CHRIST CANDIES - DAY 1 BLOG ENTRY - WRITE THE VISION MAKE IT PLAIN

THIS IS THE FIRST ENTRY FOR THE UPCOMING BOOK CREATING A CHRISTIAN CANDY BAR COMPANY. THE ACTUAL BUSINESS OF CHRIST CANDIES WAS DECIDED ON JANUARY OF 2008. IT CAME WHEN MY 2 LITTLE BOYS STEVIE THOMPSON JR.(5) AND CURTIS THOMPSON (4) GOT SOME SOLID CHOCOLATE FROM A CLIENT I HAD FOR ANOTHER BUSINESS I HAD CALLED CITYSIDE CAR GROOMING PROFESSIONAL SERVICES. I RAN THAT BUSINESS FOR 4 YEARS GROSSING ABOUT $130,000.00 FROM IT. THE MONEY WAS GOOD BUT WHEN YOU ARE DOING INDIVIDUAL SALES BY YOURSELF THE MONEY DOESN'T ADD UP. WITH CHRIST CANDIES I FOUND OUT WHY A LOT OF SNACK COMPANIES GROSS MILLIONS INSTEAD OF THOUSANDS. WELL AFTER MY BOYS STEVE AND CURTIS WAS GIVEN THE CHOCOLATE I WENT HOME TO PREPARE TO TAKE THEM BACK TO THEIR MOTHER SINCE IT WAS MY WEEK TO HAVE THEM THRU CHRISTMAS AND SOME OF THE NEW YEAR WEEK. I TOLD THEM WE WOULD MAKE CANDY WE NEVER GOT A CHANCE TOBECAUSE THEY HAD TO GO. A MONTH OR TWO WENT BY AND THE IDEA OF STARTING A CANDY BAR COMPANY IN CHRIST CAME. IT WAS A IDEA GOD GAVE ME TO HELP OUTTHE KINGDOM AND WIN SOULS WHILE SELLING CANDY BARS. I WAS DATING A GIRL FROM THE ORLANDO AREA NAMED LESLIE HURST. LESLIE SAID SHE WAS GOING TO BE AN INVESTOR BUT SHE LEFT ME THE BEGINNING OF FEBUARY. THE IDEA WAS ALWAYS BEING WORKED ON TO PERFECT THE SALES AND MARKETING OF THE COMPANY. EVENB THOUGH THE BREAK UP OF LESLIE DIDN'T HURT AS LONG AS ANY OTHER RELATIONSHIP I HAD BEFORE I PRAISED GOD AND CONTINUED. GOD KEPT GIVING ME IDEAS. HE GAVE ME THE IDEA OFGETTING CHURCES TO BUY THE CANDY FOR FUNDRAISERS, SO I STARTED FAXING CHURCHES IN MY AREA OF TALLAHASSEE FLORIDA AND THEN ATLANTA GEORGIA. I ALSO STARTED A WEBSITE CALLED CHRISTCANDIES.COM. I RECIEVED TWO CALLS THAT MONTH OF APRIL. ONE FROM A SNACK DISTRIBUTOR FROM MY ONLINE AD FROM MY SITE AND A PASTOR FROM A CHURCH FROM A FAX I SENT OUT TO ATLATA. THE DISTRIBUTOR WAS THAT OF LESTY SALES, HE HAD 70 STORES HE WANTED TO PLACE MY PRODUCT IN, EVEN THOUGH I WASN'T FINISHED WITH DESIGNING THE BAR I TOLD HIM I WOULD SEND HIM OUT A PACKAGE. THE OTHER CALL FROM THE ATLANTA PASTOR HE WANTED TO DO A FUNDRAISER FOR HIS CHURCH. HE HAD 1000 MEMBERS BUT WASN'T SURE WHEN HE WAS GOING TO START. I NEVER AS OF JULY GOT THE GUYS STARTED BUT IT TRIGGERED ME TO WORK HARD TO FINISH DEVELOPING THE COMPANY AND BARS.IN JULY I MOVED TO CLEVELAND OHIO