Saturday, July 24, 2010
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Challenges of Local Small Business Owners
Alright everyone, brace yourselves... it's incredibly rare, but I'm actually going to say something negative about San Jose. Often to grow you have to take a critical look at yourself and make a conscious decision to improve. I think that's exactly what we need to do in order to improve the retail scene in San Jose, especially high-potential, burgeoning areas like Downtown.
A couple days ago I had the great pleasure to meet with the proprietor behind Satori, a phenomenal new tea shop located in San Pedro Square next to Peggy Sue's. After hearing her challenges in opening up the store, I decided to break that section out of the blog post I'm planning for their upcoming grand opening. I'm doing this for 2 reasons: 1.) I think this topic requires special attention and applies to many current and potential business owners and 2.) Satori doesn't deserve to have anything negative in their grand opening post--they are 100%, positively, without a doubt the type of business that downtown needs more of... unique products, local character (including local art), community focus, and a new experience for downtown patrons.
Okay, now for the stuff I hate to write about, so I'll make it quick. The proprietor decided to put her entire life savings into a store selling what she's truly passionate about--awesome tea!--and she wanted to do it in the heart of San Jose. How long should it take to open up a small tea shop in San Jose? Two months? Three? Well, it actually took an entire year... every day of which means lost revenue and a lower probability for success. How much should it cost for business licenses and permitting in a 1,000sqft space in an area the city is actively trying to drive retail to? No need to guess, I'll just say it... $15,000. Huh?
I think something is not right with the situation above. The message we send out to business owners should be "COME TO SAN JOSE! WE ARE A CITY BUILT ON ENTREPRENEURSHIP AND WILL MAKE IT RIDICULOUSLY EASY FOR YOU TO DO BUSINESS HERE! That type message doesn't seem to always align well with reality, and I have heard this from several business owners that I have spoken to, not just Satori.
If you ask anyone that really knows me, I really do love San Jose more than any other city on the planet. I hate writing anything negative here, but this is one kink that we need to iron out before districts like Downtown can become the magnetic retail destinations they should be. Santana Row is great an all, but we need places where local businesses offering unique products and services can also thrive and grow the collective soul and culture of our great city.
A couple days ago I had the great pleasure to meet with the proprietor behind Satori, a phenomenal new tea shop located in San Pedro Square next to Peggy Sue's. After hearing her challenges in opening up the store, I decided to break that section out of the blog post I'm planning for their upcoming grand opening. I'm doing this for 2 reasons: 1.) I think this topic requires special attention and applies to many current and potential business owners and 2.) Satori doesn't deserve to have anything negative in their grand opening post--they are 100%, positively, without a doubt the type of business that downtown needs more of... unique products, local character (including local art), community focus, and a new experience for downtown patrons.
Okay, now for the stuff I hate to write about, so I'll make it quick. The proprietor decided to put her entire life savings into a store selling what she's truly passionate about--awesome tea!--and she wanted to do it in the heart of San Jose. How long should it take to open up a small tea shop in San Jose? Two months? Three? Well, it actually took an entire year... every day of which means lost revenue and a lower probability for success. How much should it cost for business licenses and permitting in a 1,000sqft space in an area the city is actively trying to drive retail to? No need to guess, I'll just say it... $15,000. Huh?
I think something is not right with the situation above. The message we send out to business owners should be "COME TO SAN JOSE! WE ARE A CITY BUILT ON ENTREPRENEURSHIP AND WILL MAKE IT RIDICULOUSLY EASY FOR YOU TO DO BUSINESS HERE! That type message doesn't seem to always align well with reality, and I have heard this from several business owners that I have spoken to, not just Satori.
If you ask anyone that really knows me, I really do love San Jose more than any other city on the planet. I hate writing anything negative here, but this is one kink that we need to iron out before districts like Downtown can become the magnetic retail destinations they should be. Santana Row is great an all, but we need places where local businesses offering unique products and services can also thrive and grow the collective soul and culture of our great city.
Sunday, July 18, 2010
Merc Article on the State of Downtown Dining
There was a great article in the Merc last week about how dining in Downtown San Jose is moving away from traditional restaurants and moving towards casual, inexpensive, and trendy eateries. The map below showcases some promising signs. While 4 places have shuttered their doors, 13 are replacing them. For the full article, just head over here!
Wednesday, July 14, 2010
RAGING WATERS CONTEST WINNERS!!!
Thank you to everyone that participated in today's contest! Our winners are Melanie Cregger and Joie Pascual, both of which live in San Jose and will each receive a pair of day passes for Raging Waters!! A huge thanks to Raging Waters for sponsoring the prize for this contest. If you're curious about the answers, here they are:
Posting Time Hints (Posting time was 3:22pm)
Questions:
1.) What was San Jose's original name? El Pueble de San Jose de Guadalupe
2.) Which 2 colors are used in San Jose's flag? Gold and Blue (also SJSU colors btw)
3.) What is the tallest building in San Jose today? The 88
4.) Who was San Jose's first official major after becoming an incorporated city? Josiah Belden
5.) What is the oldest building in San Jose? The Peralta Adobe
6.) What is the name of the lake next to Raging Waters? Lake Cunningham
7.) How many water slide attractions are there in Raging Waters? Would have accepted either 6 or 7 (two of them are usually grouped as one).
