Tito`s: From houses to tacos

Microfinance Matters
February 2012
2012 is off to a great start and there’s a lot more to look forward to in the coming months! Our new Loan Officer, Nick Miluso, is completing his training process, while former Loan Officer, Valery Belloso, has stepped into
the newly created Business Development Officer position to ramp-up outreach efforts. We’ve also finalized our
2012 workshop series and are again excited to offer five free trainings this year. Finally, plans are fully underway
for the SD Microfinance Summit to be held April 4th. This is always an exciting event for those passionate about
microfinance. Make sure to mark your calendars and watch for a registration link coming soon!
Elizabeth Schott, Executive Director
Introducing…
Tito’s: From houses to tacos
From real estate to a taco shop? It doesn’t sound likely, but in the case of Danny
Damian and his wife, Sue, it’s a perfect
transition. When the recession hit in
2008, the real estate and housing market plummeted, and like many other self
-employed realtors Danny and Sue were
met with the challenge of how to maintain a steady income in an unsteady
market.
ACCION San Diego is proud to welcome Nick Miluso to the team as
our newest loan officer! Nick relocated from San Francisco and
brings several years of community
development, sales, and local microfinance experience. As Loan
Officer, he will be responsible for
portfolio management, loan generation, and community outreach.
In his free time Nick enjoys hiking,
playing volleyball, golfing, and
surfing making San Diego his
dream city. He loves traveling and
exploring, and has spent time in
Latin America and Europe. Someday, he hopes to visit India and
Nepal, and is especially interested
in the impact of global microfinance. Nick received his B.A. in
Global Studies at the UC Santa
Barbara and minored in both Spanish and Latin American Studies.
Having worked at his family’s taco shop
since he was a young boy, opening up
his own taco shop was the obvious
choice for Danny when looking for another source of income. “I’ve been working at a taco shop ever since I can remember, but I never thought I’d do it
again!” Danny explains.
Well, all that experience is paying off.
After just one and a half years, Danny
and Sue have two taco shop locations in
Logan Heights and another that recently
opened in La Mesa four months ago.
They’ve doubled the number of employees hired, currently employing eight
people to run both locations.
Unlike most ACCION clients, the
Damians never sought financing from a
traditional bank, but instead as a startup went straight to ACCION at the recommendation of one of their real estate
clients. While starting their first location,
the Damians needed financial capital to
install a kitchen hood system. In February 2010, they successfully obtained an
$8,000 loan from ACCION when they
needed it the most. After buying the
second location, another loan was
needed for a similar hood installation,
and they were able to obtain a second
$7,500 ACCION loan in July 2011.
As you can imagine, running two businesses is not easy. To be real estate
agents by day and taco shop owners by
night, the Damians work seven days a
week in order to keep up with their double life. A typical day starts at 8 AM doing real estate; then, at 3:30 PM they
put on their Tito’s uniform and serve
tacos till 11 PM.
Separating Business &
Personal Finances
By: Hector Zatarain, Regional
Manager, Business Banking,
U.S. Bank
Another important reason to
keep finances separate is record keeping. If you need to
obtain financing for a busiMoney management is one of ness loan or line of credit, you
the most difficult tasks for
may be required to show
most business owners. In the bank statements reflecting
early days of your business,
business liquidity. Most banks
you may experience a very
offer business accounts with
uneven income stream – even reporting features, so you can
utilizing personal funds for
easily prepare financial statestartup expenses and operat- ments and other business
ing at a loss. However, as your performance reports. Having
business grows, it may beseparation in your accounts
come your primary source of will also make it much easier
income. Ultimately, it can
to determine which income
become easy for your perand expenses belong to the
sonal and business finances to business.
become intertwined; however, it is very important to
The easiest way to separate
keep the two separated.
your business and personal
finances is to open a business
The most important reason
bank account. Depending on
for separating business and
your type of business entity,
personal finances is for tax
the documentation required
reasons. As a business owner, by the bank could be little to
you may be entitled to certain none. Most banks offer busideductions for your business, ness accounts with options
such as expenses for a home- for paying no monthly fees,
office or mileage. Many of
but fees may vary based on
these deductions are not
the volume of activity in your
available to individual tax pay- account.
ers, but only to businesses.
Separating your finances is a
For more information, call Jay
clean way to ensure you prop- Henslee, San Diego/Inland
erly follow tax laws and reEmpire Sales Manager of
ceive all tax advantages you
Small Business Banking for US
are entitled as an owner.
Bank, at (619) 744-2195.
2850 National Ave. Ste.108
San Diego, CA 92113
————————————————————————-
5257 Baltimore Drive
La Mesa CA 91942
Tito’s Taco Shop (continued from page 1)
But the secret to their success
isn’t much of a secret at all.
Every month, Danny and Sue
revisit their business model to
see what they can work on,
and then they adjust. It’s as
simple as that. Hoping to
eventually stop selling real
estate and work at their taco
shops full time, Danny and
Sue are confident in their
business and want to open at
least two more locations in
the future.
What Danny most enjoys
about running his taco shop is
getting to know his customers. With a lot of other businesses surrounding their
Logan Heights shop, lunchtime is busy, and local workers can often be found eating
inside the music-filled shop.
The biggest challenge for
Danny when Tito’s opened
was getting the word out,
especially with the fierce
competition coming from
existing Mexican food places.
However, Danny soon figured
out that the same marketing
he uses in his real estate business could be used to promote his taco shop. He used
bench ads, print advertising,
and flyers to cleverly and efficiently promote his real estate business on one side and
Tito’s on the other.
A more recent challenge is the
steady rise of food costs. As a
business, Tito’s is forced to
absorb the cost since raising
menu prices may result in the
loss of customers. Nevertheless, Tito’s is here to stay.
Danny’s advice to those wanting to start their own business? “Do it now. Don’t think
about it too much, don’t overstrategize, just do it.”
For more information on
Tito’s Taco Shop, call (619)
739-2116 or visit
www.titostacoshop.com.
Upcoming Events
Credit and Financing Workshop (in Spanish)
Jueves, 9 de Febrero, 8:30 am a 10:30 am
Joe & Vi Jacobs Center, Community Room
404 Euclid Ave., San Diego, CA 92114
SD Microfinance Summit
Weds., April 4, 2011
University of San Diego
More info and registration link to come
No importa qué tipo de negocio tenga o quiera empezar es necesario comprender los efectos que su crédito personal y sus finanzas tendrán en el éxito de su negocio. ¡Este taller será gratis!
Are you interested in learning about the microfinance? This
year’s summit will highlight innovation and technology in microfinance. Many local and international organizations will be present, in addition to ACCION clients. Mark your calendars!
ACCION San Diego
404 Euclid Ave. Suite #271
San Diego, CA 92114
T: 619.795.7250 | F: 619.795.7260
About Us:
ACCION San Diego is a nonprofit organization providing
business support and loans from $300 to $35,000 for
business owners who lack access to traditional financing.
Questions? Comments? Suggestions? Email news@accionsandiego.org
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