WITH MY FIANCE ANGELA ISOM. ANGELA WAS A LOT LIKE ME BUSINESS WISE AND SHE'S A VERY FOCUSED PERSON. SHE CAME UP WITH A IDEA SOMEONE ELSE BY THE NAME SARANO KELLEY WHO WROTE THE GAME. THE IDEA WAS TO FOCUS ON A GOAL FOR 9O DAYS. HER GOAL WAS HER BOOK THONGS AND BRA STRAPS AND IT'S SALES TO RISE AND MINE WAS TO PUT THE FINISHING TOUCHES ON CHRIST CANDIES. THE LAST WEEK OF JULY WE WERE IN OUR NECK IN BILLS AND NEEDED TO DO SOMETHING. I PUT IN JOBS EVERYWHERE BUT NOTHING. I DIDN'T WORK FOR NO ONE IN 8 YEARS, I HAD A HABIT OF WORKING FOR MYSELF. IN 2000 TO 2004 I RAN A RECORD LABEL CALLED CITYSIDE RECORDS WHICH I TURNED INTO A GOSPEL/CHRISTIAN LABEL FOR THE PURPOSE OF MINISTRY IN 2006. ALTHOUGH I MADE A GROSS OFF100,000.00 FROM THE LABEL I FELT I COULD MAKE MORE BUT GIVING GOD MORE THRU PRAISE AND WORSHIP SONGS THAT ALSO MINISTERED TO THE LOST AND BACK SLIDING SOULS. I WAS CURRENTLY STILL SELLING 3 OF THE CHRISTIAN RAP CD'S I COMPLETED WITHIN 7 MONTHS A MILLION AND 1 SOULS SAVED VOLUMES 1 THRU 3. GOD TOLD ME THATS A FOCUS BUT NOT THE NEXT FOCUS. IT SEEMED TO ME ALL MEANS NECESSARY TO WIN SOULS FOR THE LORD.I FINALLY UNDERSTOOD THAT I WAS PUSHING MY LABEL/MINISTRY FOR A CERTAIN PERIOD TO WINN THE THOUSANDS OF SOULS THRU MY MUSIC IT WAS THAT SEASON FOR IT. THE NEXT SEASON IS THE CANDY BAR COMPANY CHRIST CANDY. BUT THE LAST WEEK OF JULY I SAW SOMETHING TOTALLY RADICAL THE LORD SHOWED ME. (SEE JOURNAL ENTRY DAY 3).WELL ON THAT LAST WEEK OF JULY 2008 I FINALLY STOP STRESSING ABOUT THE BILLS BECAUSE I KNEW GOD WILL WORK IT OUT AND IT WAS JUST SEEING MY FIONCE TALK ABOUT IT THAT MADE ME THE WAY I WAS.ON MONDAY THE SPIRIT LED ME AND HER TO A TEMP AGENCY CALLED SIGNATUR STAFFING WHERE I GOT HIRED AND WENT TO A JOB DOING PRINTING. USUALLY ON DAILY LABOR JOBS YOU DO DIFFERENT JOBS EACH DAY BUT THE LORD BLESSED ME TO BE IN ONE PLACE THAT WEEK. (WEEK OFJULY 28TH). DAY 1 JOURNALJULY 28THON THE FIRST DAY OF THE JOB I READ THIS BIO OF BILL GATES AND HOW HE WAS FOCUSED ON HIS PRODUCT AND NOT MONEY. EVEN THOUGH THE BOOK MENTIONED HOW MUCH HE MADE I READ BETWEEN THE LINES AND HE WAS FOCUSED ON THE PRODUCT NOT THE MONEY. AND THATS HOW HE BECAME A BILLIONAIRE. HE DESIGNED A SYSTEM (ROYALTY SYSTEM) WHICH HELPED THAT HAPPEN, LIKE THAT OF PUBLISHING IN THE MUSIC BIZ WHEN SOMEONE USES YOUR IDEA OR PRODUCT YOU GET PAID. SEEING THIS MADE ME FOCUS ON A SYSTEM FOR PAY FIRST