Continued: Cashells: Trying to break out

Everyone likes getting cash, and Donna Fanning believes people will like it even more if the money comes tucked inside a Cashell.

The Cashell is Fanning's patent-pending, homespun alternative to gift cards and greeting cards.

Each Cashell is an eggshell that Fanning, a stay-at-home Woodbury mom, has emptied, sterilized and then hand painted and decorated in one of 40 designs.

The gift-giver slips some bills in through a piggy bank-style slot cut into the eggshell, seals the opening with a sticker Fanning includes and fills out the coordinating note card. The recipient then faces a dilemma -- if or when to crack it open to retrieve the loot.

And speaking of money, Fanning wouldn't mind getting a nest egg of her own soon, stuffed with the investment capital she needs to automate and expand production.

In only a couple of years, Fanning, who does most of the production work herself at home, has built Cashells from a local birthday party hit to a fast-moving item at several gift and grocery stores in the Twin Cities. Her revenue last year was about $20,000.

Now she believes Cashells are ready to hatch nationwide if she can ramp up production. Her creations drew an overwhelming response at a trade show last month in Chicago, prompting inquiries about orders of 10,000 to 60,000 pieces.

"At this point my problem is production, not sales," Fanning said. "I think investors are attracted to that kind of problem. The main obstacle is money, at this point. If I had some serious investors, I think that could all happen very fast. We could have production set up and running in the next calendar year."

Fanning would like that to happen in Woodbury. "I very much want to keep it what I call 'laid and made in Minnesota,' " she said.

Just not at home anymore.

Fanning and her husband, Bill, have 13-year-old triplets and a 27-year-old daughter who is autistic and for whom they provide around-the-clock care. The Fannings also have 25-year-old twins who live out of state.

"My house is wall-to-wall eggs and my 13-year-olds, they have to eat out on the deck," Fanning said. "That's not going to be very comfortable come a couple of months from now."

Fanning, who just spent more than two weeks completing a 700-piece order, wouldn't mind some help either.

She envisions hiring salespeople, designers and a production manager as the company grows, and would appreciate advice about running the company that investors likely would offer.

"I always say as difficult as raising twins, triplets and a disabled child were, starting a business is far more difficult," Fanning said. "I didn't think that it would be this hard, but it's very challenging."

Fanning has taken some steps on her own to get bigger.

She has subcontracted some of her handiwork to local Hmong artists. She's also spoken to them about whether the farms that some of their families operate could supply all the eggs to meet Cashell's rising demand.

This fall, in time for the holiday rush, Fanning expects to receive the first shipments of finished Cashells she is having produced in China.

"I can start importing now from the manufacturers I have in China, and that will definitely help," Fanning said, though the handmade nature of the product also limits their production capacity. "They're having the same problem when I ask them about orders of 40,000 pieces. They're like, 'Whoa!' "

She had to wait nine months to a get a permit from the U.S. Department of Agriculture that allows her to bring in a "controlled material" -- in this case poultry byproducts.

"Your risk of any infection is pretty limited when you've got an emptied-out eggshell," said Fanning, who fumigates, bleaches and bakes the shells before painting them.

Fanning started making what would become Cashells about four years ago for her kids to take to birthday parties and for other occasions. It grew into a business as neighbors and parents increasingly asked her to make them for gifts they were going to give.

She was tired of buying gift cards, many with fees and restrictions, and paying $3 to $6 for greeting cards.

Cashells sell for $6.99 apiece on her website and at some retailers; others charge $9.99 each, Fanning said. Each Cashell comes in a small box that includes a note card that coordinates with the egg's design, which can range from sports to graduations to weddings to holiday ornaments.

"You have something tangible to gift-wrap and you can still give cash," Fanning said.

Michelle Courtright Bjork just placed a large Cashells order for her Romeo & Juliet shop at Gaviidae Common, expecting increased traffic in her shop as the Republican National Convention takes place in St. Paul next week.

"We sell through them very quickly and we've reordered several times," Courtright Bjork said.

"A lot of people give cash for graduations, birthdays and weddings and it ends up getting put in a card, which can be impersonal. This is a really neat, affordable, cool-looking way to give cash to someone."

The expert says: Carol Jean Peterson, a business consultant at WomenVenture, said outside advice and guidance can be crucial to the success of an expanding small business, and to help avoid costly mistakes.

WomenVenture, a nonprofit agency in St. Paul, helps women and men start and expand businesses, develop or change careers and manage their finances.

"A business consultant can take the mystery out of the process and help an overwhelmed owner plan step by step," Peterson said. "Unplanned growth often drains energy and resources, which can adversely affect profitability. It is important to make sure the expansion delivers profit and success."

Standing requirements for companies seeking financing, Peterson said, typically include: a business plan with cash flow projections, personal financial information, business financial statements (for existing companies) and a credit score that is acceptable to the lender.

Lenders also look at the owner's collateral and investment in the company.

Companies such as Fanning's can get help with such issues at WomenVenture's "Six Steps to Financing Program," Peterson said. Owners meet privately with business consultants to come up with business plans, cash flow projections, growth strategies and funding options.

For more information, visit www.womenventure.org.

Todd Nelson is a freelance writer in Woodbury. His e-mail address is todd_nelson@mac.com.