Interview with:Teresa Spinelli [teresaspinelli]
ENTREPRENEUR
 | What is the business idea that you are working on right now? How did you come up with it? Working on some team building exercises for my staff, and planning a retreat to focus on what our goals are so that we are all on the same page.
I thought of doing it this way, since my team is an integral part of our success! |
| Is there a website, blog or social media link where we can see more about your project and/or yourself? Full profile on Linkedin. I also have a personal Facebook page and a business Facebook page. |
| What is your professional background? What were you doing before? I literally was born into this business. Have never worked anywhere else,and this is my passion. |
| How did the entrepreneurial spirit rise up in you? Were you exposed to entrepreneurship in your family or your social environment when you were a child? My father was very entrepreneurial, I watched and learned as much as I could from him. I always wanted to do something bigger and better. |
| Do you have partners working with you on this? How do you split the work with them? No partners. Just read a lot and spoke to a lot of different entrepreneurs about what they did, what they liked, what they would have done differently etc.. |
| Describe your business plan as briefly and simply as possible. To run a successful, profitable business where people are excited about their jobs, are given an environment to grow and are respected and recognized for their accomplishments. |
| What have you achieved up to now? What have you yet to achieve? I have successfully opened a second store, want to open more! Given opportunities to my staff to grow in terms of learning and moving up. |
| Are you looking for investors? What are you offering in exchange for what? Not really...but always open to new opportunities. |
| Do you have employees or people that you outsource tasks to? What do they do? Of course! I have a CFO, General Manager, Personal Assistant, store managers etc...they do very important jobs. |
| Entrepreneurs have a reputation as "control freaks." How do you avoid that? I am a control freak! Have to avoid it or else we would never grow. I trust that I have the right people in the right place. |
| How do you balance work with relaxation? Still working on that one! |
| What is your main motivation: being your own boss, adventure and discovery, getting rich, doing good for others, or is there something else? For me, it's all about people. It's about making a difference in every thing we touch and all the people I am in contact with. Making a difference in someones life. The needs that drive me are Connection, Commitment and Contribution. |
| What do you think of big corporations? Would you work for one? I think we need them! At this point in my life, I would not work for one.
I do think there are some great corporations out there, that give people increbible opportunities. |
| Describe two moments of maximum fear and maximum satisfaction that you have lived through in your business adventure. Maximum fear, when I took a large sum of money and invested in the stock market, knowing very little about it.
Maximum satisfaction when I reorganized the structure of my company, which was met with much resistance. |
| When you need guidance or advice, where do you find it? I joined a business group called TEC. It was awesome. Whether you own a million dollar company or a 100 million dollar company the issues are all the same. |
| Up to what point is luck is important? How do you attract it? Luck is just being open to all possiblities. Being positive and believing in miracles! |
| What do you do to maintain morale and continue persevering in low times? Just focus on what is best for the company. Listen, listen, listen, my door is always open. Do things for the 'right' reasons and everything will fall into place. |
| Which well known entrepreneurs/enterprises do you admire? Why? Oprah because she is all about doing what you love and about making a difference.
Stanislaus, great large company that started small. Great operation! |
| What other types of businesses are you frequently tempted by? I love hearing about companies that were started because someone just loved what they were doing. |
| Are these times of crisis good for beginning a business? absolutely, times of crisis bring people together, you have a chance to regroup, re-energize and turn problems into opportunities! |
| How important have PR and social media been for you? PR fantastic, best advertising is free advertising! Social media, I love, but hard to track the return at this point. |
| What would you call success? Where would you like your business to be five years from now? success is making sure that I am always connected to my employee, customers, and vendors. That I am committed to making sure they get the most out of our relationship, and if I am also contributing, then I am winning in the game of life! |
| What skills would you advise a want-to-be-entrepreneur to acquire? Learn about finacials. Learn where your money is and what it is doing for you.
Be a good listener. You learn more by listening then by talking! |
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423 visits Whohub
Teresa Spinelli
Edmonton, Canada
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99701 interviews created
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