My newspaper had a story today, POOL MAKING KID, 800k annual. HERE IT IS

If my kids were younger, and the jello not set, it occurs to me reading
this article, how we could influence boys/men we know to make 800k a yr
Business profile: Mystic Water Gardens in Encino from my San Fernando
Valley Daily News

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LA Daily News
BUSINESS NAME: Mystic Water Gardens
BUSINESS ADDRESS: 18062 Rosita St., Encino
PHONE: (818) 424-6836
WEB SITE: www.mysticwatergardens.com
OWNER: Steve Sandalis
ESTABLISHED: 2000
NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES: Eight

DESCRIBE YOUR BUSINESS: Mystic Water Gardens designs, builds and
maintains custom-crafted waterfalls, ponds and streams. These water
features are low maintenance with high enjoyment. We do both residential
and large scale/commercial properties.

IS THIS YOUR FIRST BUSINESS? No.

WHY DID YOU START THIS BUSINESS? It began as a hobby. I built
a water feature for my own home, then friends began asking for
ones for their yards, and the referrals kept growing.

WHERE DID YOU GET THE IDEA? I grew up around contracting, and
this was a great way to combine my passion and my business
skills.

HOW LONG WAS IT FROM CONCEPT TO OPENING? One year.

WHAT DID YOU DO DURING THAT TIME? I took classes to improve my
skills and became a licensed contractor. And lots of
networking to gather referrals.

WHAT WERE YOUR STARTUP COSTS AND HOW DID YOU FINANCE THE
BUSINESS? Just a wheel barrel, a shovel, work boots and a
pickup truck. All from personal savings.

WHO DID YOU RELY ON FOR ADVICE? Other local contractors in my
area. I admire Greg Wittenstock of Aquascape Design. He's
built an empire for himself and I plan to do the same with
Mystic Water Gardens.

WHAT HADN'T YOU CONSIDERED BEFORE OPENING? All the paperwork
that goes with running a business like this.

WHAT IS YOUR EXPECTED REVENUE THIS YEAR? $800,000

WHAT GOALS DO YOU HAVE FOR THE COMPANY? In the long term, I want to
create a product line that sells products that develop a
garden and water features, to develop a TV program that
inspires people to "create romance in their own backyards" and
to host my own seminars. MY NOTE: The TIKI THEME decor
the Fruit/ chile pepper strings of lights or lanterns and other
innovations done with light occur to me. Lots of MARTIN DENNY
music on a great sound system, too. 

To be considered for a small business profile, you should have
fewer than 10 employees and be locally based. For a free
profile questionnaire, call (818) 713-3699.

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