit of blue somewhere in the firmament, and if you watch patiently you will find a little star of hope trying hard to send you a loving little twinkle of encouragement out of the blackest night. Don't waste your strength losing your temper over small things. We have just so much vital force, each one of us. If we waste it over trifles (and a lot of strength escapes in each angry word), we will not have it for our work or diversion."

I'm pleased to announce the availability of a new Create The Life You Love™ Audio Tape! While HBN has a great collection of useful tapes, I'm not exaggerating when I say that this tape is one of the most useful ones we have made available so far if you want to learn valuable tips for publicizing your business.

In this tape, our guest is public relations expert Katherine Hutt of Nautilus Communications. Katherine shared all sorts of information with members, including how to position your business to receive publicity, how to deal with a press inquiry, how to prepare for an interview, how to build and maintain good relationships with members of the press ... even the subtle and sometimes hard to fine line between advertising, sales, marketing and public relations! If one of your goals for 2002 is to grow your business by getting publicity without breaking the bank, you need this tape.

The answer to this question is “no.” No. No. No. It is always and forever “no.” There are no two ways about it. From the smallest sole proprietorship to the largest multi-billion dollar corporation, there is never ever enough money to do what needs to be done. Of course, that does not mean that we don’t find a way to get things done. Like everyone else, business owners have to eat, so if we’re doing our job, we are more than creative when it comes to generating new ways to provide a quality product or service in a way that maximizes our ability to profit from our hard work. 

When I started my aromatherapy shop, I had saved several thousand dollars from my job. I had a tidy sum of stock available to sell at the drop of a hat and I also had some personal assets that could be sold if I needed to. But did I think of those things? I’m ashamed to say that I did not. And it wasn’t because I didn’t need to … it was because I wasn’t smart enough to, for I truly believed that my aromatherapy shop – the first of its kind anywhere – would be a huge success and all I had to do was open my doors. “If you build it, they will come?” No ... what's more correct is "If you build it and tell them about it, they may come."  

A few weeks ago, I received an email from a woman who was excited about starting her online business. She had perfected several recipes for beauty products, selected her packaging and labels and invested a considerable amount of resources in doing so. She found this newsletter and wrote to tell me how excited she was that she had finally found a way to start a business with “no overhead.”“No overhead,” I asked. What do you mean? She explained to me that, since she would have an online business, she would have no rent, no light bills, no advertising costs, etc., so she would have no overhead. But nothing could be further from truth. Here are some truths: 

1. You can have the greatest, liveliest and most inviting Web site in the world, but if no one comes, it is a colossal waste. Overhead Item No.1 is thus an experienced Web site designer who can create a professional Web presence for you.

2. You can spend tons of time and money starting a business and blow it all by not thoroughly researching the legal requirements associated with your business. Such things as products liability insurance, incorporation fees, tax/accounting services, various state required licenses and maintenance fees, such as Overhead item No.