Okay, perfect. And I'm just gonna have some questions on my computer. So yeah, how long do you want the article to
be? Um, that's a good question. Usually it's, it's definitely not more than 1000 words, for sure, hopefully around 700 to 800 but I read a lot, so
Yeah, very cool, is there, like, a particular like angle you want to show? Um,
it's more of like a student profile. So I do want to learn a bit more about you, although my, based on my research, I got a lot about sound check, but I would like to, like, learn more about you, like as a musician, and how that inspired your business. So, yeah, so can I first ask you, what's your name and grade and major?
Name? Kylie Grimes, I'm a senior, and I major as business, and I have a minor in economics, yeah, so I should, like, I'm only 20. I should be a junior, but I took a bunch of like, AP credits in high school. It was really cool, because it allowed me to shave off a year I'm graduating in May, which is crazy, so I've only been here for two and a half years.
Wild, yeah, saved a
lot of money, though that was good, and I was a marketing major, and did, like, marketing classes and whatnot. And was a marketing major for the first two years, and then, like last semester, when I started working on the business, I was like, I have literally no time to go to class. I was like, skipping classes and having to tell my teachers, like, sorry, I'm doing blah, blah, blah. They're really cool about it, though, and understanding. But so I was like, Okay, I can't really keep this up. It's not sustainable. So I went online. And I'm an online student. And so when you're a business major, and they switch to online, they take away your emphasis area, so like, you can't be, like, marketing or management or finance, or that I'm missing, but um, so instead, you're just playing business. Okay, that was, like, a long explanation, but basically, business, okay, Major, econ, minor, okay,
senior, cool. So I know that you're a musician. That was like a big part behind opening sound checks. So tell me more about you. Know you as a musician, like what instruments you play? How did you start like that?
So I'm mainly playing piano. That's like what I started doing. I started taking piano lessons when I was like 10 or so. I did that for a couple years. And I was inspired by music, even in the first place, because my dad is in a band, and so, like, I grew up going to his band practices, and, like, watching him play live and whatnot, I was on stage with him a couple of times. They weren't any good. I was, like, eight years old, so cute. And so he had like, a practice space in our basement at home, yeah, and it was just a room with a bunch of instruments, and he would just practice down there, and then he would do band practice, like, at his friend's garage, basically, yeah. And he's like, gone through a handful of different bands, and so, like, has always been, like, cycling around, like, garages and stuff. Like, if it's if he's in one band, and then maybe, like, they start off practicing at like, the bases or the bassists house, like, in their garage. And like, the bassist his wife will be like, I don't want to hear the shit anymore. Like, you gotta go somewhere else. And yeah, then we'll go to, like, the guitarist's house and, like, go to their garage. And then his wife is like, I don't want to hear this bullet anymore or something. They like, keep running out of space. And now my dad practices in a storage unit, like one of those, like, rentable by the month because they just ran out of space. Even my mom was like, I don't want to hear that at the house. This is really loud. And also neighbors don't want to hear it like it's just disruptive. So that was kind of a little bit of inspiration for sound check. But, oh yeah, okay, that's the question. So grew up around him playing. My brother also played drums. So I was in a very like musical household. My mom, not so much, but I get my jeans from my dad, and thought that he was, like, so cool for being a musician. He was like a rock star when he was younger, yeah, like, long hair rock band. Just thought that was cool. So I didn't really have, like, this deep down, like, desire to be a musician, but, yeah, kind of, I stumbled on piano lessons and really, really, really liked it. I did think that I'd be a pop star when I was when I was, like, in my Hannah Montana, Montana. I'm, like, that's gonna be me. Yeah, I'm gonna be hurt, and probably not, but, um, so started doing Peter lessons when I was like 10. Did it for a couple years, but I can only, like, I get bored easily. And so I got bored easily, yeah, just reading music and going to lessons every week, like I was improving my skills, but it just wasn't very fun. Like I was watching my dad and my brother have so much fun playing music, and I'm like, Well, this sucks, compared to that, like, I'm just playing, like, boring songs. So I stopped doing lessons, and kind of just stopped playing piano altogether, because I was a young adolescent interested in other things, like hanging out with my friends, like getting to the mall. Like I didn't really put much piano. I. As a teenager, yeah, then COVID hit when I was 16, and I really got back into it. And I had forgotten at that point how to read music, but I could still kind of, like, play it by ear, yeah, watch a YouTube video. So I got back into it, like, multiple hours a week, and, wow, I had really nothing better to do. And we didn't even have that nice of, like a it was just a keyboard in our basement, because we don't have like, a piano or anything, yeah. And so, like, I really miss playing on a real piano, because there's something so special about like playing on like a nice, like wooden, like baby grand or whatever, yeah. So come to college, and then there's like, a piano in the basement of my dorm, which is
wolpers, yeah. Where are you? I'm in responsibility.
