This program was made possible by contributions to your PBS station from viewers like you.

Thank you.

It's Your Business with Michael Aikens is brought to you by WCTE, PBS, and the Tennessee Tech Center for Rural Innovation, with funding provided by the Rural Reimagine Grand Challenge and the Tennessee Rural Development Fund.

Welcome to It's Your Business, where we bring you valuable advice and tips to help you thrive in the world of entrepreneurship.

Now, even though the thought of being a business owner may sound intimidating or daunting to some, there are many free resources available, as well as many business owners who can offer advice from their experiences.

So before you tell yourself that you can't do it, why not listen to some of those sources to find out what becoming an entrepreneur can mean for you.

[♪♪] A healthy lifestyle depends on many factors, but something you may not realize is the importance of replenishing nutrients.

For most of us, our diets tend to be focused more on taste than good health.

We miss out on essential nutrition that is vital for our health.

And after many years as an RN, Roxy Selzer saw the effects that lack of nutrition has on many people.

And she decided to do something about it.

She started her own business, focused on giving the people the option of improving their health and giving them a better lifestyle in the process.

[♪♪] We're in Cookeville, Tennessee, talking with Roxy Selzer, owner and founder of Optimal IV Hydration and Wellness.

Roxy, welcome to the show.

Thanks for having me.

Well, we're certainly glad to have you on.

We'll start out with the basics.

Yeah.

Optimal IV Hydration and Wellness.

Yeah.

What is it?

What do you do here?

We are IV hydration with vitamins.

So if you're feeling dehydrated or just want to concentrate on your health and wellness with extra vitamins or, a little bit higher dosage, we can offer that straight to the bloodstream.

Okay.

So why would I want to do that?

Maybe I'm not feeling so great, but I think there's probably a lot of different reasons that we would come and see you.

Yeah, there's kind of a wide variety of why you would come.

One just focusing on health and wellness.

You're trying to get some longevity out of life.

Hydration is a huge part of that, as well as antioxidants, vitamin C, glutathione, or just not feeling great.

You know, you've got a sinus headache or, you know, the stomach bugs going through your house.

Just overrun.

Cold flu season, you know, it's coming up, that sort of thing.

Athletes, athletes come and see us as well.

Just trying to keep up with, training and, you know, being the best that they can be.

So.

So you've obviously got a market for this.

How did you come up with this idea?

Yeah.

Well, so I lived in Nashville for about six years before we moved out to Cookeville, and I worked for a company there, and I just loved it.

I just really saw clients have huge changes in their life.

And so it was just something that I really kind of stuck with, I guess, for myself.

And when I had actually a pretty, I felt life changing, life threatening, health issue for myself, and we were already living here at the time.

And so after that life saving surgery, I started looking for I.V.

therapy for myself.

To get through that recovery.

And at the time, there wasn't, a place that was offering the higher doses of vitamin C and everything.

So we're going to get into the business aspect here in just a little bit.

But, you know, we've talked about, you know, how you got the idea.

I'm willing to bet you got some kind of background in this.

I know you said you worked at a place before, but tell us a little bit about your your qualifications.

I went through nursing school.

I'm a registered nurse.

Bachelor's of nursing.

And then I also started as a phlebotomist.

Way back when.

So I just got really good at sticking people for phlebotomy.

And then IVs just kind of naturally went in that direction.

All right.

So when we're talking about IVs, I mean, that's a typical what you think of.

It's, you know, maybe a needle or an injection or something like that.

Yeah.

Can you walk us through the process?

I walked through this door.

I want to get hydration.

Yeah.

What do you do?

Yeah.

So as a new client, you come and meet with one of our nurses.

We answer all your questions, you get a complimentary consultation, we do a set of vital signs to make sure you're a good candidate for hydration, elective hydration.

And then we mix the the drip that you're wanting and then put a tourniquet on, you know, find the site that we like, we clean it, we insert the needle.

The needle actually comes out.

A lot of people don't understand that about, IVs.

So when you get your blood drawn, then the needle stays in for the whole time.

But for an IV, the needle helps us access the vein.

And then once we've got it in the place that we need it, the plastic catheter stays and the needle comes out.

So we do that little transfer, we hook you up to your tubing, sterile tape.

