Janet Adams | Business First
Friday, November 6, 2009
Adaptability is key to note taker's success
Business First of Columbus - by Tami Kamin-Meyer For Business First
Although college-educated as a Texas Longhorn, there is no doubt Kathy Eshelman, president and co-founder of Grade A Notes, is a converted and dedicated Ohio State Buckeye. That said, there’s no dispute she owes some of her professional success to students at that school Up North.
With such a broad range of allegiances, how has the Columbus entrepreneur found success in the midst of Buckeye Nation? In one sense, much like the football teams of those three schools, Eshelman has had to figuratively review her game plan, make lineup changes and prepare for next week’s opponent. In other words, she’s adapted to conditions on the field.
Upon graduating from the University of Texas in 1984 with a degree in journalism, Eshelman toiled in an Austin printing and mailing shop for three years. In 1987, she decided it was time to become her own boss, so she scouted locations across the country for the ideal city where she could set up shop.
That summer, she visited Columbus and the Ohio State campus specifically. After just two visits, she chose to move here to embark on her venture of producing and selling class notes for various courses at OSU.
“Columbus reminded me of Austin in some ways, and there was no note-taking service at OSU, even though it’s one of the largest campuses in the U.S.,” she said.
After raising $30,000 from family and friends so she could purchase a printing press, she opened Grade A Notes in a 300-square-foot space in the Ohio Stater Mall near campus.
Just how has Eshelman turned that $30,000 investment in 1987 into a business that earned $1.2 million in 2008? “Adaptability,” she said, stressing that a company too rigid in accommodating alterations is likely to fail. “Any business has to be adaptable or else it will struggle to survive. Things will change in the marketplace,” she said.
Passing notes
As an undergraduate at the University of Texas, Eshelman herself bought prepared notes for a few of her classes. She relied on their accuracy and convenience. When she established Grade A Notes, the printing press was used to print lecture notes to sell.
“We advertised in The Lantern (OSU’s campus newspaper) for grad students, seniors and others who were good note takers,” she said.
Eshelman, 47, grins recalling how toxic that small basement space smelled after a huge run of class notes. Sometimes, she took turns going outside for fresh air with a college friend who co-founded the company and also moved here from Texas to oversee operations.
Another fond memory is of students coming to the shop to inquire whether it was legal for Eshelman to create and for them to buy class lecture notes. She assured them that not only was it legal, notes were taken and subsequently transcribed for publication with the full knowledge and cooperation of that course’s professor.
“We had to train students about the concept of buying class notes,” she said.
One of the most successful marketing tactics Eshelman used to accomplish that goal was to stand outside classrooms and freely distribute a typed page of notes from one of the class’s lectures that week. “That helped fuel our brand and concept,” she said.
On the march
Using the success of its Ohio State location as its barometer, Grade A Notes expanded into other college towns. Its first outpost opened at Ohio University in Athens in 1993, with one at the University of Michigan soon following. The company also opened locations at Michigan State University and the University of Nebraska, but those two have since closed.
Meanwhile, with her note-taking service thriving at the three remaining locations, Eshelman chose to add another service to the company’s menu.
“I wanted to branch out into course packs. We worked with willing professors to obtain their class readings so students wouldn’t have to search for them themselves,” she said.
Course packets caught on so quickly that Eshelman thought she should take the product on the road by partnering with university bookstores across the country. Today, Grade A Notes course packets and out-of-print book reproductions are sold at more than 100 college bookstores across the United States, and have replaced note taking as the company’s primary revenue source.
The company even sells course packets for online classes, which Eshelman said is a growing segment of the market. Summer is the busiest season for those courses, she said. The service appeals to educators.
“I give them the originals and they even clean them up, if necessary,” said OSU Dennis Cannon, a professor in the department of education, adding the company also obtains the publication rights from anyone owning a copyright on the materials.
Cannon’s course packet for the current quarter at OSU, where he instructs undergraduates in his Introduction to Art Education class, includes various journal articles Cannon has collected over the years as well as recent pieces, too. If he didn’t offer a course packet, students would “have to find articles, which are often out of print. Also, college textbooks are expensive and not geared to what I teach. Course packets allow me to personalize my class curriculum,” he said.
A chameleon existence
“Adaptability is a leadership imperative,” said Tamara Murphy, CEO and founder of Avalon’s Entrepreneur Center in Dublin. “Leaders who resist change find themselves perfectly equipped to serve a marketplace that no longer exists.”
While Ted Anderson, president and owner of Anderson Sales Advantage Inc., a Dublin-based firm that offers coaching and training to independent and solo entrepreneurs, said he agrees flexibility is important, but with a caveat.
While he labeled adaptability “absolutely” instrumental to a business’s success, there are limitations. If an entrepreneur is overly flexible, they run the risk of “having no direction, so eventually, the business will flounder.”
There are tactics entrepreneurs implement to ease the transition from one mission to another. “When you start planning and getting into a new direction you’re not familiar with, talk to an entrepreneur in that business,” he said.
He also suggested the business owner perform due diligence by conducting thorough market research on the proposed mission or product.
Whether that means scouring the Internet for information, reading books, asking people questions or attending seminars, it’s vital to learn as much as possible about the topic.
Even if the research indicates the mission or product is likely to succeed, nothing is guaranteed. “Eventually, you will have to put something out there to see if the idea has any traction,” said Anderson.
Though working between 30 and 80 hours a week and overseeing a staff that varies in size from seven to 12, Eshelman’s entrepreneurial endeavors don’t stop with Grade A Notes. She is also CEO of Patrioticjewelry.com, started in 2001 as a way for her and a few friends to fund a trip to Washington, D.C., for George W. Bush’s inauguration.
Eshelman and another Columbus woman who made hand-crafted jewelry, including patriotic pieces. “went to the inauguration, wore the pins and sold a ton,” she said.
The Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks proved to be a double-edged sword for Patrioticjewelry.com because immediately after the catastrophe, sales went off the charts.
“We were not remotely ready. We went from 10 sales a month to up to 300 per day” between Sept. 11 and Sept. 16, she said. “People were struck, saddened and found us online via Google searches. It’s horribly bittersweet because it’s a success story.”
While she would not disclose the company’s annual sales figures, Eshelman continues to oversee the venture herself as her friends have since “shied away because it was so busy.”
But adapting to the times is nothing new to her.
Grade A Notes
• Business: Providing college course packs, lecture notes, out-of-print books, copyright clearance and copies for academic communities.
• Top officer: Kathy Eshelman, president, co-founder
• Total employees: 12
• 2008 revenue: $1.2 million
• Web site: gradeanotes.com
Tami Kamin-Meyer is a freelance writer.