Okay. Have you been in wolpers? Like, seen the basement? No, but I've heard, is it they have like, a projector. It's a whole thing down there. Um, interesting. It's it was place for real. But so I when I found out that there was like a piano room in the basement of wolpers, they had like, a really nice Yamaha piano. It's like, it made me fangirl every time I would go in there, because it's really nice, and I'd spend hours in there, like, every day, every week, whatever. And then I moved out of woolfords and was like, well, this sucks. Like, I don't have anywhere to play, so I'm just like, Googling, like, practice spaces near me. And like, asking people like, Hey, do you think, like, this church would let me play their piano? Or, like, you know, anybody like mom who I could, like, go to their house and play there, and I was like, sneaking back into the dorms too. Like, I would still sneak back in wolpers When I was a sophomore, just, like, play the piano. Like, literally get out of class, walk to wolpers, wait for someone to let me in, and be like, yeah, I totally live here anyway, downstairs. I did that for a while, and then I heard about this program called entrepreneurship Alliance. And like, I've been interested in entrepreneurship even as a kid, yeah, and so I was kind of in that my mind, like, Damn, I can't find any practice spaces like this. Might this could be a business. And I was finding some other like practice spaces in other cities, just as I was Googling it. So I'm like, the business models proved, like, people are doing it in other places, just not like smaller cities they were in, like LA Nashville, like Austin, Texas, Chicago, New York, like big cities, yeah, but like Columbia, Missouri, now even the ones in Kansas City and St Louis kind of suck. So kind of all that I had liked music. I'd been around music. I understood, like, the importance of having music, and like how it sucked to be disconnected from your passion and from your music. It's like when a painter doesn't have access to paint, or like when an athlete doesn't have access to a gym, or like when a scholar doesn't have access to like books. I don't know. It's just like a musician who doesn't have access to music, like a place to practice, or like a way to play. It just kind of sucks. So I'm like, I can make this a business. And I heard about the accelerator program, entrepreneurship Alliance, and was like, I could submit my business idea and maybe win money, and I didn't, kind of like, snowballed from there. Oh, so that was, I think I answered your question, yeah, hopefully
that's very cool. So okay, yeah, you answered my question. Um, how did okay? You mentioned how you got the idea. So did I think being a musician impact the way, like, I guess, you structured sound check, like, the way that the system works and everything? Yes.
