Philadelphia’s motto, The City of Brotherly Love, creates great expectations for our community. Some businesses in Philadelphia actually meet and exceed those expectations, one of which is Dutch Umbrella.
Dutch Umbrella “is a system for the shared public use of umbrellas comprised of pick-up and drop-off locations within a defined urban area.” In addition to being an incredibly helpful idea, Dutch Umbrella is a “community supported effort to encourage citywide sharing.” As Philadelphia’s one and only umbrella sharing system, Dutch Umbrella is truly sticking to their tag line of “bringing people and businesses together one umbrella at a time.”
What started as a neighborhood effort in Fairmount, quickly expanded to other areas of the city, such as Old City, Rittenhouse, Washington Square, etc. Within each neighborhood, one can find Rain Drops (umbrella drop off baskets) in restaurants, hair salons, bars, stores, etc. There are over 2800 umbrellas currently circulating in the city that can be tracked with RFID tags.
Karen Rostmeyer and Joe Carlson, co owners of Dutch Umbrella, are incredibly passionate about their business and love the fact that it is strengthening the concept of sharing and trust within local neighborhoods.
I had the opportunity to sit down and chat with Karen, and she shared an inspiring story while offering great advice for any entrepreneur.
Where did you get the idea for Dutch Umbrella?
Joe was bar-tending at Bridgid’s in Fairmount and saw a flow of umbrellas on rainy days. Some people would leave their umbrellas behind, and Joe would offer the umbrellas to those caught in the unexpected rain. So he thought, well why not make that an official business. We could get the restaurants together in the area, print on the umbrella panels and give them out to people caught in the rain. When I was given an opportunity to change careers, I did a feasibility study and found we could make money expanding to Center City and other walkable communities. Not only did it seem like a smart business idea, but I also got the immediate sense of doing something that benefits others.
What resources did you use prior to launching Dutch Umbrella?
I read a lot of blogs and books, such as The Art of the Start, The Tipping Point, Think and Grow Rich, E-Myth, etc. Joe and I made appointments with a small business lawyer and patent lawyer, which turned out to be wonderful experiences since their advice was incredibly useful. We also joined organizations like the local Chamber of Commerce, CCPA, and SBA, which were great for networking purposes.
Our best resource was a class at Wharton SBDC. I took the shorter class on writing a business plan. I used this program for a previous business venture, and had a consult with a professor who gave me some very real, direct, honest and useful advice. I plan to do a consult with them this winter to review the growth plans for Dutch Umbrella. Looking back, I would have utilized the school more because it’s such a wonderful resource.
What was biggest challenge you encountered?
Neither of us had a business background. I was in IT and Joe is a Geology major working in the restaurant business. So, we had to research everything, from learning how to start and maintain a business, to getting the umbrellas, to tagging them, to printing on them. Another challenge was doing all of the paperwork to legally make Dutch Umbrella a business.
How did you initially explain Dutch Umbrella to potential clients?
We had the advantage of knowing the Fairmount community and they had heard about our idea. Initially we created a power point and spoke to businesses about how it benefits customers, which in turn creates a great image for them. In addition to creating a great image, customers often return to the place of business when dropping off the umbrella, creating repeat business.
Do you have any future plans for Dutch Umbrella?
We’re looking forward to expanding to other neighborhoods in the city.
We also just had our first event in Old City, where we created a tasting stroll with restaurants that are part of the Dutch Umbrella community. Everyone was given a Dutch Umbrella Passport and had the chance to get it stamped at 6 locations, and then ultimately receive a $5 gift certificate towards the restaurants for each stamp.
We plan on hosting more events within each area to highlight the neighborhood and participating Dutch Umbrella locations. It’s really about supporting a community within a community.
Do you have any other advice for entrepreneurs in Philadelphia?
Have mentors or mentor-like influences. There are mentor resources out there…Score.org is a great one! And I’d recommend checking out some blog sites. Jeffery Gitomer is wonderful for sales advise. And I happen to like sites like StartBreakingFree.com. They are mentor-like influences to help guide you through. There’s also any number of local organization for businesses chock full of folks that love to mentor and help out. The Chamber and CCPA are two I belong to and find helpful.
Surround yourself with encouraging people. This can be a friend, acquaintance or a customer who just loves what you’re doing. Or it can be a program like The Big Idea with Donny Deutch, or a newsletter. Even when you love what you’re doing, there are some really tough days and you need to know how to get through them.
Be committed. Understand the costs, what you’re willing to give up for this adventure. I started this one after 23 years at one company. There were a lot of things I was immediately giving up by starting my own business, instead of finding a job in another company. I decided what the most I was willing to give up was and stuck to it. If it goes beyond it, I’ll need to rethink what I’m doing. And you need to be realistic. Folks have lived in cars, sold their homes and moved their families in with relatives, and much more, to make their dreams come true.
For more info about Dutch Umbrella, visit www.DutchUmbrella.com
Alexis Siemons is a freelance writer and creative business consultant living in Philadelphia. She has a passion for language and explores it in her blog,
The Lexicon . When not using both hands to feverishly type, she balances a teacup in one while working on her
tea blog.
Dave Speers is an 
