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What inspired you to start your business? Do you still feel the same way?

Hey Seller Community! 

 

We're trying out something new here today - we'd love to hear about what inspired you to start your business and if you still feel the same way about it now. 

 

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Please feel free to reply below with your thoughts and a bit about your business! You can share any websites or social links if you'd like 🙂

Seamus
Square, Australia
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Well this is a tough one, as I haven't really thought of it as an inspiration.

I have spent my whole life in and around family business's and for most of my life I had no desire to have my own business.  But here I am with a small business in country Victoria with my wife, 3 young children and 12 staff (which sometimes act like children).

 

As I was growing up, my parents would always say to me "Go to school, get a good job".  So I did, went to Uni, got a job and for 14 years worked a corporate job. I worked for one of the biggest companies in the world and loved it, but deep down inside I wasn't fulfilled.

 

What inspired me to leave my corporate life, wanting to make things better for my family. Spend more time with my children. Have more freedom.

 

So in October of 2019, My wife and I bought my parent's Fish and Chip shop in Castlemaine Victoria. My parents had owned this business since I was 4 years old. It was time for them to retire and now at the age of 37 I own it.

 

I now have a 5 minute commute to work instead of the 1h10m it took to get from Mulgrave to Altona.

I drop my kids off and pick them up every day. I work more hours now but the more I work the more rewards I receive.

 

So why did I start this journey, I felt I could make the experience at our shop better.  I did a lot of research into technology and found Square. I wanted to be one the most technologically advanced takeaways going around.  I think we are close to it.  We take online orders through Square. We have 2 Square iPad registers (one is set up to receive online orders). We have another 2 iPads set up to run phone orders. We use Fresh KDS and have 4 KDS screens for the different stations. We use Fresh KDS order ready TV screens so customers can see their order is either Preparing or Ready for collection on 2 separate TV screens. The best part of all this system is the integration, this makes our lives so much easier.

 

So have I made a better life for my family, I believe so.

Am I Happier, most of the time. 

Is it as easy as I thought it would be, definitely not.

Can we still improve, always.

 

Anyway, I have another 30 odd years to catch my parent so plenty of time to perfect the art of Fish and Chips.

 

Thanks 

 

Chris from Blue Sea Fish Shop Castlemaine 

 

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Thanks for sharing @dimo10 👍

 

I love hearing about the innovation you're bringing to an iconic Aussie business, the local fish and chip shop. Not just in the use of new tech, but also in the execution of your ideas - you didn't mention it in this post, but the way you were able to help rally your local taxi drivers to deliver food during COVID lockdowns was an inspiring story! It's stuff like this that helps keep communities buzzing, especially in times of hardship like we've seen in Victorian communities for the past year and a bit.

 

I'd be lying if I said I've never felt the allure of owning my own business and becoming my own boss. For now I love what I do at Square, but there's still plenty of time for it to happen down the track - I'd love to own a record/retro games store one day.

 

Hope things are going well in Castlemaine, I've been meaning to get up there for a while. There seems to be a lot going on outside of the recent lockdowns with festivals, new breweries and lot of live music at the Bridge Hotel!

 

 

 

Seamus
Square, Australia
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What inspired you to start your business?

My inspiration comes from 2 experiences, my professional and personal experiences. This is a lengthy response. I would like to thank everyone in advance if you read through the entire section, for your patience in this novel I am about to share. 

We are a not-for-profit registered Charity called Abundance College Inc. (https://abundancecollege.org.au

https://www.facebook.com/abundancecollege)

 

My son was diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder in primary school, as he received a late diagnosis (almost 7), we missed out on any early intervention support. In addition to this, as he progressed through school, the support and learning did not follow. I did a lot of research to understand what we may be required to change, or accommodate, or advocate for, and as I reached out to other parents, found they also had little support and often needed to seek answers from the education system. This was quite hard for me to come to terms with, and although quite common for many with autism spectrum disorder, to have learning difficulties, the research swayed more to personal attributes over scholastic attributes, this made it quite hard for me to get my head around. In addition to no support other than in school, which I was led to believe, I discovered that not only was this support very minimum, but also found many teachers and teacher aides had little to no understanding of how to support and encourage growth in those with autism spectrum disorder. 