LIKE BILL GATES DID THEN THE PRODUCT, MARKETING, PROMOTIONS AND R&D. AFTER ANGELA DROPPED ME OFF I WENT IN AND STARTED WORKING WELL DURING WORK THE MACHINE THAT PRINTED WAS MOVING SLOW. IT SPIT OUT A COUPLE OF BLANK SHEETS OF PAPER AT TIMES WHEN IT WASN'T PRINTING RIGHT. SINCE I WAS DRESSED FOR BUSINESS IN THIS DIRTY PRINT SHOP AND HAD A PEN ON MY EAR LIKE I WAS IN MIDDLE SCHOOL AGAIN, I DECIDED TO WRITE IDEAS THAT GOD GAVE ME. WRITE THE VISION MAKE IT PAIN (HAB 2:2 OLD TESTIMENT) GOD GAVE ME THE IDEA OF THE SALES TEAM PER YEAR IN 20 CITIES WITH 50 SALES REPS IN EACH. THE CANDY BARS COST .22CENTS TO MAKE AND THE COMPANY WOULD MAKE .38 CENTS IN NET PROFIT EACH SALE. .40 CENTS WOULD GO TO NON PROFIT AGENCIES AND ANOTHER DOLLAR WOULD BE USED TO PAY THE SALES REPS. STATING IN ONE CITY THE COMPANY WOULD MAKE $1500.00 PER DAY AND 2500 BARS WOULD BE DISTRIBUTED DAILY. I PLACED THE LOWEST SALES POINT FOR EACH REP SO THAT THEY WOULDN'T BE PRESSURED TO MEET ANY HIGH SALES EXPECTATIONS. IF EACH REP WANTED TO MAKE MINIMUM WAGE DAILY PAY THEY WOULD HAVE TO SALE 6 TO 7 BARS PER HOIUR INCLUDING SOME PREORDERS FOR CASES AT LEAST 1 PER DAY WHICH WOULD GIVE THEM ABOUT $60 TO $70 PER DAY. SEEING THIS LET ME KNOW THAT IF IT WAS IN 20 CITIES PER YEAR WE WOULD DISTRIBUTE 600,000 BARS FROM EACH CITY TOTALING 600,000,000 BARS PER YEAR. IWROTE THE GOAL OF DEVELOPING 20 CITY SALES TEAMS PER YEAR. THE REVENUES WOULD COME ANYWAY.I ALSO DID A PROFIT DIVISION TO DISTRIBUTE WHERE THER MONEY WOULD GO. IT WAS AS FOLLOWS:TOTAL = .60 CENTS = 100%PROFIT = .38 CENTS = 64%AVG COST = .22 CENTS = 36%PROFIT DIVISION = .38 CENTS/INVESTMENTS/CASH RESERVE R&D ADS/PROMOTIONS TAXES/INSURANCE.15 .04 .04 .04SUPPLIES RENTAL & UTILITIES UNION & MEMBERSHIP DUES TRAVEL& STAY OTHER.01 .04 .01 .02 .03BREAKDOWN OF $360,000.00 / 600,000 BARS 1 CITY SALES PROFITS/INVESTMENTS = $45,000CASH RESERVE = $45,000R&D = $24,000ADS/PROMOTIONS = $24,000TAXES/INSURANCE = $24,000SUPPLIES = $6,000RENTAL/UTILITIES = $24,000UNION/MEMBERSHIP DUES = $6,000TRAVEL & STAY = $12,000MISC/OTHER = $18,000CANDY BAR COST = $132,000THESE WERE THE FIGURES. THERE WERE OTHER NOTES THAT I WROTE ABOUT 3 STAFF MEMBERS PER CITY THE FIGURES ABOVE WERE FOR ONE CITY. I DIDN'T INCLUDE MYSELF A SALARY BECAUSE I WAS GOING TO BE A REP AS WELL GOING DOOR TO DOOR AND ESTIMATED I WOULD ONLY MAKE ABOUT $18,000 PER YEAR FOR THE FIRST 2 YEARS.