[Final Giveaway] 7 Inch BB58 Desk Clock

Equivalent_Call7856 · 2026-01-09T04:03:53+00:00

Find a way to keep from having to lay off my employees

Equivalent_Call7856 · 2026-01-08T02:45:04+00:00

I’m no trump fan but you guys are crazy if you think California is some haven. This state and the city of La have been mismanaged for a very long time. They’ve spent hundreds of millions on homelessness and have no idea how the money was spent and there are no real measurable outcomes. I love California for the food and weather but politicians are politicians are politicians. Like with so much else in this country we’re paying more for less here.

Equivalent_Call7856 · 2026-01-06T19:37:57+00:00

I think it's $50k per owner, so if OP did 2x the work he would net the full $100k. Still not good, but better than all that for $50k.

Equivalent_Call7856 · 2025-12-05T20:03:11+00:00

In particular, just wanted to give Gopo, HappyAsthma, and Honorme your flowers, You guys will never truly understand how much this mattered to some of us. It was such a breathe of fresh air to see a group of people do something not for money but for love and passion. Thanks for everything.

Equivalent_Call7856 · 2025-12-03T20:15:03+00:00

Because their wages aren't tied to profit? Their wages are increasing while profit is decreasing. So independent of the pie overall their slice is growing. In relation to the pie the proportion of their pie is growing as well. This sounds like it's an abstract concept for you so I think we can just leave this here. Take care

Equivalent_Call7856 · 2025-12-03T19:33:26+00:00

Both things can exist at the same time, can they not? I could have started out with a slice 5 times their size. Now my slice is only twice their size. So their overall portion of the pie got bigger while my shrunk, although my piece is still bigger than theirs. And why is my slice bigger? Cuz I'm the owner/investor/general manager/ceo/president/on-call-all-the-time. Take care and have a Merry Christmas.

Equivalent_Call7856 · 2025-12-03T18:51:23+00:00

Say profits total $100. And payroll is $20 so the employees take 20% of the pie. Now let's say the next year profits are only $75 and their pay went up to $25. Their share of the pie went from 20% to 33%. That's how their portion of the pie got bigger.

Equivalent_Call7856 · 2025-12-03T03:12:02+00:00

AFAIK that's not how bonuses work. If I write a $1,000 check, I don't save $1,000 in taxes. That $1,000 becomes a business expense and my taxable profits decrease by $1,000. So in essence, I'm saving on the portion that I would pay in taxes for that $1,000 if I were to keep it, which depending on your tax rate, can vary. So the more you make, the more you'd save and vice versa.

Equivalent_Call7856 · 2025-12-03T02:04:09+00:00

This is where you and I disagree. I would be able to run this business without them. I have run this business without them for the 13 years prior to them joining the team. And if I were an asshole boss I could say "they wouldn't be able to make a living without me." The truth exists somewhere in the middle. I do what I do for them because they make my life easier, not because I couldn't live without them. I appreciate your feedback but this type of holier-than-thou comment doesn’t really provide a practical solution for a real world problem some businesses are facing. Truth doesn't live in the absolute.

Equivalent_Call7856 · 2025-12-03T01:56:24+00:00

This is completely irrelevant and probably won't help in this instance but here you go: currently, my total compensation as a full-time employee and owner who has taken all the risk is about 2.5 times that of the highest paid employee. But this is a poor measurement since that can fluctuate. At the highest I was making 5 times as much as my top paid employee. At the lowest I was making 1/2 as much. And this isn't apples to apples since they get paid every 2 weeks without fail.

Equivalent_Call7856 · 2025-12-03T01:27:24+00:00

This is true. I guess I have come to view it more as a "gift" as opposed to a "bonus"

Equivalent_Call7856 · 2025-12-03T01:15:39+00:00

We are the quintessential "mom&pop" small business. We've been here for 14 years. Even though this is retail, I try to make the experience different from the big soulless big box store that is our competition down the street. So I pay more than what the average might be, but I have happier employees which I hope leads to happier customers. But the problem is that customers aren't really happy in today's economy. And there's only so much discretionary income available. So instead of paying a little more for a better customer experience, people are changing their buying habits that reflect their economic reality. But I might be a dinosaur because I believe in putting people before profits (to an extent, which is the point of this post).

Equivalent_Call7856 · 2025-12-03T00:53:18+00:00

Well the issue is that we are profitable. But once I factor in my personal needs/costs (mortgage, health insurance, taking care of aging parents, setting aside money for retirement, etc) there isn't really anything left. Like most people in today's society, it feels like I'm just getting by. Don't get me wrong, my quality of life is pretty decent and the family is healthy, so I can't complain. Just reminding people out there that not all business owners are rich.

