Very Short Interview No. 1

I interviewed a close family friend back from my hometown whose name is Mike Jones. He created his own motorcycle business from scratch and still works there full time still to this day.

Me: Tell me a little bit about yourself and your dream?

Mike: I started a motorcycle business with a dream, a lot of sweat, and a desire to help people to enjoy riding the western Carolina mountains. I wanted to give customers the opportunity to ride a pre owned motorcycle at a reasonable price.

Me: What does it mean to be an entrepreneur?

Mike: It really meant to me to start a business on my own salesmanship and qualities that my dad taught me at an early age. I strived to work hard, be honest, and make a reasonable profit. My motto was to be the home of the working man's friend.

Me: What do you think I should learn in an entrepreneurship course?
Mike: You need to learn to give customers quality and honest service. It's ok to make a profit, but you don't need to knock their heads off. If you treat people the way you want to be treated you will build trust in them. Always get referrals from customers. Referral customers are always the way to build a successful business.

Mike: As an entrepreneur, looking back, I wish I had been taught more technical knowledge. First, I wish I had been taught more business accounting. While this is always outsourced to CPAs, I wish I would have been able to better understand accounting issues in order to more effectively communicate with my CPA. Second, I wish I was taught more corporate finance. In particular, how and where to raise money, and how and when to use finance to grow and expand my business.

I've known Mike for a while but I never really knew much about his business. From this short interview I realized how much hard work he put into making his company as big as it is today. I also liked how he said "referral customers are always the way to build a successful business" because if you treat these people well they will always come back and bring you more business. I also agree with his final answer since all businesses require that you to deal with the business accounting side of it all. All in all I can't wait to interview him again at the end of the semester!