Evolution of an Enterprise, Chapter 30: Closing the Book on Year 1

Jason Mitchell and Michael Mardis didn’t exactly hit the jackpot in their first year operating design studio theworkshop 308. Then again, most startups don’t.

Their modest profit was $8,129, but they don’t care.

“I’m really excited about having one year under our belt,” Mitchell said. “It (was) the most fun year of my life, without a doubt.”

Mitchell called the year a learning experience that was more about “getting our legs underneath us” than making lots of money.

“For the first time in our lives and our careers, we’ve been able to do whatever we wanted to, and I think that was awesome,” Mardis added.

Progressive payouts

The year picked up momentum as it progressed. Mitchell and Mardis launched theworkshop 308 on Jan. 8, and they landed their first paying job the next month with a $4,600 custom display unit for Staxx Apparel, 331 South Ave.

“I really think Staxx was a turning point, because that was the commercial stuff that we didn’t realize was out there,” Mardis said.

The next paying gig came in April when Mitchell and Mardis were hired by development firm Matt Miller Co. to refinish concrete countertops in one loft apartment in the Founders Park building, 331 E. Water St.

In May, in conjunction with their grand opening celebration at their 308 W. Commercial St. offices, Mitchell and Mardis sold a $410 red table to Ruth Arick, a self-employed health care consultant. That was the first piece of custom furniture they sold off their showroom floor.

Building custom furniture was an early emphasis for the company, but that waned as commercial jobs took over. They built a $4,700 package of a front counter and two workstations for Prix Tattoo, 420 S. Campbell Ave., before landing the two biggest jobs of the year.

In July, Marti Montgomery, an attendance adviser for Springfield R-XII School District, hired Mitchell and Mardis to design a house for her. Montgomery declined to disclose what she’s paying Mitchell and Mardis for their efforts, but she has a $150,000 budget to build the house on land she owns near Rogersville.

Design work is nearly complete on Montgomery’s house, and construction should begin in the spring.

About the same time, Mitchell and Mardis met Jim Hamilton, who was planning to open a coffeehouse in Springfield with friend Tom Billionis. A conversation began and Hamilton and Billionis hired Mitchell and Mardis to design furniture for The Coffee Ethic, which opened Dec. 7 in the Kresge building on Park Central Square.

Hamilton and Billionis wouldn’t disclose Mitchell’s and Mardis’ payday for that job, though Mitchell said in September that it was their biggest contract of the year.

Rough patch

The year wasn’t all smooth sailing, of course.

Their biggest headache, other than simply trying to land business, came in their first two months, when a controversy arose over the title of “architect.”

Passing nine licensing tests is required to legally use the title of “architect” in Missouri, and Mitchell and Mardis haven’t finished those tests.

A statement made by Mardis early on concerned some local architects and prompted a letter to the editor. “I think, yeah, we’re architects,” Mardis said in January. “I don’t see any reason why we can’t call ourselves architects. We can’t say we’re licensed architects, but we’re architects.”

Mitchell and Mardis, both of whom are graduates of Drury University’s Hammons School of Architecture, quickly corrected the record. “

We represent ourselves as residential and furniture designers. That’s it,” Mitchell said weeks later, noting that perhaps the duo hadn’t clearly communicated their position.

After that brief storm, both men set out to begin taking the architect licensing tests. They’ve finished a few exams, and they plan to have all nine tests finished in early 2008.

Sticking to it

The rest of 2008 looks bright, too, according to Mitchell.

There’s continued work on Montgomery’s house, plus a lot of potential work that’s still in discussion phases: designing a 12-house development at Lake of the Ozarks, designing about 50 houses for a development in southeast Missouri, designing a single house in the Springfield area, designing furniture for a Springfield church and even taking on a third partner in Chicago.

“All (of) next year can just be stupid busy,” he said.

In October, theworkshop 308 relocated to 301 N. Main St., inside the 100-year-old, 11,000-square-foot Green Barn Woodworks building. Mitchell and Mardis plan to sign a long-term lease with building owner Jeff Avenmarg, though Mardis said they haven’t signed the contract yet and details are still being worked out.

So, with a full year of entrepreneurship under their belts, what advice do Mitchell and Mardis have for would-be business owners?

“Have fun, be patient (and) stick to what you know,” Mitchell said.

Year 2

This is the last Evolution of an Enterprise installment on the first year of theworkshop 308.

Springfield Business Journal is seeking a company to follow in the second year of this special series dedicated to startups. If you, or someone you know, is planning to open a business in early 2008 and would like to be considererd, please e-mail Editor Eric Olson at eolson@sbj.net.[[In-content Ad]]