Um, so first of all was like, Okay, I'm a big like vibes person when it comes to like design or, like a living space, yeah? So like, you should see my like bedroom, or like my apartment, it's very it just looks like a musician lives there. Like it's very colorful. There's a lot of, like, LED lights and, like, divine, cool, yeah, like, a lot of plants, like dark colors, and it's very moody. And that's like, I love that vibe. And that's a very like musician thing to just like, have that kind of I put I even have records back there, like on my wall, like my room is covered in records. And so I was, like, frustrated by these other practice spaces I had been to, like the one in wolpers. It's literally just like a white room with white ceilings. There's like, one piano, one piano bench, like one table, one chair. It's like fluorescent lighting, like in here, and it's just, it's not a place where you feel like creative at all, yeah, like, when you think about, like an art studio, like the vibe of an art studio is very like artsy fartsy, like, it's a cool looking space. It's a place where, like, people want to make art, or even, like the vibe of a gym, you know, there's like, rock and roll music and like, there's like powerful colors, and it's like, just, they create the vibe of, like, a gym where athletes want to hang out. But it was like, I felt like, for musicians, the practice spaces that we had was like, what, what the most creative people to be in a white room? Like, even, I don't know if you've been to the sync field, like music center, like Mizzou music school, yeah, they built, they put, like, millions of dollars into that building, and it's awesome. But again, the practice spaces are just kind of like boring. Like, you go in there, you rehearse your sheet music, and, like, you leave, yeah, and there's, I mean, they're free, so that's great. But I was like, I think that. It. If me as a musician is like, craving a better space, like a more creative space to practice music, then I guarantee you there's other people like, also wanting that. Yeah, so like that definitely influenced part of sound check and just like the way that it looks, and even when I expand like more locations, like, I will not budge on, like the way that it's like, designed with, like the moody colors and like lots of plants, and like lots of lamps, and like cool rugs, like, I refuse to have, like a white box. I think if people are going to pay for it, you want it to be like a space that they want to that they want to be in. Another thing that influenced how it, like runs and operates and whatnot, so it's fully equipped, meaning, like a band could literally, if it's a five man band, they can literally just bring like them. Bring, like themselves and everything they need for their practice is there. So like, the instruments are there. Like, I have guitar picks, I have capos, I have drumsticks, I have drums, I have multiple guitars, like keyboard, the amps, the cables, everything, the speakers, like, it's all there. So the idea is that, like, if you're a college student and you play the drums, like you don't just have a drum set at your apartment, yeah, they're noisy and they're big. And if you're a guitar player, maybe you can't afford like a guitar or if you're a piano player, maybe you have a keyboard at home, but like, you crave, like a real piano. And so it's like, I think people are not having access to, like, the instruments that they want and need. Yeah, and I also thank the people who do so, like, not college kids, but the people who are, like, late or like early, and told some, like, their 20s and 30s, they probably like, have the instruments, but it's a pain in the ass to, like, lug them to practice every week. I remember my dad literally used to have, like, a trailer he bought like it looked like a horse trailer. You just fill it with gear every Sunday like to go to band practice, yeah. And it took him so long to load and unload the trailer and then set up for practice, and then unset up from practice, load the trailer back, unload it back into the house, like it was just so much, whereas, like, if there was just a space that was already ready. Then it's like, maybe you bring your favorite guitar, but, like, pretty much everything you need is already there, yeah. So, like, I saw that frustration, and I was like, Okay, another mental note. So it has to be a vibe, and it's got to be fully equipped. And then also, like, the they would lock the practice room at wolpers at, like, 10pm Oh, and then the sync field, like, School of Music closes at, like, I don't know, eight. So it's like, people get off of work, or like, they finish studying and, like, that's the time when they won, like, play music. It's like, late at night most of the time, like, a lot of bands practice late at night. So it's like, nothing's open 24 hours for people to, like, come to that's why I made it 24/7 Yeah, I think what else? Yeah, just thought of my own experiences that was like, Okay, I feel this way. And I feel like this sucks about the current solutions. So like, this is how I want to make it different, yeah. And I was, I was a lot of, like, looking online too, and going to other practice spaces, like I went to a couple in Kansas City and St Louis and Chicago, even, like Austin, Texas. And they weren't equipped. They were just very boring to like be in. They weren't even really that soundproof, either. So I was just underwhelmed by, like, her options. And I was like, musicians are being underserved, yeah. So, yeah, cool,
