Love is the Killer Motivator - An Entrepreneur’s Story
I fell in love with this entrepreneurial fairy tale. It’s the perfect screenplay for a movie. It has romance, suspense, good food, and history. I love stories and writing them is my favorite. Plus I have my own great story about this restaurant - which isn’t the story I’m going to tell here. Also, this story doesn’t keep with the theme of my blog as well, which is ok because I think most of my readers have stopped reading. So this one is for me.
This love of stories makes me want my old job back at the flower shop. If I could support myself doing it, I would. Then I’d blog about the stories people tell about their lives when they come to buy flowers. That year in college made me wish I was a columnist. Now I wish I could make a movie.
The story starts in 1920 with a successful and educated man built a cabin for his wife for their anniversary. It was built in the trees of Salt Lake’s Mill Creek Canyon and aptly named “Log Haven.” It was a place to discuss business ideas and a place to spend the hot summers.
At one point the property was turned into a restaurant. Then in the 1980s it got into such disrepair that it was condemned. And that’s where the love story picks up again - with a woman named Margo Provost. She was a newlywed and very much in love. Her husband had seen the place and suggested she should revive it. So she did. Much like many successful businesses start out, she was taken by the project. She quit her high paying executive job and without any experience in the restaurant industry, went to work.
It was more difficult than she imagined. The general contractor got hepatitis and she didn’t get financing she hoped for (sound familiar?). She sold her houses, her cars, ran up her credit cards, and spent her retirement. And in 1994 she reopened the Log Haven restaurant. And because of that, the story continues. Both the restaurant and Provost have won awards and history and romances continue to be made.
I wish every entrepreneurial story had such a fairy tale behind it. I still cringe when I meet someone in the running up all the credit cards and eating only a meal a day stage. It’s a roller coaster ride for sure. But I believe that people make it and some even love the ride to getting there. I think for me, I’m almost more comfortable cheering and reporting on these stories than living it, though I don’t totally avoid it either.
Tell me about your business and what the attraction is for you…I want to hear your stories….
UPDATE: Just to add to the drama of the place, there was a murder at the restaurant in the 90s.
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6 Responses to “Love is the Killer Motivator - An Entrepreneur’s Story”
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December 13th, 2007 at 1:10 am
that sure was a fab story!… i have started a film making company but the story isnt as fairytalish as this ;)… and oh… btw.. i wudnt mind sharing it, but will do it from my more public personal blog!
cheers
December 13th, 2007 at 7:46 am
Hi!
I didn’t stop reading you, but lately you ware a lot about Utah. Couse I’m from Europe, I don’t really care about Utah
and maybe I will do a little bit of spamming. But I do not consider myself as a black sheep of the community just have to push a bit harder then expected. (If not, I have to get Job:) )
My story: I just finished my degree and will start being a full time entrepreneur in February 2008. I am into text mining, I have darker shaded hat
Basically I love to create websites witch makes peoples life easier or just entertains them. Thats what I gonna do when I reach a level where work is not for self sustaining.
Keep blogging, when I read You, I feel like reading a real printed newspaper!
December 13th, 2007 at 9:04 am
Edgar,
Good point. Since I started blogging on Marketing Pilgrim most of my internet marketing stories are covered there. So I covered more local news.
If I’m going to focus on Utah business I should consider starting another blog just for that. I like to write about what I know so if I lived in Europe I’d write more about Europe.
I’ve noticed a big dropoff in loyal readers on this blog since I started blogging for a living.
Janet
December 14th, 2007 at 5:42 am
Hi, I think blogs have to be relevant to the audience your targeting.
I’d always assumed you were in the market to blog, write etc for anybody anywhere in the world. So it makes sense to write for that market.
If this is ultimately a personal blog then of course any subject is relevant.
As to the rest I love forming and growing business once they are profitable and running with great growth I like to exit!! the rush is in the chase not the settling down!!!!! (im sure m ex’s would agree
)
December 15th, 2007 at 1:28 pm
Love a good rags to riches story - or even a riches to rags to riches story! That’s more like mine! Starting over at 50, learning about ecommerce, and tying it all together with creativity and style… the story is in it’s early chapters, but I anticipate a very happy ending!
December 17th, 2007 at 7:32 am
Thanks for the story, it was very interesting. I graduated from a fashion design school 2 years ago and my dream is to become a designer. But not for haute couture fashion or anything like that. My dream is to design bedwear. Pajamas, quilts, ergonomic pillows, ripple mattresses, that kind of thing. My favorite place in the whole world is my bed and I love inventing things that make the beauty of sleep even more endearing. I have recently finished my first collection of pajama sets for men and have found a very good and reputable online male modeling agency called ondisplaymen.com (which I would recommend to anyone) to source my models from for shoots and a fashion show. So things are definitely looking good.
Cheers,
Lilly