 

My son built his first computer at the age of 4 (with our support) and was able to turn on, log in, activate apps, use a mouse and keyboard, and type his first name on the computer by the time he was 3. He did not speak his first word until he was 4 1/2. When he was in year 1, his teacher marked him with an F for the school's computer subject. So, as a parent more than likely would, knowing his strengths in this field, I approached the teacher bragged about his abilities from an incredibly young age, and for her to explain her reason for failing him in this subject. Her reply to me was: "That is surprising. He does not turn a computer on in the lab and waits for a teacher or aide to tell him he can turn the computer on." I did feel a little crushed to hear this but responded with a comment about all kids knowing that as soon as they walk into the computer lab, they are to turn their computer's on and start their lesson. She disagreed, saying "It should be common knowledge to either turn the computer or, or turn it back off if we are doing a theory lesson in their books, but they will be told to turn their computers back off and work through the book."

As I heard this, I found my son did everything right, as he had learnt at home, he is not allowed to turn the computer on until 1: he has asked a person from an adult, and 2: the permission has been granted. I quickly replied with "So there are choices of learning in that class? It could be a day of bookwork or a day of computer work. But no 2 days are the same." She agreed, I quickly replied with "So, is it possible that my son has not turned on the computer in the lab because he has not been given permission by an adult to turn the computer on and he is aware that there may a possibility that there is not computer work for the day. So you are saying that if all the other students walk in and turn their computer on, that they are passing a subject, but my son, who may quite possibly be following rules learnt at home - that you need to receive permission from an adult, but also, that until the teacher has told the class to do computer or bookwork, he would not know which way the lesson is going to lead. So are you saying, that because no instruction has been given to any of those students - that they are to attend school lessons living on assumptions?" 

She did not know how to respond, but each term report card he received an A from this teacher. I also found that any support medically, socially or through education for him and also for his family was non-existent without having very large pockets. I spent a few years researching, and also found support through other countries, especially in the UK where the majority are very strong positive advocates for the Spectrum. I studied a few of their courses to gain a higher level of understanding for the support and strategies they provide to those with Autism. As we progressed through school years with my son, and now also my daughter who was showing a high level of learning difficulties, however, the public health system seemed to find a way to constantly misplace her health record, or decide that an 18-month waiting period to see a professional regarding support, and ultimately a diagnosis so she is not penalised for misunderstanding, or struggling with classes, isn’t important, and is considered acceptable to remove my daughter from the waiting list so they could plan a new type of referral process that would be available 3 years later. Both my children are now in year 12, and have goals they are working towards, which includes going to university through the pathway method, work and saving up for their own car, house, holiday, and future plans.

 

In addition to my own personal life, my professional life as a vocational trainer, I found my managers/business owners/directors found that people with disabilities, or actually require support to learn, or adjustments to how they are taught/assessed is considered “too hard”, not financially viable, and there are plenty of other wallets that can be found in the community that would not require a trainer to spend time with a student. I found those with the biggest barriers to employment, are the ones who are willing to learn, gain skills and be prepared to work. After being shafted from 2 Registered Training Organisations (RTO), and taken advantage of with 3, I built a burning desire to want to start my own RTO that actually supports those no one else wants to. The first point of training was by using the Square App as a training tool. I would collect items from many places, and we would have small “Shopping Day” classes with play money and play cards. As I built my client base, my programs also increased, and eventually, with the support of the square app, we started a mobile coffee and rolled ice cream trailer where we teach people with disabilities how to learn to make coffees, rolled ice creams, use the point of sale, serve customers, all students have an opportunity to complete their training while being enrolled in a Certificate II in Hospitality or a Certificate III in Hospitality that is delivered by MiHaven RTO.