yeah. So were you, like, going to these places and, like, researching before you started, or no, it
was really, like, after I had the idea that I wanted to try to win money for it, I was like, Okay, let me get, like, a good understanding of, like, what competition is out there, yeah, and like, how I can be a differentiator in the market. Because I don't know, like, anybody can, pretty much, like, sell a room by hour and say, like, here you can practice music in it. But like, the value is that, like, I'm different because, like, it's esthetic, it's 24/7 it's fully equipped, it's Bookable by the hour, and you can do it all online and yada yada. So I was, like, I was looking at the current options and saying, like, Oh, they're not doing this, like, I can do that, yeah? Oh, they you have to call and schedule to get on their booking. Like, okay, I'm just gonna automate it all. Like they can do it from their phone. So it's like, okay, it just felt very like old and archaic, like the way that it had been being done, yeah? And like the places that I had been going to just felt old, I don't know. Like, the website looked old, yeah, the place smelled like mildew. Like, this sucks. Why doesn't anyone do anything better? And people are, again, just not in like, all cities. It's like the cool places are on the coasts, yeah? And, like, not anywhere else, unless you're lucky, yeah, cool. So
how did, how did you, like, source all of the instruments, because that's like, a lot of equipment to get. Yeah,
music equipment is not cheap, yeah, and so, like, I had won 12 and a half $1,000 and sorry, that was my friend, face timing. Girls, no, but. And talk later. So a lot of it was bought second hand. So there was, like a website called American music supply, and you can get second hand instruments and stuff. So I was getting a lot of like, cables, speakers, like accessory and gear stuff, secondhand. The drum set I bought off of, like, a good friend, my dad donated two guitars, which I thought was super nice. I got some stuff at auctions, like, I had this really cool purple hand drum that I got for like 30 bucks at an auction. I was just I spent so many months, like, doing nothing with my time, but, like, trying to figure out the cheapest way to open, yeah, I spent so many hours, like, on Facebook, marketplace and like auction websites, trying to, like, find furniture for cheap, and trying to find instruments for cheap, like, in the piano that's in there. It's a pretty nice, like, Kimball piano, but I got it for free because, like, I knew somebody that I had met at like, a local event, and she had, like, remembered that I was trying to make this, like, business thing happen, and she reached out to me, like, right after I had signed my lease for, like, the business space. And she was like, Hey, I'm getting rid of my piano. Like, I'll give it to you for free, and perfect. I'll take it. Yeah, so there's really nice people, like, just trying to help me out, like, how I did it. So that was really helpful, and just being frugal, and, yeah, I'm trying to think, I feel like it all just came together so fast. Like, one day I had an empty, empty studio, and like, the next day it was just open, like it went by so fast. When did it start? I signed my lease in June, June. Okay, like I had one money in April. I was scouting spaces in May, like meeting realtors and trying to figure out, like, what size I needed, and yada yada yada, like a good location, because I wanted it to be like downtown. And then I signed a lease that started like June 1, and then I opened four months later in October, so the space was pretty much ready like October 1. So from like June 1 to October 1, I was filling it up and finding it, finding or finding out how to, like, get stuff for cheap, and, like, painted the walls, the whole bunch of stuff. And I'm proud to say that I'm handier than I thought that I was. I never used a drill gun before, okay? Like an electric drill? Yeah, I'm very proud. I installed blinds and painted and everything. So pat on the back, because I didn't think that that would be in my future anytime soon, and it was I forgot,
like, where I was going with that.
