Starting from Scratch: Dreams Can Come True Even From the Unemployment Line-Atlanta's The Cup Gourmet Opens in April

ARLINGTON, VA, March 31, 2011

To call Victor Ledbetter's day hectic is an understatement to say the least. From baking an unanticipated order of cupcakes for a baby shower to managing the instillation of his shop's flooring, Victor has a to-do list of three CEO's. Victor is the president of VLL, Holdings LLC and the owner of The Cup Gourmet which is Atlanta's first cupcake cafe but a year ago his life was much different.

In 2010, Victor was a senior consultant with IBM's Global Business Services-Financial Services/Insurance Sector and was traveling most of the week across the country creating and implementing more efficient business systems. As a young professional, Victor was on an aggressive management path but an unexpected turn of events at IBM left him with plenty of experience and potential but with no employment. Like many other Americans, Victor, a Case Western Reserve MBA, was thrown into the throngs of the unemployed but instead of sulking; he looked at his situation as a blessing to push him into starting his own business.

Doubters of his determination and impending success turned a motivated Victor into a turbo-driven strategic planner. He quickly generated a business plan and started using his love of entertaining to market his cupcakes and sweets. After honing his recipes and gaining a cult following, Victor ventured out to find funding and a home for his new shop which is affectionately named, The Cup Gourmet.

If finding an appropriate location is the equivalent of jumping over a runner's hurdle, securing a loan was the high jump. Victor used every avenue he could to secure a loan even to the point of trying to purchase a building outright. Bankers were particularly impressed with his business plan but didn't want to take the risk of a new start-up restaurant, leaving Victor without any prospects other than to use his own savings and an investment from his brother. The lesson learned from the loan process has taught Victor better project management skills and to always expect the unexpected. Victor affirms, "This experience has definitely made me a stronger person and even made me more patient. I've learned that the little things count such as documenting procedures and how important consistency is with the total customer experience."

An admitted shopaholic, Victor has also been a smart investor and saver. Paying off many of his expenses, he then put a portion of those savings into a personal savings account and he starting investing in the stock market. His goal has been to have enough liquid funds to maintain his livelihood during construction. On a daily basis, Victor struggles to stay on track after being over-budget and having five-month construction delay for his opening. However, he loves his new found independence like being there for his mother during the loss of his father, having a mid-day lunch with his favorite three-year old neighbor, surprising his nephew for his third-grade graduation, and being family to a friend whose own family rejected him.

So now a good day to this budding Atlanta business owner is a full seven hours of sleep without waking to the worries of climbing the corporate ladder and a to-do list with a few less tasks to complete. The Cup Gourmet will be opening in early April at ý705 Town Boulevard, Suite 320 Atlanta, GA 30319.

To schedule an interview with Victor, please contact Urban Works Publishing and Publicity at urbanworkspr@gmail.com

To contact Victor for an interview, please contact Urban Works PR @ urbanworksPR@gmail.com