"Just like a child, you have to be born with the potential for greatness but it is your life experiences that will shape you"
Kim Bosse Tweet
A Chicago native and the child of small business owners, Kim Bosse has more than 15 years of experience in the food and beverage industry. An entrepreneur at heart, she launched a tech startup while earning her BA at Columbia University, then took a role as a consultant before transitioning to hospitality as the director of operations for Three Headed Productions in Chicago. There, she learned the ins and outs of a diverse range of hospitality models by way of seven unique venues, from fine dining restaurants to neighborhood beer bars. After concepting numerous events with boutique tequila producers at the Latin-inspired Salud Tequila Lounge and launching pioneering craft cocktail bar The Drawing Room, she became a bonified “bevvie.”
In 2014, Bosse took her love of small business and hospitality to the next level when she and her childhood friend co-founded Birch Road in their hometown of Chicago, with a second location following in the city in 2016. She enjoys utilizing the close industry connections she’s cultivated over her career to curate impactful member events ranging from tastings to philanthropic fundraisers, and is proud of Birch Road’s tradition-breaking BYOB membership model.
Bosse is a mother of two, and her husband works alongside her in Birch Road’s Chicago locations
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Table of Contents
Thank you for joining us today. Please introduce yourself to our readers. They want to know you, some of the background story to bring some context to your interview.
Kim Bosse: I am the Co-Founder and Chief Conversation Officer of Birch Road. I started my company in 2014 and have been growing it with my business partner ever since. We got started in Chicago and have since expanded into Seattle and our Denver location will be opening in 2022. My passion is around creating community through good drinks and good conversation. We do this every day for our members at our BYOB clubhouses.
You are a successful entrepreneur, so we’d like your viewpoint, do you believe entrepreneurs are born or made? Explain.
Kim Bosse: I think there are certain traits that are required to be successful as an entrepreneur, like resilience and drive. Just like a child, you have to be born with the potential for greatness but it is your life experiences that will shape you.
If you were asked to describe yourself as an entrepreneur in a few words, what would you say?
Kim Bosse: My favorite business quote is success is 1% a great idea and 99% execution. I’m a doer, a woman of action, that’s what makes me successful.
Tell us about what your company does and how did it change over the years?
Kim Bosse: Birch Road owns and operates BYOB neighborhood clubhouses in Chicago and Seattle (soon Denver also). There are no bartenders, no loud music, no crowds. Our members enjoy access to the space 365 days a year via fingerprint scanner. They each have their own locker that they can stock themselves in our temperature-controlled cellar. It’s a great alternative to the bar or coffee shop when you want to meet a friend or just get out of the house. Our members also love the events and community that we create. City dwellers can often feel isolated and challenging to meet new friends. Birch Road is that home away from home where strangers become friends over a bottle of wine and some great conversation.
Thank you for all that. Now for the main focus of this interview. With close to 11.000 new businesses registered daily in the US, what must an entrepreneur assume when starting a business?
Kim Bosse: Assume that there are going to be challenges. Being a business owner is like riding a giant rollercoaster for 8 hours a day, 5 days week. One moment you can feel like a huge success and then within a matter of hours feel impending doom or failure. Guaranteed, that’s going to happen every single week at least. We’re in it for those high points – that’s what drives us. Just keep in mind that the more difficult it is, the more low points you can overcome, the peaks will be all that more sweet.
Did you make any wrong assumptions before starting a business that you ended up paying dearly for?
Kim Bosse: Early on I relied too heavily on word of mouth. When we first opened we operated more as a speakeasy. Some place you only heard of if you were “in the know.” We had no sign and didn’t even put our address on Google. That was fun, but it also slowed our growth tremendously. I’m not sure I would have done it differently but it is something we had to play catch up from for years.
In your opinion, how has COVID-19 changed what entrepreneurs should assume before starting a business? What hasn’t changed?
Kim Bosse: If you’re opening a business with a physical space, you need to assume that the shutdown could happen again and affect you. Make sure you have some sort of pandemic clause in your lease to protect yourself.
What is a common myth about entrepreneurship that aspiring entrepreneurs and would-be business owners believe in? What advice would you give them?
Kim Bosse: I think that most aspiring entrepreneurs underestimate the work involved and the commitment. I hear so many people who say: I’m going to start this business and then hire someone to run it so I can just have the income. Rarely does that strategy work and that’s the wrong reason to start a business. Start it because you have the passion. Focus on your passion and the money will come.
What traits, qualities, and assumptions do you believe are most important to have before starting a business?
Kim Bosse: You must be a strong decision maker and a person of action. When you are the one in charge and everything is on your shoulders you have to be able to make confident and decisive decisions every single day. If you are someone who needs to be 100% sure before taking action then starting a business is not for you.
How can aspiring leaders prepare themselves for the future challenges of entrepreneurship? Are there any books, websites, or even movies to learn from?
Kim Bosse: The best preparation is to find a job in the industry that you are starting your business in. If you are going to start a clothing company, you need to work in a store. If you want to launch a coffee line, work as a barista. As far as books and websites – I learned a lot from Malcolm Gladwell’s books. I also rely on the website Gust for startup support.
You have shared quite a bit of your wisdom and our readers thank you for your generosity but would also love to know: If you could choose any job other than being an entrepreneur, what would it be?
Kim Bosse: Restaurant Writer, as long as I get invites to every restaurant opening!
Thank you so much for your time, I believe I speak for all of our readers when I say that this has been incredibly insightful. We do have one more question: If you could add anyone to Mount Rushmore, but not a politician, who would it be; why?
Kim Bosse: Warren Buffet – seriously! We celebrate fame and unicorn success too much in our country. I wish we valued more a lifestyle like Warren Buffet’s – we’d all be a lot happier!
Jed Morley, VIP Contributor to ValiantCEO and the host of this interview would like to thank Kim Bosse for taking the time to do this interview and share her knowledge and experience with our readers.
If you would like to get in touch with Kim Bosse or her company, you can do it through her – Linkedin Page
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