And then you're good to go for about an hour, sometimes a little more.

A little less than an hour.

We've got a TV you can hang out, bring your laptop work if you need to.

It's pretty, pretty comfortable.

Talk to me.

As a nurse, I want to know the technical aspect.

I think everybody understands it's important to be hydrated.

Yeah.

What does that actually mean from a physical perspective?

What is hydration?

Why is it important?

What's happening when we get this?

Yeah.

Well, off the top of my head, your body is made.

I think it's 70 to 80% of hydration water.

Right.

I love our American culture, but we don't drink water.

We drink our teas, our coffees, our sodas.

That does not substitute for water.

So we are literally running on fumes when it comes to water.

So every single cell in your body needs not just water, but it needs electrolytes and minerals for that water to exchange and get in the right places.

By doing an IV hydration, you get that directly to the bloodstream.

So you're bypassing the GI system, which is another huge issue we have right now is gut health.

You know, our American diet is not the greatest, unfortunately.

So even if you have a really healthy gut, you're really only absorbing about 50% of the supplements that you take.

Don't stop taking your supplements, but doing the I.V., it goes straight to your bloodstream.

So it's bypassing that GI system and you're getting 100% bioavailability of what we've given you instead of what your gut is able to make possible.

So I mean, it's literally going right into the bloodstream.

Yeah.

Taking care of is giving us what we need.

Exactly.

Yeah.

So if your body if I'm giving you 10,000mg of vitamin C and your body needs nine, it's going to take all nine.

But you can't take that amount orally, so your gut can't process that.

So you'd really only get maybe a thousand when your body needs much more.

Right?

Right.

Yeah.

All right.

So I've talked to Nurse Selzer.

Yeah I want to talk to business owner Selzer for a little bit.

So sounds like obviously you know what's going on with IVs.

You had the idea for this and you're doing great.

Yeah.

You got so many things on your plate as a business owner.

Yeah, it's wild.

Yeah.

Let's break this down.

First of all, how do you go from nurse to business owner?

I started in the ICU.

That's where I originally got my first experience.

But then I transitioned to the O.R.. So I was a surgical nurse for several years.

And when the idea came up, I just.

I was actually at work, and I just googled how to start a small business.

And the small business development center popped up, and I reached out to Tyler.

He was working there at the time, and he put me in touch with Jeff Brown at the Biz Foundry.

And it, just for timing, ended up working.

And I got into their, start up, your startup class.

And so I did that in October of 2023, which really helped me.

You know, I joke I can save your life by asking me to do a business plan, and I have no idea what I'm doing.

So I went through that class, got all the, you know, all my eyes dotted and t's crossed, and, ended up seeing our first client in February of 24.

What are some of the things that you've learned along the way that you just never thought was going to happen?

A fluid shortage from a hurricane in North Carolina.

Never in a million years did I think North Carolina would get a hurricane that would affect my business here in Tennessee.

At that time, I was making my inventory orders on a Monday, and that week we had launched a new product called NAD.

We were really, really busy.

I didn't get an opportunity to place my order that week.

Friday comes along, I'm like, oh, I'll just do it next week.

And then I got a call from my rep saying, hey, you can't order fluids anymore because you're elective.

We we had to close down, to new clients for two months, which it forced me to pivot into our shot bar, which was it ended up being a great, you know, outcome because we were able to kind of beef up and bulk up the, the shot bar, and clients love it because it's a quick 15 minute appointment.

So, you know, there's so many things with running a business, those unexpected things.

But then there's also those expected things.

You know, you've got accounting, you've got payroll, you got all that.

How are you dealing with that?

I feel like very early on I was able to identify what I'm good at and what I'm not good at.

And I knew if I wanted to succeed, I was going to outsource what I'm not good at so I could at least learn one.

But it would be done right as well.

So I definitely outsource my accounting.

I basically just learned to outsource what I feel like I'm not good at.

So I can learn from it.

And I think the thing that's helped me the most is having mentors and just having someone in your corner that you can go to when something like that pops up and I don't know what to do, or this is what I think I should do.

The mentor doesn't have to be in your same field, but I would definitely recommend somebody who's been in business, for a little while.