Oh yeah, yeah. I'm just very frugal with everything, checking the bank account, like, constantly buying lots of stuff off Amazon. My mom has Amazon Prime, yeah, and, like, some of the money went towards like rent, because I was paying rent then too. So overall, I probably budgeted like six, like, five or 6000 towards, like, the gear itself, the gear that instruments, the accessories, yeah, yeah. Spend a lot of money on, like, just like legal formation and like, furniture,
rent, yeah, and
software, I don't know, but
I'm more frugal than I thought I was. It's funny because, like, I'll buy, like a sandwich and coffee and another coffee from, like, my own personal account. Like, every day I spend way too much money on, like, food and like random shit. But like, when it comes to my business, I'm like, I can't buy that guitar pick right now. I don't. I'm not spending the $5 very frugal. When I treat the business like it's my baby, and then, like, my personal spending, it's like, yeah, that's infinite, sure, yeah, buy it all, which I don't know if that's an issue, but yeah, because 12 and a half 1000, I thought would, like, cover everything I needed it to cover, and then some, yeah, I quickly found out that, like, damn, this is going down really fast. This number is decreasing a lot. Like, every little purchase really does add up. So yeah, and it's gonna be crazy going doing that on like, a whole nother scale when I, like, want to open a second location. Oh, are you planning to do that? Yeah, I don't have any, like, definite plans right now, but I did just win some funding, like, two weeks ago from another pitch competition that will allow me to essentially, like, open another one, because I can put a down payment on a loan. I think that I want to open, like, a bigger location and a little bit of a bigger market. So think that Kansas City or St Louis, and I think a build out would be up to $250,000 and so the Small Business Administration, they will let you put a 10% down payment on a loan, meaning I need 25k to put down. Yeah, I won 10k and so I think like if I can open something with $150,000 loan, and it. Only need to put 15k down and so I can get like, this 10,000 that I just won, save a little bit more from, like, cash flows coming in, yeah? And maybe even, like, in 2025 like, really start building something, another city, just like, ah, oh my god, what? Yeah. So that's just a completely different ball game that I think I'll be ready for when I get to it, yeah. Just like crazy to think about.
Yeah, well, I guess I don't know. In your freshman year, did you ever think you'd be building a studio? No,
literally, no, I don't know what I thought I was gonna do freshman year. I knew that I was interested in music, but I was still like, a marketing major. Like, had just, you know, joined like, a business fraternity, and, like, all my friends wanted to like work at banks and like, be accountants. And so I thought, yeah, I always kind of thought that I would start a business. I know what. I definitely didn't think it would be in music. I honestly had no clue what I thought I would start, yeah. So probably something in marketing, because I was a marketing major. And so I thought, like, oh, I have my own agency or whatever. So I thought, like, out of graduation, I'd probably just like work for a company doing marketing, yeah, which I am doing, like, I work at equipment share. Are you familiar with equipment share at all? They're a late stage startup, and they're actually founded in Columbia, like in 2014 and now are valued at, like, over $4 billion and they have over 250 branches across the United States. And they're, like, a tech they say they're a tech company because they have, like, some tech that goes behind their equipment, but they it's like an Airbnb for, like, construction equipment, actually really cool. So, like, when I came to Columbia, I knew that I wanted to do something in entrepreneurship, or, like, get an internship, like at a startup or something. So like, had done some Googling, like, just trying to think of, like, some goals that I could set of like, where I wanted to get internships, because business majors have to have an internship before they graduate. Oh, and so I'm like, Oh, this equipment share company looks cool, like they're a startup. They're really successful. They have a marketing team, like, I should try to get a job there one day doing marketing, thinking, like, that might be what I do after I graduate. Ended up getting an internship there, like, this previous summer, okay? And I guess I was useful. They kept me on the team. So that's my day job still is, like doing marketing for their team. Okay, so it's funny, just looking back, it's like, Damn, you really lined up your dominoes pretty well. Like, you wanted to go into entrepreneurship, wanted to work at equipment share, like, I feel just very blessed, like, proud, and like, I couldn't have done it without a lot of people who helped me. Yeah, so I thought I would do something in marketing. Did not think that I would be starting a music studio. It kind of came out of nowhere. But really, I just took a leap of faith and applied to this, like, accelerator program. And yeah, it was like, Oh, wait, if I win money, like, I should actually do something with it. My friends were like, No, put in your savings account. Like, you won't have to worry about rent for the rest of the year. Like, I don't really think that sounds as fun as, like, starting something Yeah, and like, did not know what I was doing. My parents are not entrepreneurs, so I kind of just learned it by, like, talking to other people and like, Greg and Kelly their offices down the hall. They kind of like, run this whole like hallway and, like entrepreneurship programs at Mizzou. Yeah, they've been so helpful.
