11/02/2016
Halloween, the Day of the Dead, these days honor the departed, focusing on the past, while also celebrating the living, the here and now, life. So, it seems fitting to announce that High Bridge Cold Brew has gone gently into that good night...
Sometimes it's timing, other times it's lack of capital, market demand, there are so many variables involved in starting a new business. Some you can control, others you can't, but one thing is certain – if you don't play, you can't win. Even though High Bridge Cold Brew has closed, we won, because we tried, we played. The sweat and hard work were worth it.
We know that our goal of combining a for-profit business with social aspirations inspired others, because they reached out to us. We know our desire to give back while generating profits was valued, because our friends and neighbors told us so at local events and through e-mails, "likes," follows, and requests for more events and orders (even after we stopped production), and because local and national media shared our story, even before we launched… But a bootstrapping start-up is an infant. It requires a dedicated and nurturing team of caretakers, 24/7, and as founder, there came a point when I had to make a choice – between my incorporated infant and my real one.
As an attorney, I had never been able to spend quite as much time with my child as I would have liked, but who has that luxury these days? But, like most people in this situation, we had a rhythm and I could provide the quality time that she needed. The company was a different, voracious, beast altogether. I tweaked and experimented, in small and significant ways (including some that would qualify as "only in New York" living and childcare arrangements), trying to satisfy both of these children. Once potential co-founders chose different paths, it was clear that it was time to close this chapter. In life, we all face difficult decisions, but if we choose what we know deep-down is the right choice, then the choice is not difficult, even if it is one that we wish we did not have to make. This was one of those decisions.
Not eating enough, not sleeping enough, and high stress (despite the common advice to entrepreneurs about getting enough sleep, hitting the gym regularly, and all the things that most do not do) did not surprise me. Those things just seemed like minor inconveniences, I was focused on the end-game and we had momentum, but…when I started resenting my amazing 5 year old, I knew something had to give. On a sunny afternoon, while trying to "squeeze in" a few minutes with her, I had a flash of the future: the company was profitable, growing, and the brand had achieved local recognition and a loyal customer base, we were providing job training and employment to at-risk individuals, but this precious little person was now a withdrawn and unhappy 9 or 10 year old.
As a wise woman once said to me (ok, it was last week and she said it to a room full of other attorney mothers) "with children, you don't get do-overs," which sums up perfectly why winding up High Bridge was both an agonizing decision and an easy decision.
Oddly enough, as I'm writing this, on the night before Halloween, the little girl who has no idea about her role in this real life story is actually watching "A Muppets' Christmas Carol." It seemed like an interesting coincidence, considering the topic of this post, so I'll run with it and end by saying that I'm grateful for the kind ghost of business future who paid a visit one fateful, sunny afternoon...
Diana Saliceti
"Ghost of the Future, I fear you more than any spectre I have seen. But as I know your purpose is to do me good, and as I hope to live to be another man from what I was, I am prepared to bear you company, and do it with a thankful heart."
-Ebenezer Scrooge