You know, that they know how to handle the ups and downs.

And I think that's kind of been my saving grace is just having those mentors that I can shoot a text to and be like, oh, no, no.

So you started out in Nashville, moved to Cookeville, started this business.

You're doing this right here in a rural area.

You could have gone back to Nashville, Knoxville, more urban area.

Yeah.

You don't want to do that.

No, we love Cookeville.

But do you want to stay here in our area?

I love the lifestyle here.

So I'm actually originally from the West Coast from the forbidden California.

But my grandparents are from Livingston, so they retired from California and came back to Livingston, back in the early 90s.

So I've been coming out here since I was a kid, so it's familiar with it, you know, before we moved out here.

And I don't know, it's just a really nice place to be and raise your family.

And, you know, you don't have to worry about much.

You can just live your life.

And we just we love it.

And I do think, you know, we have had a huge influx of people moving into Cookeville, which you know, is bittersweet.

We love it.

But it's also don't change.

Don't change us.

But I think with that influx, you know, people are coming from the bigger cities who have experienced Ivy therapy.

And they're always really surprised to know that we're here and that we offer it and that Cookeville has a straight up ivy therapy place.

So last question for you moving forward was the future hold.

Listen, now that I'm in it, I'm like, let's do this.

I would love to expand.

You know, I don't know I would love to add modalities.

I would love to expand.

I would love to get, you know, a bigger space.

We're just keep dreamin, I guess.

Thank you so much.

Thank you.

Thanks for having me.

With the motto, little things mean a lot.

Marinizing in Cookeville takes pride in being a part of their customers image as a third generation dry cleaner, Britt Akers has turned his business into a one stop experience with dry cleaning alterations, tuxedo rentals, sales and many more services to help customers dress for their best.

Through varying struggles such as shifts in the economy and keeping up with changing styles, Britt has kept his business thriving and is excited to see what the future may hold.

[♪♪] We're in Cookeville, Tennessee, talking with Britt Akers, owner of Martinizing.

Britt.

A big welcome to the show.

Hey, thanks for having me.

So let's start out with the basics.

Martinizing, what is it?

What do you all do here?

We're a dry cleaner.

We're full service.

We have a plant right here in our location.

Martinizing is a franchise.

It's been around for a long time.

Our family's been in it since 1958.

I'm a third generation dry cleaner.

A lot of our family members have gotten out of it, and then they quit using the Martinizing name.

We've just felt like it's been such a staple in Cookville and the Upper Cumberland.

People know Martinizing and we just kind of kept that name.

And so I'm very honored and proud of that name.

So.

So this stretches all the way back to the 50s.

Walk me through.

How did you get involved with this?

My father in law was in it and started it.

Built the one here in court.

While in 1967, the year I was born.

But his father in law started in 1958 and his father in law, his father in law's brother, they was two brothers.

And they started in the McMinnville and Tullahoma and Manchester area.

I think at one time they had about 13 stores.

I love service, love people, love Cookeville and I knew the family's background in it, started doing my homework and worked in some of the family's plants to see if I enjoyed it.

And I liked it.

And, you know, honestly, you know, I, I had thought I was going to go a different direction with Arby's franchising and that kind of fell through.

And so I just prayed a lot, kind of gave it to the Lord.

And is this like, because you stress about that?

Like, what am I going to do?

Like, I've was in business at Tech.

Once I gave it to the Lord.

I felt like the dry cleaning, the family's connections, that the heritage there, it just kind of came to me.

So you learned the business.

You went to dry cleaning school.

January 1st, 1990 It becomes yours.

You walk through the door.

Obviously, you know how to do the processes, but you're now the leader.

You're the owner.

Can you walk me through two things?

One, what was that like?

You're a fresh college graduate.

You're now the owner.

You're the leader.

But then also talk to me about what your leadership style was like back then.

I was as green as they could be, even though I've been to school.

You know, leading people is different.

No matter if it's dry cleaning or if it's a Arby's franchise or if it's a manufacturing.

But I love people.

And so I think when I came in, I was interested in who they were and how long they'd been there and what they did for the company.

And I work from 6 to 6 every night, with them.

And I could hear in that transition period where it was at mine, I was taking notes like, okay, what am I going to do differently?