But, yeah, that was a long
answer. No, I want to hear you talk the point of the interview. So okay, so you mentioned, like, the EQ competition. Well, first of all, congratulations and winning second place, I was like,
I mean, they're gonna be spending my Thanksgiving break celebrating, or, like, drowning my sorrows, because it was the Tuesday before Thanksgiving break, and I went on a cruise for Thanksgiving break, uh huh. And I was like, this is either gonna be the greatest like vacation ever, because I'll be celebrating, or I'll just be like, upset and trying to find joy, like in the in the cruise, I don't know. So it worked out, ended up being like a celebration, vacation. Awesome.
Thank you. So, how do you feel about getting second place?
Amazing. I there were some, every single person in that accelerator program, like this semester was awesome and like so, the way EQ set up is like 15 people pitch in September, and then from those 15 they pick 10 to go on and do like a seven or like five week program. I think, nope, six week program, like you meet every Monday and talk about your business and yoga. It's kind of like entrepreneurship alliance that I did in the spring. Yeah. So they're kind of, I can get them confused sometimes. So one is entrepreneurship Alliance, EA in the spring, and then EQ was in the fall. Okay? So, like, I don't know I talk about it, my mom still gets confused. She's like, why does that one comp? So I should probably clarify that. But so the one in the fall that I was talking about, it goes from 15 people to 10 people, and then they pick the top three. So there's two rounds of pitch competitions. Um, and you only win money at the second round, so when it narrows, it down from the top 10 to the top three, but even in like the top 15, some guy was, like, pitching a cure for cancer, there was some, like, really, really, really cool companies. So like, a fantastic group of people made it to round two. Um. Got to work with, like, those 10 teams, kind of, like, throughout the semester, since September, there was some, like, real estate related ones. Some guy was who had been like a paramedic and an EMT. He had, like, found a solution for, like, when someone in it has to get, like, an ambulance called, and it takes forever to input all of their information and data and allergies and the yada yada. He found a way to, like, scan, like, their ID and, like, automatically pull up everything, which I guess hadn't been done before, not at least where he worked. So he was basically saving the world, like, they're just some really cool companies. So like, the fact that I'm music studio, it's like, second place is kind of crazy. That's how I felt about, like, every pitch competition that I've done, because this is the third that I've done. And went and went EA, and then started weekend, and then now EQ, um, and place to all three. And it's still like, I'm just, I think I have, like, imposter syndrome. I'm like, me, me, when the money, like, not the guy cured cancer. That's okay, crazy, crazy on y'all but all right, like, I guess I hope that, like, the judges in the audience, like, feel like my passion behind it, and like, can see and feel like the demand, because I threw a bunch of stats on my slides and, like, really tried to portray that like, this is a huge need. And like, I hope that I'm the one to solve it. So I think, like the fact it historically, like in these pitch competitions, usually, like the students with the most traction are the ones who will place, which I think was the case again this year, like first place was Finch interactive, and they're building like games on Roblox, but tailored toward an older audience, like 18 to like 30 people Who want, like, higher quality games, because Roblox is, like, really shitty games. Like, really, I don't know, I don't play Roblox, but from what I've heard from them, and they've already, like, released their first two games, and are projecting like, millions in revenue, which, like, isn't even like out of out of their like, realistic range. I really think they can be hitting it so, like, they're having great traction. I just opened my doors and was able to prove, like, some stats about, like, how many people are coming in, and, like, utilization rates and yada yada yada, yeah. And then third place was melt masters. Have you seen their truck on campus? Yeah, really, it's really good, but they do, like, smash melts and like, some really great sandwiches and fries and all that, yeah. And so they had great traction. This was, like, our first semester open. But their say, semester open, but their sales have been incredible. And so, I mean, there were some other people in the competition who had great traction too, like Trey Scott, who owns Johnson, and Scott who His clothes are sold out of COVID store down here, like at the end, but he makes clothes and, like, uses local art to, like, inspire the designs. And so he's done like 60k in sales this year, like, some really cool entrepreneurs. So I feel, yeah, imposter syndrome. I'm like me when that's crazy, but so, like, honored, blessed, grateful, Yeah, glad that, like, I'm telling the story well, and that, like, it shows, like the audience and the judges, like, feel it. I always ask for feedback at the end of my pitches, yeah. And typically, a piece of feedback that, like, boost my ego maybe too much. Is that, like, you're great presenter, and so, like, I hope that I can continue to, like, do more pitch competitions even before the semester ends, yeah? Like, probably not at Mizzou, but like once outside of even maybe Missouri, there's some really great pitch competitions in like Kansas and like Illinois, yeah, um, but hopefully I can keep doing them, because so far so good, we're three for three, yeah, so we can be four perform, shoot 10 by 10 for 10, I don't know. So I do need more money if I'm going to try to, like, open a second Sydney, I seriously need to do more pitch competitions, because grant funding is, like, the best way to, like, make a startup happen. Because you're not sharing any equity. It's literally free money. You pay taxes on it at the end of the year, which is kind of annoying. Oh, I don't write the rules, though. So, like, whatever. Yeah, the more free money, the better. But Mo Money more problems. So like, I have more things to figure out, like, how I'm gonna open, yeah, so I get location. But I think her question was, how do I feel about winning? Good, good, great, excited, awesome, crazy.
