Success Stories

Success Stories from the Small Business Development Center

Kaitlin Bachelor - Ranch House Early Learning

Ranch House Early Learning

Kaitlin Bachelor opened Ranch House Early Learning to serve families from Redmond, Powell Butte and Prineville. Kaitlin and her husband Kyle had long wanted to open an at-home farm school while homeschooling their three daughters on their full-time working ranch. After joining COCC’s Early Child Care Business Start Accelerator in the Fall of 2022, and thanks to ongoing, regular one-to-one SBDC business advising, Kaitlin is now busy running a fully licensed certified family child care program at her Central Oregon livestock ranch, with an emphasis on hands-on learning.

Kaitlin first focused on clarifying her hours of operation and legal entity, working through State of Oregon requirements. Her SBDC adviser provided pricing assistance, and also helped Kaitlin familiarize herself with budgeting tools and startup/operating cost calculations. Together, they defined her school’s policies & procedures, and Kaitlin developed a comprehensive parent handbook.

The SBDC worked with Kaitlin to do a financial analysis for the Ranch House, and she also completed a competitor analysis with other providers from Powell Butte, Redmond, and Prineville to compare her program pricing with the current market in her area. As Kaitlin says: "They basically lined out what I needed to do to be successful."

After a lot of study and determined effort, Kaitlin successfully opened her licensed certified family child care business at her ranch. She is operating full time, Monday-Friday, 8am to 3pm, for ages 2 to 12 years old in the Powell Butte community, and is currently at full capacity. Kaitlin’s proud and well-deserved conclusion: “I opened my doors… and it's a pretty good feeling.”
Nicholas Buccafurni - Vellum Design Studio

Vellum Design Studio

Nicholas ‘Bucca’ Buccafurni first reached out to Central Oregon SBDC in 2022 when he found himself at a professional crossroads. Bucca is a talented custom home designer and he was evaluating an attractive opportunity with an existing builder versus establishing his own design firm. He came to the SBDC very experienced in his field, with a lot of research and specific calculations under his belt. However, he had never owned his own business before, and knew that he could use some objective feedback.

With SBDC business adviser Sue Meyer, Bucca was able to freely brainstorm pricing strategies, insurance needs, website content, and current economic trends. After identifying his target market and weighing his options, he decided to go it alone in January 2023.

While Bucca was building his clientele, he was able to tap into Sue’s expertise for the various ‘delicate’ challenges that typically come with first-time business ownership. For example, the timing for messaging on late payments, requesting deposits from new clients, collecting an overdue invoice… Eventually the challenges became much more positive, such as how to tactfully turn down jobs that wouldn’t fit his company’s profile, or how to identify builders with projects that would be appropriate for the firm.

Central Oregon Builders Association (COBA) recently presented Vellum Design Studio with the award for “2023 Home Designer of the Year,” a remarkable achievement for such a young firm!

As Bucca graciously told his proud business adviser at the SBDC: “…you have been such an integral part in helping me start my company, that I wanted to share some good news. Last night, the Central Oregon Builders Association (COBA) presented my firm with the award for "2023 Home Designer of The Year." It is a peer nominated award and I am so grateful to receive this, especially in my first year of business ownership. Thank you, Sue, for your guidance, wisdom and approachability. This award would not be possible without you!”