5 minute read
Failure is not an Option for Juliet Boydstun of the COOP
Failure is Not an Option for
Juliet Boydstun of the COOP
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by Elizabeth Denham
If you ask Juliet Boydstun what she thinks is the key to success, she will tell you it’s not having a great idea, it’s having great execution – and believing that failure is not an option.
“Having the idea is not the hard part. It is having the idea and doing it. It’s showing up for 11 years,” Boydstun said. “You have to have faith in yourself. We had moments of panic, but we kept pushing.”
Boydstun and her partner, Lucinda Lent started the COOP 11 years ago in Los Angeles as a special event space for children’s parties and have attracted celebrities such as Julie Bowen, Isla Fisher and Liv Tyler. The space is a fun, cool play and party space for kids, and adults are not forgotten. There is a lovely outdoor garden, free WiFi, cappuccino bar, fabulous magazines and stress-free parties where adults can relax and let the staff do the work. Kids’ parties are filled with fun, themed decorations and activities. Play times throughout the week offer an enormous ball pit, a two-story curly slide, a rope climbing tunnel and a fantastic bouncer equipped with a basketball net. Kids can pow wow in the COOP teepee or dance the day away on the electronic dance and gaming floor.
When Boydstun and Lent started the COOP, they always believed in the concept. But execution wasn’t easy. “We went to get a loan, and every banker was male. At the time, there was no one doing what we were doing, and the bankers didn’t get the concept,” Boydstun laughed. “We wound up getting an SBA loan specifically for women, and here we are 11 years later with at least 20 direct competitors.”
From the beginning, Boydstun and Lent decided that failure was not an option. Whatever it took, they were going to make the COOP successful. They knew they had to keep events booked, and they had back-up plans in case they didn’t have a full schedule.
“We never had to use a “Plan B,” but we were ready to call in bloggers to see the space and write about it. We would have opened free play days with cupcakes – anything to get people in the space. We worked hard and kept pushing, and we have paid our bills and made it work.”
From the beginning, the women believed the COOP was bigger than just the two of them. And the Shark Tank investors agreed.
“We went on Shark Tank to franchise, but they tried to talk us out of it,” Boydstun said. “They thought our numbers were so high and we were doing so well, that we should go out and get a loan and keep all of the locations.”
As creatives, Boydstun and Lent knew they needed some help from someone who was more business-minded in order to grow. They also knew that with a hands-on business model like the COOP, it was not possible for them to run multiple locations. When Barbara Corcoran from Shark Tank became their investor, it took her a year or two to come around to the idea of franchising, but in 2012, she advised them that it was time.
“Lucinda and I are creative people. Shark Tank was a way for us to get some business advice and support. And it is a phenomenal resource for the entrepreneur. Every time our episode airs, our analytics go up dramatically, and we get more emails from people looking for a franchise,” Boydstun added. “Seven years later, we are still benefitting from that experience.”
Boydstun recognizes that a hands-on business model like the COOP’s makes it harder to find just the right fit in a franchisee. It’s not something you can buy and watch it run itself.
“We have built a great platform, but you do need to engage with the customers,” Boydstun explained. “One of the key things we try to do is manage people’s expectations about what owning a franchise is all about. That it is
YOUR business, and you have to work it. Being an entrepreneur isn’t just about getting a paycheck, if that is the attitude, get a regular job. Owning a franchise is still very entrepreneurial. It’s on you to work it and grow it.” Boydstun thrives on being involved in business ownership and the constant evolution of her business − and her enthusiasm is contagious.
“There is nothing greater than having your own business – the sense of pride you have is amazing. And for my boys to watch their mom do something like this is amazing, and my little girl, too! They have an experience that I think is pretty cool – they watch me work hard, and get results. They can see first-hand that anything is possible. I can’t imagine my life any other way! I am still excited. I still love it. I have never loved a job this long.”