So is okay? Yeah, you mentioned that the prize money is kind of important to, like, further expanding the business, right? Okay. And so in terms of, like, stats, like, what kind of because your website says, you know, like, podcasters, music teachers, like, everybody can come. Who do you usually get coming or, like, what kind of clients you usually get coming to sound check?
It's a lot of people wanting to I would say it's pretty split between people who want to record and people who want to rehearse. So I'm getting a lot of people who are in a band and they're ready. Kind of like, record some music. They can't yet afford a traditional recording studio, but they just want to, like, record themselves and kind of like, start putting some music out there. Or they were paying for recording studio. They know how to do it themselves. And they saw that the space was open, and they're like, oh, cool, I'll save money just do this. Yeah. So it's like, half that, and then, like, half rehearsals. So like people, just like, someone was in there at 8am playing drums, which is like they were, they were there before work. But I'm like, girl, you gotta, you gotta be crazy to play drums at 8am but all right, that I love that spirit. Yeah, people wanted to come in, like, play piano, drums, guitar. A lot of fans wanting to come in. And I haven't even done that much marketing. It's, like, been a lot of word of mouth, which is awesome. I'm, like, literally not posted on social media, like, get my shit together, basically. But so and then instructors, right now is a pretty small portion, but soon it'll be like, the majority. So right now I have essentially, like, no instructors. I've had like, a few come in and do some but I haven't really signed on anyone to come do, like, permanent, like recurring, like full time instructing, basically. But I do have a couple interested in doing that, so I'm kind of, like working with them to see, like, what would work out best, but they'd be doing like, 35 or 40 hours a week, and, like, instructing, yeah, and they'd be doing it during the day. So it actually works out great, because they'd be because they'd be there from like, 10 to six or whatever, and like, no one else is really there during that time, because it's like, people are at work, at school and, like, whatever. Um, so that'd be a great way to get, like, consistent cash flow. Um, which is awesome, because then I can still have people coming in, like, on the weekends and in the evenings and in the mornings, I guess if you want to drum at 8am but, um, so yeah, it's like, probably like, soon it's gonna be like, 50% instructing, 25% rehearsal, 25% recording. Yeah, I haven't had anyone come into a podcast yet, but I also think that's because my recording equipment wasn't like the bougiest. I literally just two days ago installed like, a whole new recording setup. Oh, so because we were, like, hearing some like, feedback when people were recording, yeah, just didn't sound like the greatest Yeah, the space is kind of big. So what we did is, like, have you seen a photo of it? It's, it'll be easier if I can, like, show up. Yeah. So there's like, this internal room that serves as a piano room, and so, like, we were having people record out here, but instead, Oh, I see we threw some, like, recording equipment in here, and it kind of serves as, like an isolation room, because it's small and it sounds great. So I need to do some like advertising to say, like, hey, we just put up, like, a cool thing. Um, so hopefully we'll get more people coming in to, like, record, record, because people have been coming in but saying, like, It's mid so that's why I bought new stuff. So hopefully more podcasting people coming in, more like music recording people coming in. Someone was like, You should do sound baths in there, which is like, I don't know, I've never done a sound bath, but what I understand, you're pretty much just like chilling, like laying there, maybe meditating, but like, just like, it's like ambient music and beta waves and whatnot. It's like value. So I might do a sound bath. Oh, and then events are something that I want to expand on, because I had one that, like, back in October. It was, like, October 12. It was a house show, like, the most