“Impressed?” she replied.
“Yes, with you, Maddie. With your business idea.”
“Oh,” she said. I noticed her skin turn the shade of red I’d grown accustomed to seeing when I said something that caused her embarrassment. “Thank you, Grey. That’s kind of you. I’d be a liar though if I told you it’s gone smoothly. It's been anything but.”
“Yes.” I nodded in agreement. “I’m well aware of that. But that still doesn’t mean it’s a bad idea. Far from it. You need some help though.”
“Help? What do you mean? What kind of help?”
Placing my forearms at the table’s edge, I leaned forward and folded my hands together in front of my face. As I tapped my fingers together, I said, “So how do you intend to grow your fledgling operation from this point on? What's your plan? Do you have one?”
She broke eye contact with me for a moment. Taking a lock of her hair and spinning it round her index finger, she continued, “Funny you should mention that.”
“Oh? Why is that?”
Maddie grimaced as she stammered, “Um, I was hoping to get a referral from you. You know, assuming you’re pleased with how things went.”
I stopped my fingers mid-tap and held them pressed against one another.
“Sure Maddie, I’d be happy to give you a referral,” I replied, as I smiled and leaned back in my chair.
Her expression brightening, Maddie straightened up in her chair and began to speak before I interrupted her with a warning.
“Even so, I can tell you right now you’re going to need a lot more than a referral from me, or anyone for that matter, if you hope to make a long-term go of this as a business. You need working capital. A plan to grow. Do you have any idea how to put that in place?”
Maddie’s face froze. I watched as her lips pressed together. She shook her head.
“No. I don’t.”
With a half-shrug, I reached for my drink and took a pull of the clear liquor. Placing it down, I continued, “Well, you need those things if you hope to have any chance to make it. For instance, without sufficient cash reserves, you’ll be bankrupt in a few months, if not sooner.”
While I spoke, Maddie twirled her hair in tight spirals, releasing it every few seconds before starting all over again. At last, she puffed her cheeks and exhaled.
“Bankrupt?” she said. “I mean, I know I’m struggling a little, but I don’t think I’ll go broke that fast.”
“Ah yes, the eternal optimism of the entrepreneur. Maddie, I’ve seen this more times in my life than I care to recount. You can choose to accept my advice or not. Ignore it at your peril.”
And honest to God, I meant it. I enjoyed watching people succeed in business and if I could profit from it, all the better. This circumstance was even more enjoyable, given all the ‘fringe benefits’ I expected to accrue if she listened to the rest of the advice I was prepared to offer her.
As I ruminated, Maddie continued to twirl and twist her hair until at last she stopped and with a hint of desperation in her tone asked, “Okay, well, what can I do?”
I leaned back and casually interlaced my fingers together across my chest.
“I’ll tell you that I think you’ve got a solid business idea here, Maddie. I mean it. There’s definitely a niche you’ve found and I think it’s one that could be quite lucrative. I’ve got lots of wealthy friends who'd be willing to pay a pretty penny for a high-end concierge service. It solves a lot of problems. However, you need three things to keep going. One, of course, is money. The second is a business plan and third, a partner you can trust.”
Her eyebrows drew together. “Partner?”
“Yes. I’m talking about a business proposition, Maddie. You’ll get the money you need to not only meet your short-term cash needs, but also to grow the business over the next year to eighteen months. In addition to the capital infusion, I’ll put together a complete business plan and I’ll do all of this for a fifty-one percent equity position in the business.”
Maddie’s hands dropped into her lap. “Fifty-one percent? But -- that means you would control the business.”
“That’s right, Maddie. It’s the only way I can be sure my investment is safe.”
“Okay, well I need time to think about it,” she replied. “Is that all right?”
Her gaze conveyed a sense of determination I’d not seen from her before. I half-expected her to take any deal I offered. I was surprised she wanted to take time to think it through, even though I believed this one to be fair. Maybe my instincts about this business, and about her, were right after all.