Three years of submergence in the entrepreneurial adventure yields a lot of obstacles. More importantly, it yields a lot of lessons to be learned by overcoming them. The faster entrepreneurs can learn and adapt, the more business savvy they become, providing their business with staying power. Jim and Sandy Bob, the owners of Diamond Printers, have done this by weathering three tough years of operation, to come out shining…like a diamond.
One obstacle the Bobs didn’t have to overcome was financing. “Our loan from TACC went smoothly,” says Jim. “And they’ve visited in person to help mentor us with our business. Every once in a while, people need a boost; they need to hear someone say ‘You’re doing a good job.’ I have recommended TACC to others who ask me where I got my financing, and want to open a business of their own.”

The Bobs entered the printing industry when Sandy enrolled in a two-year course at Vancouver Community College. “She learned about design, layout, and printing presses during her course,” Jim says. “The students ran the school’s printing business too. The business had clients, and also did print jobs for the school. But when Sandy graduated, she discovered a hole in the job market in our area. She didn’t want to continue commuting from Seabird Island to Vancouver, so we started talking about opening a business here. We got everything together, and had a pressman come in and instruct me on how to use the machinery.”

Sandy and Jim fired up the presses for the opening of Diamond Printers in November of 2003, but the transition from student and employee to entrepreneur status wasn’t easy. “It was tight, money-wise,” Jim says. “The big investment and career change was overwhelming. But, we stuck with it and we’re still open!” Working twice as hard to overcome financial obstacles, Sandy and Jim keep jobs outside of their company. “I work construction, and Sandy teaches computer classes at the learning centre on our reserve.”

One of the biggest obstacles the husband and wife team has had to overcome is trying to win customers away from the competition. “It’s been really difficult getting people who already have a printer, to try our services,” Jim says. “But when we get discounts from our suppliers, we pass the savings on to our customers.” Advertising these specials is getting the Diamond Printers name out, and garnering them new clients.

With the stiff competition and price-cutting in the printing industry, Jim and Sandy have adapted by diversifying their services. “Our silk screening has turned out to be more profitable and less competitive than offset printing,” says Jim. “We started it as a supplement for printing, now it’s the majority of our business and our biggest moneymaker! Mothers Against Drunk Driving sent us a letter of thanks for doing such a great job on their t-shirts!”

The personal / professional relationship aspect of the business is one area that remains obstacle-free for the married owners. “It’s all beneficial,” Jim says. “We get along so well, that there just aren’t any challenges to working together. If it were a partnership with another person, you couldn’t comfort that person as much. Our challenges are outside our relationship, like working at our jobs and then coming back to work the print shop after putting in a full day.”

The experience Jim and Sandy have acquired provides an advantage to entrepreneurs who can adapt and learn to follow it. “It’s easy to get discouraged,” Jim says. “But stay focused. We fell behind on our loans and almost threw in the towel. That can really take your focus off of what you want, but everyone we spoke to at the loaning companies told us to stick with it – and we did.”

Embarking on 2007, Jim and Sandy set the standard goal of every entrepreneur: “Financial success!” The New Year also means exploring new possibilities discovered while overcoming obstacles of the past. “We might sell some printing machinery and use the money to increase productivity in the silk screening area,” Jim says. “But we’ll definitely keep our color copier for printing business cards and brochures. The quality is as good as the press, and that impresses our customers. Plus, they always tell us how happy they are with the friendly atmosphere in our store, and that’s one thing we’ll never change!