Aboard any nice sea vessel you will find a series of custom stitched canvas articles that can vary from sail covers to shade tops. Each piece of these boating essentials is constantly exposed to the harsh elements of the ocean and therefore must be replaced or repaired on a regular basis. Joe Johnson’s Pelican Loft in San Pedro specializes in these types of installments and while he has only been in business for just over a year, he has seen the demand for his specialty cutout patterns and hand sewn boat items grow substantially. Armed with an outgoing personality, a good background as a designer, and a pair of scissors and 1930 –era sewing machine, Joe has set his sails to the unpredictable winds of small business. However with a steady flow of solid clients and a can-do attitude, Joe sees clear skies ahead for his newly formed business venture.
The Start
How did you start your business?
I worked for the former owner for about seven years before I decided to buy the shop from him. He had owned it for more than 30 years before I bought it. So a lot of my customers I have now have come from him.
How did you fund your business in the beginning?
I basically cashed in everything I had and went for it. I had an offer for a partner to join me, but he backed out. So I jumped into it alone.
Running the Business
How did you learn to run your business?
I started my career at McDonald Douglas and then later with The Boeing Company as a graphic designer. Then in 2007, I got laid off. I started looking for work and knew the owner of this shop because he and I used to surf together. So he hired me and for seven years I worked for him, learning how to fit Biminis, Dodgers, and Enclosures for ships and yachts.
Who was your first customer?
My first customer was a really big one…it was Foss Maritime. That one customer keeps me busier than I can keep up with. They are a huge, international shipping transportation and logistics company.
What’s the biggest mistake you made in the first year?
I haven’t made any big mistakes yet. I am really careful when I measure and cut a pattern for a boat. I return to the boat three or four times before I actually begin to cut the canvas. So far, I haven’t made any mistakes on the business end.
What’s the smartest thing you did in the first year?
The smartest thing was to build a website. I know that sounds stupid, but it really helps sell our business to people who may not know we’re here. The old owner had the business for years and never even had a fax machine. We’re trying to bring the business up to speed as far as technology, but it still a business that has to be done with your hands. The other aspect of the website is that I didn’t spend a lot of money on it. I kept it really simple and cheap, and that was a smart thing to do.
What’s the most rewarding thing about running your own business?
It makes me really happy when I have a customer walk out the door and they are happy. This business requires a lot of work. It may not look like it, but it’s very physically demanding. You have to climb around boats and then you cut out patterns by hand, use scissors and an old sewing machine to sew the canvas. Then you go back and install the fabric to make sure it fits. When someone leaves after I accomplished all that, I am really happy. It makes me feel proud. I think that is the rewarding part.
What’s the most challenging thing about running your own business?
Keeping up with the demand. Since I bought the business last year, we have already seen an increase of nearly five percent in work. I don’t know if it’s because we have a good reputation or because of the really good weather we’ve been having this year. But I have 10 orders backed up and I am still only 50 percent finished with this current job. It’s hard keeping up.
What’s the most surprising thing about running your own business?
There haven’t been any real surprises for me. I worked here for seven years before taking the business over, and I pretty much knew the business inside and out before I became the new owner.
What business owner or entrepreneur do you admire most?
There’s a guy I know, his name is Bob Western and he owns a company called Western Wheels. He has been a real help to me, giving me some advice and educating me on things I don’t really know about running a business. There are small things, but they all help.
What I’ve Learned
If you could go back to when you were starting your business, what advice would you give yourself?
I probably would have started my own business a lot earlier in my career. I’m 51 years old, and it’s hard starting out at my age. But I’m happy I made the plunge.
What do you wish you had known before you had started your business?
Maybe I should have learned some accounting or other areas of billing. I do my own bookkeeping and it’s been OK so far, but it’s always something I hate doing. I can’t afford to hire someone to help me out with that, so I wish I had a little education in the accounting area.
About the Author — Vincent Aviani has been a professional observer of life for nearly 30 years. Starting out his career as a reporter, and then as a community banking communications officer and public relations executive, Vincent has spent his career listening to personal stories and conveying the histories and wisdom within each story to his receptive audience. For the past four years, he has been running his own small business as a professional communications consultant and storyteller.
This article was originally written on December 22, 2014 and updated on July 26, 2016.
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