How am I going to manage?

And and is this person going to stay with me, you know, are they going to look at this young because I was young, you know, these people were older than me.

And that was a little intimidating.

Like, you know, here I am, a little fresh green kid out of college and, you know, who are you?

And the other owner was older and had been there for 12 years and been in dry cleaning for a long time.

But during that transition time, I saw things like one of the bathrooms didn't work or this could work better if we did it this way.

And I was listening to what that staff, that current staff was saying, like, we can do a better job if we do it this way.

And so what I started doing was I started gutting things, gutting the whole system, fixing bathrooms.

We computerized, we were not on computers, so we got computerized.

I didn't do it all overnight, but for about the first three or 3 or 4 years, no vacation work, 12 hours worked beside them.

I want to work with my people.

You know, we're all on a team.

I won't ask you to do something that I've not done before.

That's more my style.

It's like when somebody comes in, like today, I got asked a question about a stain.

Well, I know how to treat that stain.

And so I can go back and talk to my dry cleaner that that works on stains, and we can talk about things.

They'll come to me and say, what do you think about processing this garment this way?

So I think those early days of just working long hours, being in there with them, and things change.

I mean, it's not like I'm here every second today, you know, it's different after 35 years.

But there's still that that that beginning foundation of knowing your people, loving your people, working with your people.

And then when they hurt you, hurt when they need help, you help.

So we've talked a lot about the people, and I think that's, certainly a great way to go about it.

Let's think about the process.

Right.

So I am a customer, I drop my clothes off every few weeks here, walk me through what happens once I've dropped that off?

That's like ancient Chinese secret, I can't tell.

Okay.

No, it's, you know, when you come in, you have your bag of clothes and you drop them off to us.

We get your information, obviously, and, your preferences starts or.

No, or, you know, like, creases or no creases.

Then we sort it to how it's going to be clean.

As far as this is a dry cleaning, this is laundry.

This is starch.

This is no starch.

These are alterations.

You know, these are all of these.

This is rush.

Like, we we still give same day service, which is unusual in our business.

But if you come in before lunch time, you know, Monday through Friday, you can have same day service.

So once it goes from there, from checking in and the pricing, it, it filters out to where it's the best for that cleaning.

And then it comes out and we hang, you know, hang them on hangers so that they're ready to be pressed.

We call it finishing our in the business.

It's the finishing the garment, giving it that look that crisp.

Nice sharp size whatever look that it that garment demands.

So here we are.

It's 2025, started officially January 1st, 1990, 35 years.

Let's look back 35 years.

Think about what do you know now that you wish you knew then?

It's such a blur back in that day.

And I think you're young and you don't know.

So you just go and you do it.

And it is hard.

I mean, I think it might be good to if you could slow down and make sure you, you know, touch the bases with your family, with your kids.

It took me a little while.

I was so focused on the running of a business and doing the business, I could tell the family was starting like I was more interested in being on this board or that thing or that thing.

So that's when I regroup and said, timeout.

I need to stop and, and I'm glad I learned it a little sooner, maybe five years in versus now, to to make sure you touch the bases of family and your kids and then yourself sometimes, making sure you put time for yourself to be healthy, work out.

Yeah, you know, enjoy our lakes that we've got here.

Enjoy some things.

Now that I'm getting to do that maybe had been nice.

You just can't do it now.

Sometimes you just got to still got to pay those bills.

Yes indeed you do.

Well you know you're doing this right here in Cookeville and we're glad that you are.

But you could also go to Nashville, Knoxville, more urban market more people.

Why have you decided to stay right here in Cookeville?

I'm just a Cookeville kid.

I've grown up here.

I went to Cookeville junior high.

I played ball and sports.

I went to Cookeville high school.

I went to Tennessee Tech.

I want to continue to give and do my part in this in this town.

And, I don't really want to go anywhere.

I mean, I just love it.

You know, obviously, you're you're Cookeville through and through, and you're able to be an entrepreneur here.

What does that really mean to you to be an entrepreneur right here in the Upper Cumberland?

It gives me the opportunity to be a blessing.

It gives me opportunity to give back.

