One more week and Spring
begins! Mother Nature has already started to work her magic at
Wyndholme Village, which our guests for this Friday's Saint Patrick's
Day gathering are sure to notice. It seems hard to believe one
year ago this coming Friday, I was left with no other option than to
elect Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in an attempt to preserve
Wyndholme Village.
This action protected me
from a financial disaster (even though the past twelve months have
taken a heavy toll) and of equal importance, has preserved the efforts
of a team of dedicated professionals. Their joint efforts have
demonstrated deaf and hearing professionals working together can
compliment each other and the barrier of communication in most
situations, can easily be overcome without the need of a third-party
interpreter. I am sure everyone will agree that Wyndholme
Village will in the near future, be a place all of its residents will
be proud to call home.
At the time of the
bankruptcy I was devastated and I could not believe that after all of
the time and effort---failure was just around the corner. There
is an old saying that "there is a silver lining in every
storm cloud." After the experiences I have encountered
during the past twelve months, I have become a firm believer that this
is very accurate.
The second question from
last week's update that I said I would address this week was:
"Are you now actively marketing Wyndholme Village via media that
will attract hearing seniors." I would like to address this
now.
Sometimes you get so
involved in what your doing you make certain assumptions. I
remember early in my career, at a sales meeting, the speaker defined
the word ASSUME as follows "to assume makes an ASS out of U and
ME." I have found over the years that this is a very good
definition when you allow yourself to proceed, assuming what you are
doing, is the correct manner in which it should be done.
My mother asked me if I
would consider allocating a portion of Wyndholme Village to provide
features and services that would enhance the quality-of-life for
individuals that were desperately battling isolation, as they grew
older, due to their inability to communicate. The primary cause
of this question was due to my mother's sister's situation. She
was deaf and quickly going blind.
One of the most important
things to consider in developing a successful community is to define
who the target market is, and then developing a product that
identifies with the needs and desires of that market. Taking
this one step further if your are fortunate enough to discover a
market niche or strong need that hasn't been properly fulfilled in the
past presents a fantastic opportunity for both the developer and the
recipients.
Years ago our marketing
team conducted research to determine if a large enough market existed
to allow us to create a portion of Wyndholme Village for deaf and/or
blind people. Our goal was to create a place that would enhance
the quality of life for these seniors so they could enjoy there senior
years in a manner most of us take for granted. The study
revealed staggering results. In the United States alone, there
are over 9,000,000 seniors who have experienced a loss of hearing
during the course of their lifetime. It was also determined the loss
of hearing becomes a lot more prevalent in the older segment of the
population.
Having this information and
Barbara Willigan as Executive Vice President of Wyndholme Village
prompted us to direct our initial marketing efforts primarily to media
and events that attracted mostly deaf and hard-of-hearing
adults. In the event it was discovered this was indeed a
"market niche," the opportunity would exist to replicate
this community in other areas of the country and we could focus our
efforts at Wyndholme Village in learning the requirements and
necessities of Deaf and Hard-of-hearing seniors.
The success of Charlestown
Retirement Community less than five minutes away from Wyndholme
Village and situated on a far less desirable site with, in my opinion,
far less attractive buildings, makes me feel very confident I will
have no difficulty attracting the same market they have.
My ASSUMPTION that has been
the main reason this financial nightmare has come about, was quite
innocent. I thought the professionals in the real estate financial
markets would see the potential rewards that existed, if in fact, my
initial marketing efforts were successful.
That was a huge
miscalculation on my behalf. Recently a friend of mine in the
banking business best summed up what I should have realized.
Jim, he said, "WE ONLY LEND ON REAL ESTATE VENTURES THAT ARE IN
THE BOX." Even though you have invested more capital than
we require, and have more than enough equity in the development, and
have achieved unparalleled success in your sales efforts to date.
"YOUR TARGET MARKET IS OUT OF THE BOX". (By this he
means that deaf and hard-of-hearing people are an unknown quantity and
market.)
I hope this answers the
question I was asked to address. Next week I will explain why
Wyndholme Village was structured as a condominium and the advantages
and benefits for residents.
Thank you for your
continuing support. I also want to congratulate Jennifer
Willigan, Sales Manager of Wyndholme Village and her entire
staff. In spite of the turmoil that currently surrounds our
community, she has successfully secured two additional contracts from
individuals who have faith in us and know that success is just around
the corner.
Can you imagine the
activity we're going to experience when this financing issue gets
resolved? THAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN REAL SOON!
Thank you for your support,
and as always, your comments and questions are welcomed. Please
fax them to my direct line at 410-644-5165.
Sincerely,
James M. Lancelotta
Managing Partner
Wyndholme Village, LLC
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