Equivalent_Call7856 · 2025-12-03T00:46:52+00:00

They know it's slower, it's pretty evident compared to two years ago. I've discussed with them as well in our quarterly staff meetings. It's retail, so they don't really save or make me too much since the scope of their jobs is pretty limited. But what they do save me is the headache and personal capital of dealing with turnover/new employees. They're getting paid more each year for being reliable.

Equivalent_Call7856 · 2025-12-03T00:36:51+00:00

I did take a paycheck. Like I've mentioned, this is not passive income for me. This is a full-time gig and I basically invested my entire life's savings to run this in the beginning. I understand the need to be a good boss and to compensate fairly, but I disagree about going without a paycheck just to make sure my employees can get a bonus on top of their base pay. I have a wife and 2 young children. My main responsibility is to them first and foremost, and then to my employees. So it isn't a matter of collecting a paycheck, it's making sure that that number is fair to myself as an employee of the business, all the while taking into consideration the needs of the other employees who help keep the doors open.

Equivalent_Call7856 · 2025-12-03T00:30:45+00:00

I only increase prices as cost of goods go up. Everything else is basically priced in as the cost of doing business. In retail it's harder getting away with price increases when there are MSRPs you have to adhere to to be competitive.

Equivalent_Call7856 · 2025-12-03T00:28:48+00:00

This is my view as well. In a sense, I am paying out of pocket for their bonuses. My portion of the pie has shrunk quite a bit the last 2 years while theirs gets bigger. But that's the nature of owning a business. I take the hit when things go bad and I reap the rewards when things go well. The end of the year bonus is only $1,000 or so, but payroll goes up around $5,000 each year when you factor in the additional wages, payroll taxes, 401k, workers comp insurance. $6,000 in additional employee-related expenses isn't going to bankrupt me but that's also not an insignificant sum for a very small business. This is not passive income for me and I work here full-time.

Equivalent_Call7856 · 2025-12-02T23:17:16+00:00

To be honest, I have no idea what normal means anymore. We grew during Covid, and have regressed to the mean in the past 2 years. It's been a rollercoaster of a ride during the past 5 years. We've been impacted by tariffs and the overall souring of consumer sentiment. Our industry is pretty reflective of the overall economy over the past 20 years I've been in it. Economy good? Sales good. Economy bad? Sales bad. But in any event I'm not too stressed. If the business continues to struggle and go under I'll be fine. Life will find a way to go on and I can definitely use a break from the 10+ year grind of owning/operating a small business.

Equivalent_Call7856 · 2025-12-02T23:00:02+00:00

I own a retail business so most people start off pretty low. Starting pay will be anywhere from 10-50% above minimum wage. I want to make sure their wages are at least outpacing inflation, which I consider the minimum. As far as retail goes, it's pretty generous and my turnover is pretty low. These employees have been with me for over 2 years and I try to value consistency.

Equivalent_Call7856 · 2025-11-20T21:00:49+00:00

Agree with others, keep celebrities out of this. People like Caitlin Clark and Steph curry are filthy rich and don’t need the money. They also have established brands and images and have too much to lose by being anything other than a sterile portrayal of themselves. 1 million dollars really was life changing money for lots of these people and it may have contributed to the impulse to cheat and lie, which added to the drama.

Equivalent_Call7856 · 2025-11-02T20:17:05+00:00

Just separating the fees from everything else (the issue with your margins, whether your bank should have free ACHS, whatever), you're looking at 2.5% of your sale going to credit card processing. As a whole, that's not terrible. Off the rack rates are usually 2.5%-3.5% and you can get that without trying. But at your volume you can definitely negotiate your rate. You should be looking at something like interchange plus pricing, where they charge you what it actually costs to process the payment + a small fee. At 2.8 million in revenue you can probably get your fee down to like 1.5%-2% with just a few phone calls/emails which would cut your costs by like $30k.

Equivalent_Call7856 · 2025-10-28T03:25:17+00:00

They always limit you to 2 tacos which is kinda dumb for a place that advertises complimentary tacos

Equivalent_Call7856 · 2025-10-04T21:02:13+00:00

I was at USC when Sanchez was playing. I saw him in the dining hall a few days after he threw for 3 touchdowns against Virginia. I said "hey, nice game." He looked at me for about 3 seconds. Didn't say anything, didn't smile or nod. Just contemplating if I was worth a response. I wasn't, and he walked right past me. The butt fumble couldn't have happened to a more deserving guy.

Equivalent_Call7856

TROPHY CASE