who quit West Point. You can’t quit. Some people get kicked out, but most people don’t quit. The idea that you have to hang in there helped me as an entrepreneur. There were years where I had negative tax returns—negative $25K. I was bleeding and couldn’t get a break—but I couldn’t quit. Some other person is doing it, so I can. Not sure that’s healthy, but I just can’t quit.
Did you, or are you running your business as a part-time or full-time venture? Why?
Full-time. I cannot waste time doing most things part-time.
Did you take on a partner in your business at any time?
I have not taken on a partner. I am signing up referral partners.
How important are mentors in your entrepreneurial career?
They are immensely important. Successful men are helping me more than any other group. This is not an attraction issue but a mentor issue. I appreciate getting good answers to my questions.
Did you start your business with your own capital? Did you try to obtain capital from other sources?
My capital. No.
Why not?
I couldn’t obtain capital. If you start a service company based upon yourself, it is not financeable. I’m a saver and try not to spend the money I have. I’m irritated if I have to touch my savings. As a single parent, I have to keep a lot of money on hand, and when I don’t have that there, I’m stressed. I ran near empty and then took off just in time. All the time I’m thinking I can do it—I just haven’t had my break yet—I can do it.
How important are your social and personal networks to the success of your business?
Social and personal networks are not a factor. Professional networks are key.
So, you view your networks differently? If so, why?
Easy. You can go to NAWBO (the National Association of Women Business Owners) and hug everyone, but I feel it is a professional association. If you need help, they’ll help you. I had a question and asked another NAWBO member and talked with her for 7 minutes one day before work. She put me on the right path; that was good. I professionally network with them but don’t hang out with them at night because I need to be with my son, who is a teenager. There’s no expectation of me to drop by friends’ houses during their family hours. I wouldn’t readily talk to my professional network about my personal problems—that’s the difference between a social network and a business network to me.
Why do you think more single/divorced and widowed women start more businesses than men in their respective categories, and does your theory match your own rationale for starting a business?
We are told that we can’t do things more often. Once you have tried the whole love thing and realized that your goals will be unfulfilled if not filled by you, you activate. I do not need a man to be happy. My company is like a child. The business world is the surrogate father. I can do this alone. When people say you need a husband, they’re saying you can’t make it on your own. Women don’t need to have a husband and don’t need to cook. We are told what we have to do, and I reject that. I always have. My grandmother told me to go to a specific large company and get a job and not go to West Point, but I went anyway, and now that large company is laying off thousands of employees. Women must focus on what they want and can do, not what society explicitly and implicitly suggests that they need to do.
What is your personal definition of success, and have you achieved it?
I want to be debt free and independently wealthy. It won’t ensure happiness, but it will curb certain fears. I am on my way.
Katasha Butler
K Sherrie + Company Planning Atelier
Katasha Butler is the Lead Planner and founder of K Sherrie + Company Planning Atelier, a full service wedding planning boutique for the discerning and style-conscious bride. She also operates a creative and inspiring wedding blog: The Wedding Workroom. After graduating from Danville High School, she studied Chemistry at Spelman College and went on to obtain her Doctor of Pharmacy at Butler University.
So, how did she end up in the wedding industry? It was always in her blood! She planned parties and weddings of classmates and family while in pharmacy school, many times during class. She always stayed current on the fashion trends and new ideas in the wedding industry, so much so that one of her Therapeutics professors started calling her “Glamour Girl.” She always had her head in some type of fashion or wedding glossy, alternating with Principles of Drug Action textbooks. She planned her first full- service wedding from start to finish during clinical rotations. The couple she planned for was extremely pleased and that sealed the deal! After working 9 years in the pharmacy industry, Katasha has truly cultivated her skills for organization, expert planning and meticulous attention to detail. All things considered—at least the decisions that she now makes planning events can’t potentially kill someone! Although formally educated in the areas of mathematics and science, she has always possessed an artistic flair, an eye for style and details, and a creative mind. After consistently being called upon to plan parties, organize professional benefits and fundraisers, and design weddings for friends and family after graduation, she began laying the groundwork to start her own boutique wedding planning firm in 2006. She went back to school, took some business classes, became a certified wedding planner and interned under a successful wedding planner in Indianapolis. Among other things, in the free time that she has left, Katasha enjoys mentoring young ladies as a Girl Scout Cadette troop leader and Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. Rosebud Mentor for Alpha Mu Omega Chapter. She also is a member of the Circle City Chapter of The Links, Inc. and serves on the Board of Directors for Girl Scouts of Central Indiana, United Way Youth As Resources and Shalom Health Care Center in Indianapolis.
K Sherrie + Company Planning Atelier is a full service wedding planning firm. The best service that they offer is a stress- free planning experience for your special celebration. They save you time and ensure that you get the best possible services for your money. They are not here to make decisions for you, but to guide and assist you in making informed decisions. Their training, knowledge, expertise and experience allows them to take your dreams and execute them to your specifications. They want you to host an event designed to your personal aesthetic, where you kick back, relax and have a great time! Let them use their imagination and creativity to design an unforgettable party! They specialize in all encompassing full service planning and design to partial planning, down to our extensive “Month-Of” coordination. You should know that planning your wedding with K Sherrie + Company Planning Atelier would be a luxury and couture planning experience with unparalleled service that produces a matchless event. Their websites include: www.ksherrieco.com, www.eventologyconference.com, and www.theweddingworkroom.com.
What advantages do you think you have as a single solo business owner that married people don’t
