Kansas AgriTourism News
July 2005
Greetings!
We are pleased to announce that the Kansas AgriTourism Advisory Council has had an election of officers.
 |
 |
| Becky Walters |
Joel Wimer |
Our chair is Becky Walters, of Walters Pumpkin Patch in Burns, Kansas. (www.walterspumpkinpatch.com)
Our vice-chair is Joel Wimer, of the
C & W Ranch in Smolan, Kansas. (www.cwranch.com)
Both have served on the council since it was formed two years ago by Governor Kathleen Sebelius.
The staff in the Department of Commerce, Agriculture Marketing Division and Travel and Tourism Division, will continue to support the Agritourism Advisory Council, but we are encouraged to have agritourism destination operators taking the leadership as we grow into our future.
Now, it is your turn.
We asked you to join us in planning the future directions for the advisory council.
Do we need to evolve into an association, a cooperative, or a non-profit? If so, how would it help you? What would you want from some future organization?
Please, take the time to think about it. Write us, email us, or call. We want to hear from you!
Thanks
Kansas AgriTourism Advisory Council |
In This Month's Issue:
Feature Destination:
They Just Want
to See a Real Farm!
When You Must Borrow
Money to Grow Your Business
Weaving Your Website, Part 2
Kansas AgriTourism Scholarships |
This Month's Featured Destination:
They Just Want To See a Real Farm
Over the past few months, we’ve introduced you to three or four well-established Kansas agritourism destinations. They have recovered their investments, made some money, learned a lot, and we truly appreciate what they have shared with our readers.
This month, we wanted to remind our readers that there is always a beginning. If you’ve been there already, enjoy re-living your story! If you are thinking about taking your first step into agritourism, we think you’ll enjoy reading about the Bauman family, and the Cedar Valley Farms.
Located on the main road to Cedar Valley Reservoir, Cedar Valley Farms of Garnett, Kansas, has a nice location to start an agritourism business. Folks driving by see the pastured chickens and livestock sometimes just stop in to see if John and Yvonne Bauman perhaps will sell eggs, poultry, or vegetables directly to them there on the farm.
Still, the Bauman’s bought the farm in 2001 primarily to raise pastured chickens for sale to restaurants, stores, and the Lawrence Farmers Market, not yet considering an onsite, farm market. They sell about 7,000 broiler chickens each year, and average selling 350 dozen eggs each week. They also raise a little beef, have just started raising lamb, and sell elk raised on neighboring farms.
Last year however, John and his oldest daughter, Rosanna, age 16, attended the Agritourism workshops in Spring 2004 and the Kansas Agritourism Conference in Great Bend. Fortified with new information and encouragement, John and Rosanna decided now was the time to take the plunge! On Memorial Day weekend 2005, the Cedar Valley Farms held their first agritourism event, and opened the farm to the public.
Click here to see how the event was received, and what the Bauman's learned!
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When You Must Borrow Money to Grow Your Business
As we are either starting or expanding our direct farm marketing businesses,
the inevitable dilemma occurs:
"I don't have enough capital to do it right. Should I borrow, or should I just start small?"
Note: This is the first of a series of articles about this timely dilemma, based on a series of interviews with Dennis Lawson, who works with Kansas farms and ranches for Frontier Farm Credit.
Sometimes, you have to borrow money to grow a business. If you are considering a loan, picking the right lender is very important, according to Dennis Lawson, Financial Services Officer for Frontier Farm Credit. Different lenders have slightly different business strategies, and might decline your loan simply because your agritourism operation does not match their business strategy.
Secondly, this is going to be an ongoing relationship, so you want to be sure you are borrowing money from somebody you can trust. Your lender has to be someone you can ask the tough questions, like "Am I crazy, or will this work?"
And of course it has to be somebody with the knowledge and the integrity to give you honest answers that help you make the right decisions, and a realistic loan program. Simply put, you have to know that you both want the business to succeed.
Next, you should know what the lender needs to know about you and your business, and understand why it is important for him to have the facts, and the big picture. Lawson says that "lenders are all about numbers and facts." That's how they make an informed decision.
So you need to spell out your business plan on paper, and pull together the financial information that will help you both see if your plan can work. This plan outlines:
- Where your business is today
- How you got where you are
- Where you are going
- What your plan is to get there
On the financial side, he or she will want to review a number of reports with you. If you don't have these for your business, you may need to ask an accountant or bookkeeper to help your prepare the information. Here's what the lender will need to look at:
- Balance Sheet
- Income Statement
- Cash Flow
- Tax Returns
- Credit Report (lender will obtain this)
These reports sometimes seem intimidating, but they shouldn't be. A balance sheet (sometimes called a "financial statement") is simply a way of looking at your financial position at a specific point in time - a financial snapshot of the business. The others are similar tools that help you and your lender make a fair and reasonable decision regarding your loan.
In our future articles, we'll talk about how to identify your assets and liabilities to establish your owner equity, look at the income statement and cash flow projections, and we'll take a look at credit ratings, and how to improve your credit rating if necessary. We hope you'll be looking for these articles in the months to come.
If you have immediate questions or would like to know more about the services of Frontier Farm Credit, give Dennis a call, at 800-935-3081.
Weaving Your Website
In part one of this topic, "Weaving Your Website", we discussed the importance of defining your purpose and audience for your website; giving some very careful thought to who your website is directed to, what they want to know about your farm or ranch, and finally, what you want them to do, having seen your information.
We also defined a lot of the terms you should know before starting a website or having one built for you. And finally, we talked about the type of software you might need to design a website on your own, and where you might find help in learning to use the software.
Now, we can consider the actual development of the website - what goes into your website, and how you present your farm or ranch online.
In Part Two, we talk about gathering your information and photographs, and creating your master template, which consists of the Masthead, the Navigation Buttons, and your contact information.
Click here to read "Weaving Your Website, Part Two"
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Have you given any more thought to applying for the Agritourism Scholarship?
$25,000 is available to help registered Kansas Agritourism operators attend conferences, seminars and educational tours, gain first-hand information regarding practices and techniques used by other agritourism vendors and develop nationwide relationships within the industry.
You should be planning your trip, and submitting your application!
Read about the Kansas AgriTourism Scholarships That Are Waiting For You!
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