You know, I saw like businesses like like me now that that gave to me or poured into my sports team.

or poured into Cookeville high school, or poured into the junior high, or poured in the things that I was involved in and and and so I just feel like now it's my turn to to kind of give that back.

I've just been blessed to be able to to do that.

And I want to be able to do more, than, than what I do.

But, I'm definitely glad to to be on the side of giving and, and I've been on the side of receiving as well.

Moving forward, what does the future hold?

My heart because it's what I love to do and I don't see my age.

I don't, you know, I could go try to do something else, but I'm committed to dry cleaning and committed.

I want to this to be what I finished my life, you know, out doing.

And I don't plan on retiring.

I want to just kind of continue to do what I'm doing.

I just I don't want to be, where I'll get to 65 and I'll say, okay, I'm done.

I want to retire.

Maybe things shift, but I still see a bright future for dry cleaning.

Still see people wanting to dress up.

And, you know, there's social events, there's other things.

And and I do feel that fashion trends, you know, it changes.

And, and I hope that more fashion kind of comes back.

I hope that dressing up comes back a little bit more.

I kind of make the joke about in the 30s and 40s, you know, you were at a baseball game.

You wore suits and top hats and ties.

Even the criminals look really good back then.

You know, they were dressed up nice as well.

I see a bright future.

I'm optimistic.

And I want to be positive about it.

But, you know, you you can't put your head in the sand and you got to go with the times.

And that's why I think sometimes you've got to find other little services.

Maybe, maybe there's more things that I can look at, in terms of what we could offer under this roof, you know.

Well, Britt, This has been a great conversation.

Thank you so much for your time today.

Thank you.

[♪♪] Hey there.

My name is Kelly Hunter, the statewide coordinator for Tennessee Tech Center for Rural Innovation.

Are you a business owner that is overwhelmed by the requirements you need to apply for grants, or are you struggling to showcase your value to your community?

Whether you're a business owner, a nonprofit position, or a public institution, understanding your economic impact is crucial to long term success or gaining potential funding.

An economic impact analysis can provide the data to support your claims for continued and future success.

Tennessee Tech Center for Rural Innovation is here to help you create an economic impact analysis and report.

This analysis is a fascinating way to understand how a business like yours affect our community.

You might be asking what is an economic impact analysis and why is it so important?

Economic impact analysis is a powerful tool that helps us understand the profound influence a business has on its local community.

So let's break it down.

There are three categories of economic impact direct, indirect, and induced.

Direct impacts are the most visible.

These are immediate effects your business has on the local economy.

Think about salaries you pay, the goods and services you purchase and the taxes you contribute.

These are all direct results.

However, there's more to the story.

Indirect impacts come into play which are.

The ripple effect is your business interacts with other local businesses.

For example, when you purchase supplies, the suppliers business grows and they hire more employees.

That's indirect impact.

And finally there are induced impacts.

These represent the changes in consumer spending when your employees and employees of businesses you support spend their earnings within the community.

Let's talk about why do you need to conduct an economic impact analysis.

Well it starts with data.

You'll need information on your revenue, expenses, payroll and other financial details.

But here's the good news if you're missing some data, don't worry because our team can help fill in those gaps for you.

We can help estimate the missing information and tailor the analysis to your specific industry to provide a precise assessment of your economic impact.

Understanding economic impact analysis is essential for measuring the effects your business has on your local community.

Direct, indirect, and induced impacts are all a part of the story, and the data you need can be gathered and estimated with the help of experts like Tennessee Tech Center for Rural Innovation.

To get started on your economic impact analysis today.

Contact Tennessee Tech Center for Rural Innovation.

Thank you for joining us yet again for another episode of It's Your Business.

Hopefully, you have learned that there are plenty of great resources right here in the Upper Cumberland to help you achieve your dream of starting your own business.

If you'd like more information on today's topics, please visit the website to learn more about free small business resources and expert assistance.

Please visit the Business Resource Collective website.

Until next time, I'm Michael Aikens.

[♪♪] It's Your Business with Michael Aikens is brought to you by WCTE, PBS, and the Tennessee Tech Center for Rural Innovation, with funding provided by the Rural Reimagine Grand Challenge and the Tennessee Rural Development Fund.

This program was made possible by contributions to your PBS station from viewers like you.

Thank you.