Posting Time Hints (Posting time was 3:22pm)
HINT #1: San Jose is divided into 10 districts, which one is Downtown San Jose in? 3
HINT #2: The year that San Jose became the State Capital. 1849 >> 1+8+4+9 = 22
Questions:
1.) What was San Jose's original name? El Pueble de San Jose de Guadalupe
2.) Which 2 colors are used in San Jose's flag? Gold and Blue (also SJSU colors btw)
3.) What is the tallest building in San Jose today? The 88
4.) Who was San Jose's first official major after becoming an incorporated city? Josiah Belden
5.) What is the oldest building in San Jose? The Peralta Adobe
6.) What is the name of the lake next to Raging Waters? Lake Cunningham
7.) How many water slide attractions are there in Raging Waters? Would have accepted either 6 or 7 (two of them are usually grouped as one).
THE CONTEST FOR RAGING WATERS TICKETS IS LIVE!!!
Alright folks, here's the drill. The first TWO (2) individuals to answer the following trivia questions correctly will each win a pair of Raging Waters tickets (winners must not be related to each other or to writers for The San Jose Blog). ANSWERS MUST BE EMAILED TO: josh@thesanjoseblog.com
Here are your Questions:
1.) What was San Jose's original name?
2.) Which 2 colors are used in San Jose's flag?
3.) What is the tallest building in San Jose today?
4.) Who was San Jose's first official major after becoming an incorporated city?
5.) What is the oldest building in San Jose?
6.) What is the name of the lake next to Raging Waters?
7.) How many water slide attractions are there in Raging Waters?
Now for a twist. There is a bonus 8th questions that will give you a 5 minute advantage if you are able to guess a correct answer (5 minutes will be subtracted from the time I receive your email with answers to the questions above). The question is: name a single restaurant in Downtown San Jose that Josh Santos has NOT been to. Here is a list of restaurants to help you out. I have to warn you that there are less than a dozen restaurants on that list that will qualify you for the bonus.
Good luck everyone!
Here are your Questions:
1.) What was San Jose's original name?
2.) Which 2 colors are used in San Jose's flag?
3.) What is the tallest building in San Jose today?
4.) Who was San Jose's first official major after becoming an incorporated city?
5.) What is the oldest building in San Jose?
6.) What is the name of the lake next to Raging Waters?
7.) How many water slide attractions are there in Raging Waters?
Now for a twist. There is a bonus 8th questions that will give you a 5 minute advantage if you are able to guess a correct answer (5 minutes will be subtracted from the time I receive your email with answers to the questions above). The question is: name a single restaurant in Downtown San Jose that Josh Santos has NOT been to. Here is a list of restaurants to help you out. I have to warn you that there are less than a dozen restaurants on that list that will qualify you for the bonus.
Good luck everyone!
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
Hints for the Raging Waters Contest!!!
As announced last week, The San Jose Blog is giving away 2 pairs of tickets to Raging Waters! On Wednesday, July 14th at an undisclosed time, we're posting a series of San Jose-centric trivia questions. The first TWO individuals to answer all of the questions correctly win a pair of tickets! Today, I'm going to give readers some help with 2 hints that will narrow down the potential posting times. The first hint will give away the hour during which we will be posting the contest questions and the second hint will give away the minutes. I imagine the first one will be fairly easy to crack, but the second hint is far from straightforward and I'll tell you right now the answer is not the most obvious one... Good Luck =)
HINT #1: San Jose is divided into 10 districts, which one is Downtown San Jose in?
HINT #2: The year that San Jose became the State Capital.
Monday, July 12, 2010
World Cup Finale in Downtown San Jose
Matt Bruensteiner from San Jose Metblogs has some great photos of the World Cup Championship Match in SoFA! I wish I could have made it, looks like a great event... I'll mark my calendar for 2014.
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From the better late than never file, here’s a few photos from the World Cup championship game showing downtown on Sunday. A pretty impressive crowd filled South First Street, just south of San Carlos, where the Jumbotron was set up:
The Dutch fans were the champions, at least in the Funny Hats competition:
But it was Spain’s fans who got to cheer in the 116th minute:
Final score, Netherlands 0, Spain 1, and Spain will be world champions for the next four years.
Click here for the original post!
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From the better late than never file, here’s a few photos from the World Cup championship game showing downtown on Sunday. A pretty impressive crowd filled South First Street, just south of San Carlos, where the Jumbotron was set up:
Click here for the original post!
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