Part I
Call Center Plus just celebrated 25 years in business!
As we look back at where we started compared to where we are now, we cannot help but be grateful for the many blessings and opportunities that have come our way. One of our biggest blessings, and a huge miracle, is that two years ago we moved into our new building. We still continue to be in awe of the miracle of our new building and the growth we have experienced since the move.
A Little History
For 23 of our 25 years, Call Center Plus was located in a converted garage in a residential neighborhood. In 2014 we began to feel some real growing pains as the city started putting some serious restrictions on the business, such as the number of employees we could have in our little garage space at one time. Ilene came to the realization that she was going to have to move the business out of the garage and that was very scary for her!
Ilene’s first (and least scary at the time) option for moving the business was to find a place to rent. However, it didn’t take long to realize that the cost to rent AND to renovate an existing building was not a smart move financially. So, she started looking for an existing building to buy and remodel. Again, she quickly realized she would have to spend a whole bunch of money and would still not end up with the building she wanted. She finally realized that the smartest (but scariest) thing to do was to build a new call center.
Ilene searched for property and found a .59 acre lot in Logan City. She met with the realtor of the lot and he advised her as to what he assumed the cost of the building would be. It was a frightening figure but she decided she could do it. She got serious about moving out of the garage and into a new building! It’s probably a good thing that she didn’t know at the time that the real cost of the building would be double what the realtor thought it would be. She put a down payment on the lot and started talking to architects and builders.
Ilene chose a builder and he recommended an architect. After working with both of them for several weeks, she developed a bad case of cold feet and backed out. She then began working with a different builder and architect. From this decision, she learned that sometimes, the only way you know you are on the right path, is to go down the wrong path for a just a bit. Within a very short time, Ilene realized the second choice in builder AND architect were definitely the wrong choice! She went back to the original builder and architect and is SO grateful she did!
Blood, Sweat and Tears!
Ilene’s biggest fear was the thought of going into debt. All through the history of the business, she has worked hard to pay cash for everything and to stay away from debt. The very thought of taking out a business loan was almost paralyzing. As she began the process of procuring a loan, Ilene was advised to take advantage of a small business (SBA) loan. She was told the first loan would cover 60 percent of the building costs, the SBA would cover 30 percent, and she would be responsible for 10 percent of the costs as a down payment. In order to come up with that down payment, Ilene started selling everything she had, including her beloved truck, her 4-wheeler, her piano and her own plasma! That’s right! She donated plasma at least twice a week for months to help raise the down payment. Talk about BLOOD, sweat, and tears!
These small, but significant, sacrifices are the just the beginning of the story!
Stay tuned for Part II to find out more!
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