 

In addition to our coffee trailer, we set up a small social enterprise, employing those that have shown initiative in their learning and are wanting to work. https://www.javatrain.cafe/ (powered by square 😊)

 

Student making an iced long blackStudent making an iced long black  The tastiest Rolled Ice Cream in Redlands QLDThe tastiest Rolled Ice Cream in Redlands QLDcroissants served with a smile!croissants served with a smile!No 2 cup designs are the same!No 2 cup designs are the same!

 

Abundance College Inc is not yet our own Registered Training Organisation, but this goal is still something we are aiming for.  We do need $35,000 to set this up, this includes accounting, consulting, and resource fees.

 

Do you still feel the same way?

Absolutely, every day I feel as much passion, joy and excitement, when you are working with mental health clients, and on day one they wanted to leave 3 hours into the lesson, constantly, then see them now, 13 weeks later, and they arrive an hour before class and ask if they can stay to help pack up at the closing time, the feeling to know you facilitated this through small supportive steps, is the most gratifying emotion, knowing there are plenty more that can be supported the same way, means so much to me, and gives me the greatest feeling of achievement.

https://www.facebook.com/javatraincafe

 

When students come in feeling anxious and too scared to touch a cash register, but have the biggest smile on their face when they serve a customer by touching pictures, or coffee names, and asking them to insert, tap or swipe, then see a piece of paper come out of the machine, you can feel their confidence levels shoot through the roof.

register_trainingregister_training

 

I would like to thank you all again for reading. I really do hope you enjoyed this, and I am honoured to have shared my story with you!

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@Javatrain Thank you so much for taking the time to share your story!

 

What you've been able to do here sounds amazing, and a testament to your dedication towards bettering the lives of your children and other kids in similar situations. I've heard it said before that some of the biggest hurdles placed in front of people with autism and other neurodivergent conditions are the ones society puts there - it sounds like Abundance College is doing a great job helping remove some of those barriers and giving young people chances to succeed that they may otherwise not have had. 

 

Props for having the will and fortitude to forge a new path where one didn't previously exist! I have no doubt the work you're doing will help these kids develop the confidence to recognise their capabilities and help them succeed in their adult lives.


Your son and daughter may be interested to know that Neurodiversity is celebrated at Square - I'm aware that we have some autistic developers who work on building Square products, so some of what you're using here has actually been built by people like your kids who have gone on to become coders, engineers and web/software/hardware developers. We have an active internal Neurodiversity social community that helps promote awareness, inclusion and empowerment for neurodivergent people from a range different backgrounds. 

 

If your son had the ability to build a computer at the age of four, he has a pretty unique skillset that will hopefully serve him really well in the future. I know when I was 4 I was struggling just putting my Duplo blocks together!

Thanks again for sharing your story, it warmed my heart on a cold and rainy Melbourne afternoon ❤️

Seamus
Square, Australia
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We decided to open a wine bar after enjoying one too many glasses in a little venue in Paris!

 

We fell in love with the little bar, just near the Canal St Martin, while on holiday. As we drank wine and ate cheese & charcuterie we said we would be regulars there, if we ever moved to France...

 

As that wasn't on the cards we decided to re-create that little piece of Paris for ourselves, right here in Melbourne. 

 

We did 5 years of "research" in France, Spain and London (tough work), collecting inspiration that we could add a particularly local twist to - while we're inspired by European venues, we sell only Victorian wines.

 

A complete change of industry was a very steep learning curve and every single day still brings something new, even after 6 years of trading. That's all part of the fun!

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Thanks for sharing your story @Smithward!

 

My partner and I had wine, olives and raclette at your venue a few years back - can confirm you've nailed the ambience of a European style wine bar and the food and drinks were 👌 🥂

Seamus
Square, Australia
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