Today we’d like to introduce you to Jill Hathaway.
Hi Jill , we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Raised in a generational family concrete block manufacturing business, but did not realize my desire for or to understand entrepreneurship until much later. Graduated with a degree in International Economics from Tulane University in the late ’80s; selected to bank management program in Orlando, Florida. Banking for the first few years of my career, but didn’t like the behind the desk work and wanted to be out talking to people and selling. Was a wholesale sales rep for a leather (belts, bags, shoes) manufacturer covering northern Florida and southern Georgia; incredibly technologically savvy company (for the early 90’s) with software capabilities in tracking retailers inventory, model stocks and fill-ins. Moved back to the Midwest, hired as the first female wholesale manufacturer’s representative for a New England footwear company. Trying experience getting hired and working with a totally male dominated executive team (mid-90’s). Was their top salesperson, covering 7 Midwest states, for 4 years; Moved to Kansas City 1997 and started family. The footwear company I worked with didn’t think a pregnant woman could cover the territory that she had built, so they gave me a severance and let me go. Being naive at the time, I didn’t push it, although my boss years later told me I should have fought the decision. My husband started an orthopedic, pedorthic lab retail shoe business, selling to diabetic patients and billing Medicare. I took over in operations and we grew the business to $2M+ with retail stores, and 4 pedorthic reps covering every skilled nursing home in Kansas and Missouri. Our bank noticed our growth and funded our expansion. The business grew too big, too fast and we scaled back to 1 store, 1 pedorthic rep. We added “family” shoe store options- men’s, women’s, children, along with accessories. My husband covered the nursing homes and I ran the stores. We closed the family-style store in 2008 and opened a higher-end women’s boutique shoe store in Leawood during the market crash in 2009. Women buy more shoes!!! I had to pivot my mindset to a different type of customer, demographic and inventory. I was asked to be 1 of 4 women and 30 men on the National Shoe Retailers Board and had the opportunity to travel to Italy and South America a couple of times each year. We were trying to build trade relations for importing footwear since these ties had been cut in the 70’s. Once again a very generational white male board questioned why I was on the Board and what value I would bring. The business did well, but was not set up to handle personal/family financials. At the time I didn’t know, but it was a true lifestyle business. Customers wanted us to expand, someone wanted to buy it, but I hadn’t set it up for this. By this time, we had 3 sons and our oldest wrote a suicide note when he was 13, spring 2013. This was an eye-opener as I had no idea the pain he was suffering and I realized I was spending too much time in the store and business. Within 6 months, I decided to move out all inventory and close down the business to spend more time with my family. Life fell apart at that time. My husband quit his job and didn’t find another; I started working three jobs to support our family. I took an entrepreneurial mindset class at the Missouri SBDC at UMKC to figure out where I went wrong in our business. Our family fell apart at this time too. Our cars were repo’ed, we short-sold our home, declared bankruptcy and didn’t have a place to live. I had three early teen sons; I was working three jobs. My husband stopped looking for jobs and we divorced- the pressure was too much. The SBDC hired me as a p/t contractor and I started working with small businesses. I had read John Maxwell’s book, Failing Forward and this was my mantra. Life didn’t settle down for a couple of years, but I knew that we were going to make it. I started working full time with the SBDC in 2016 and loved every moment I came to work and could talk to small businesses. The boys were as settled, as much as they could be, in high school at this time. They saw the work, the perseverance, the dedication that I gave and it pushed them too. Each of them have attended and graduated from college and are now living on their own, and working full-time. I took over as Regional Director of the Missouri SBDC at UMKC and APEX Accelerator programs 2 1/2 years ago and am loving every moment. We have created incredible partnerships with other support organizations and chambers; we have been awarded grants and projects; we are focused on strategic growth for our KC area small businesses. All of the past experiences have led me to this role. I started sharing my story a few years ago about “going through the pit”. It resonates with so many entrepreneurs and helps owners know they are not alone. Be humble, be honest, be transparent- own your story is how I live now.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Not smooth at all.
Corporate professional career- white male biases
Business opening- build it and they will not come.
Learn and pivot constantly
Married partners in business- do no recommend, someone needs to have a consistent payroll and benefits
Make certain you have balance, know what’s happening at home
Too much money is too much money- understand when and how much debt you can handle
Don’t spend more than you make
Fail forward
Learn from your mistakes
Be the best mom possible
Listen, listen, listen to others, to yourself
Own it- own your past, your present, your future – your story
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I feel like I’ve lived a series of books with so many life and work experiences. My favorite book is the one I’ve been living for the past 2+ years as Regional Director of the Missouri SBDC (Small Business Development Center) at UMKC. I took a class as a participant on Entrepreneurial Mindset and was asked to be a contractor coach for the Center. Originally I worked with early stage, pre-concept entrepreneurs, but found my passion with growth and scaling companies. Initially, I thought, what could I bring to the conversation? Imposter syndrome hit hard. I failed, went bankrupt, lost everything. When you move pride out of the way and show humility, we all have stories and experiences that can help others, personally or professionally. My highest Clifton Strength is Learner and that is what I apply to every conversation with other business owners. I’ve learned more from them and the business experiences I’ve had than what any college academic book or professor who hasn’t been a business owner could offer. My focus and favorite area to discuss are financials. I love math and numbers and believe that business is in the numbers. Numbers do not lie. I specialize in sharing an understanding of key financial aspects in an elementary way to help business owners get over their lack of desire to learn or understand their numbers. I’m known for my ability to connect businesses, partners, organizations. I believe that very little can be done alone and we need partners who want similar goals to create a strong vision. I’m most proud of my sons and that they see the fight in me and how together we managed to create a strong future; they just told me this past Mother’s Day that I am their hero and even better, they love hanging out with me!! My vision in creating partnerships in our Kansas City ecosystem sets me apart. Too many organizations are siloed and I love seeing the big picture in how we can work together to create something greater for more people.
What were you like growing up?
Ouch, this is going deep….. I was an only girl- three older brothers where everything rolled down hill and then my youngest brother was born when I was 11. I raised him because my mom went back to school and started working nights at that time. I have always been adventurous and loved trying new things, challenging the system- if I was told “no”, I’d probably still go do it. Typically, I was the instigator for trouble, but didn’t get caught. I’m passionate about what I know and believe- my parents thought I’d be a lawyer because of the way I argued and wouldn’t give up. With four brothers, especially three older, I was extremely athletic and competitive. I was a voracious competitive swimmer, tennis player, softball and volleyball. My body now has felt the toll early sports has taken. My dream was to swim (50 or 100m butterfly) in the 1984 Olympics. I was on the diving team in College, plus I started the volleyball club at Tulane. Anything in the water has been a favorite- waterskiing, scuba diving, snorkeling, swimming. I’ve always worked and love to work; besides babysitting, my first job was working at a retail store, starting at 15 yrs old. I loved selling and was very good at it. Retail therapy is truly a “thing”.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://sbdc.umkc.edu/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jill-hathaway-8a360318/
