Doing More With Less

As a penny-wise entrepreneur in Riverview, N.B., population 19,128, Joan­na Gould knows all about doing more with less.

Gould is a professional massage therapist who in­itially kept costs low by seeing clients at her home. Her skills eventually attracted more cli­ents than she could handle in the space available in her home. Her solution was to open a storefront clinic, Ad­vantage Massage Therapy, and hire three therapists to serve her growing clientele. Moving to a commercial location meant a steep rise in operating costs, including rent, utilities, insurance and technology like computers, Internet and a website. Gould chose to save money on sup­port staff without compromis­ing customer service by hav­ing her clients book their own appointments on the Internet...