cool, like, intimate thing ever. This guy from Denver came. He tours around North America for like, half the year. He came and performed, and then, like, a local band opened for him, and it was such a cool bite. Like people were set up on like long chairs and like blankets on the floor, and, like, we cleared out the area fit like 40 people in there. Oh, had, like the lamps all turned low, and he had, like, a projector. It was a whole vibe. So I would definitely want to do more of those. I think it's a great way to, like spotlight local artists. Yeah, because think about it, like the the bands who are playing at, like, bars and at Rose music hall and at Blue Note and all these kind of, like more official venues. They're usually, like, bigger bands, or their older bands, whereas, like, college students really don't have a great platform to like show people their live music. Yeah, I see a lot of college students doing like house shows, like at their literal house. Like, I live on East Campus, and my neighbor, at least, like, once a month, just has like, a live band in their backyard. And I don't know how, like, cops have never been called that's actually like, loud as fuck, yeah, Beats me. But so I think sound check would be a cool place to keep doing more house shows, yeah, just like, bring people in to see the space and to hear the music, and it's kind of more like one of those things that, like, is perfect, because it's like, just cool enough to where, like, people come in and they're like, Wow. This is cool. And I tell their musician friend, yeah, hopefully that musician friend comes in and it's like, oh, wow, this is cool. And then tell us their musician friend so grateful that it's been a lot of word of mouth so far. Yeah, and yeah. I think I'm still trying to figure out, like, what my target demographic is. Like, I would like it to be majority rehearsal, just because, like, that's kind of why I started it, yeah. Also, I'm finding that, like, there's a lot of other people who need a space like this, like instructors, like people who want to record, so yeah, maybe we'll get to a place where it's like, 1/3 1/3 1/3 which is kind of what it looks like it's doing, yeah, but it's kind of too soon to tell. I also don't think I've done as much outreach as I, like, could, yeah, so, like, I think in the new year, like, I'll have, so hopefully, like, a lot more people coming in. It's, I've, like, intentionally, kind of been, like, soft launching it for the past, like, since it opened, yeah, just because there's been some flaws with, like, the booking software and like the entry kind of like flow and like, even the setup and like how things are wired, there was some like, confusion at the beginning. People are like, I don't really know how I'm supposed to record because this wire goes here and there. Like, it was very kind of a convoluted setup. So like, we iterated, and like, we made it simpler, and like, we added signage, and we, like, updated the booking software, and like, kind of so we've been soft launching, and, like, intentionally not like blasting it out to everyone, and like doing a ton of paid marketing, and like doing a bunch of, like, just events, because it's been like, let's take it slow and like, make it let's iterate. And like, make it good. Yeah. And then my plan is in the new year, like, do a bunch of email marketing campaigns and like, post a shits out on social media, and like, start to get sponsored or not sponsorships, but like partnerships with local organizations, like churches and like Mizzou and even like Stevens college and like pigment High School, and like all these places where musicians are already hanging out, yeah, but it's like, Hey, your people can have like this discount, or, like, some churches had told me that, like, they would put like 500 bucks towards like their people to have a space to play. So I think, I don't know. I'm excited to see like, how my customer base changes. Yeah, I think it will, but I don't know, even though I've been, like, soft launching and not really doing that much marketing, I'm still having, like, mostly people that I don't know booking, and I'm like, that's really cool. I don't even know you. You found out about it somehow. Yeah, this is awesome. So, yeah, we'll see
