StartSmart helps build businesses in Corpus Christi

When Anthony Ma decided to leave nursing to start his own business, he turned to the StartSmart program at Del Mar Community College’s Small Business Development Center to help write his business plan. Ma now owns and operates Ma’Street Fries food truck in Corpus Christi. 
“It teaches you what to do to start a business,” Ma told Corpus Christi Business News. “It was a great foundation to get into business. They taught me how to market, how to do research before you start. It was a great step-by-step process for getting into it.” 
StartSmart is a program for anyone of any age who wants to start a business, explained Monica Benavides, the Small Business Development Center Program coordinator. For $125, participants receive one-on-one advice, eight weekly three-hour classes with modules, workbooks and sack lunches included. 
“A lot of people who want to start a business can’t make time during their workday to work on their business plans,” she said. “We offer a way to do it once a week for three hours in the evening. It’s a guided business-plan course.”
The next StartSmart program begins Jan. 12 with a mandatory orientation from 5:30-6:30 p.m. at the Small Business Development Center at 3209 S. Staples St. in Corpus Christi. Classes are one night a week from 5:30-8:30 p.m. beginning Jan. 18 through the final class on March 8. 

PRACTICAL PLANNING

The focus is on planning, the most important aspect of any successful business, Benavides said.
“You need to know where you are going and how you are going to get there,” she said. “You need to know where your market is, where your funding is going to come from and what is most beneficial for your business.”
Learning to do the research to target a niche market has made Ma’Street Fries a popular destination for Food Truck Fridays and other events in Corpus Christi. With the help of StartSmart, Ma turned his idea to bring international flavors to a Corpus Christi audience into a delicious and unique food offering. He sells french fries with different toppings, including his second-best seller: a dessert plate with sweet potatoes, Nutella, strawberry topping, powered sugar, whipped cream and fresh strawberries. 
“My signature item is Ma’Street Fries with sirloin steak, special sauce, mushrooms, jalapeños and bacon,” he said. He learned to introduce each new item one at a time, keeping his menu fresh and interest high. 
“I offer about four to five menu items at a time while keeping two to three favorites,” Ma explained. “I also learned how to get the word out through email marketing, social media and print. I found my target market and demographic. You can’t market to everyone.”The upcoming class will be taught by Darcy Shaw, an SBDC rural advisor and StartSmart facilitator. 
“This program is designed for people not in business yet but who want to start their own business,” Shaw said. “It’s about bringing a new entrepreneur into the realm of being a successful business owner.” 
Writing a business plan is the core of the class. 
“Planning is a strong indicator of success for small-business owners,” Shaw said. “With good planning, they are not caught off guard with things that happen in the market. They are able to pivot and deal with issues when they come up.” 
Once a plan is developed, the research and paperwork done, participants go through a “SharkTank”-like presentation of their ideas.
Ma said he would happily recommend the program for anyone wanting to go into business for themselves.
“It’s good to ask the experts, and Del Mar has the experts,” he said. “If you need to know something, they find the expert to help you out. They can find you whatever information you’re looking for. We can do all the research we want to, but it’s different when you have someone guiding you as well.” 
To find out how to participate in the StartSmart program, call Benavides at (361) 698-1021. Deadline for payment is noon Tuesday, Jan. 10. To register online or see other seminars offered by SBDC visit the website at utsa.ecenterdirect.com.