Creative Re-use Entrepreneur Survives Naysayers

by Mike Kravinsky

Lisa Hernandez is an energetic person. Our conversation was filled with enthusiasm for her small store, The Long Beach Depot For Creative Re-Use. "The Depot", open now for three years in Long Beach California, has recharged her passion and taken advantage of management skills from a job she didn't care for anymore. "You know how some people say mid-life crisis? It was more like an awakening; I wanted to do something good for my soul," says Hernandez.  She's the owner of a niche business which recycles small items that you'll find nowhere else.

Disillusioned by the long hours and disagreements involved with her job in human resources, she left. "I was tired of working for other people", says Hernandez. For the next six months, with the help of savings and unemployment, she spent time reflecting on what she wanted to do next.

Hernandez used to read to her daughter when she was younger. One particular book was Mr. Myrtle's Large Heart. "It's a cute little story about a little man who has this little store and has all these things that you can't find anyplace else."  When Hernandez reminded her daughter of the book, her daughter suggested, "Hey Mom, why don't we have a store like Mr. Myrtle? Why don't we have our own place?" That way, Hernandez could take care of people like she wanted to and her daughter could do her art. "All of the sudden, I guess you could say an epiphany happened," says Hernandez. There is a large green movement going on in Long Beach, supported by the local government. "I thought, ‘Oh my gosh, this could totally work.’"

Hernandez knew of local people and businesses that had all sorts of scraps and pieces, misprinted items and fabric samples. For example, one company on the west side of Long Beach makes gaskets, and a rubber by-product is produced along with the final product. When people are doing craft projects, Hernandez thought, these by-products could come in handy.

Hernandez takes items that normally would be discarded and sells it. The businesses are happy to give it to The Depot, because it cuts down on their costs. It's green because fewer items end up in landfills and Hernandez makes money off the donated items.

Hernandez's idea was to have a small space and pack it in with reusable items arranged in an orderly way. "There's this huge gap of all the little stuff that the Goodwill thrift stores won't take, but it's too good for the trash," she explains - items like buttons, color paper, individual nails. "If it's presented in an organized way, people will go for it. That's the magic of this place.”

To launch the business, she did something that she advises others never to do. She used her credit cards, even though she had savings from an inheritance and the sale of a condo.

It all started when she tried to get a small business loan. She created a business plan and applied to the Business Development Center. According to Hernandez, they looked at her and said, "You're not going to make any money and it's not going to last three months." There were grants and loans for female and minority businesses, and she was also a veteran. She could not convince them that her idea was worth exploring. Hernandez says they suggested, "Well, you have good credit, why don't you just use your own credit and get the money on your own?"

This angered Hernandez, but she remembered the words of her father, "Forget people who crush your ideas because you need to consider the source." With that in mind, she left. She opened the store by borrowing against her personal credit cards. The passion to open the shop outweighed her caution. "Why am I being possessed to go and do this shop?" she asked herself at the time. "I felt very passionate about it." In 2010, Hernandez was forced to file for personal bankruptcy due to the debt she encountered compared to the money that came in initially. The only reason she was able to keep The Depot was because she turned it into a non-profit.
 
The Depot has certainly had its ups and downs, but it survived. These days, it seems that the little one thousand square foot store has developed quite a niche for itself in the community.

The majority of her customers are crafters; but the store also attracts teachers looking for student supplies and art students, particularly those at Cal State Long Beach. (The university has a fiber department which uses her fiber scraps). An unexpected source of customers is people who create crafts and sell them on craft websites like Etsy.com.  "We also get folks who want nails, but they don't want to have to buy a whole package of them. They only need one or two", says Hernandez. The Depot also sells donated unused greeting cards. "They'll come in and buy an unused birthday card and then get one of the gently used party bags and tissue and take their gift and wrap it all up in the store."

Currently, the store is breaking even with the help of donations and grants. Hernandez says the store is in a good place. People describe what she's doing as a cause. "They feel that I'm starting a revolution of creative re-use, because part of my passion is to get national attention to what we're doing and that this store should be a model for the rest of this country."
 
Hernandez works hard at promoting The Depot. She convinced the mayor of Long Beach to proclaim February 27th as “Creative Re-Use Day" and is hosting a first ever creative use block party celebration to honor it. Hernandez has received letters of thanks from California Senator Diane Feinstein, as well a thank you note from the Obamas. When President Obama was inaugurated, Hernandez's daughter made gifts for the new first family using recycled items.

Hernandez's advice for those who pursue a non-traditional business is, "Don't let anybody tell you you can't do it. Always consider the source."