Jill Dickson

Ventura, CA (USA)
Role(s):
Founder/Owner/Principal

Babies Beginning

Find More Startups Startup
Location: Ventura
Industry: Healthcare
Year Founded: 2011
Number Employees: 1-10 people
Business Stage: Growth (not profitable)
Entity Type: Sole Proprietorship
Description: Babies Beginning is a full service, prenatal, elective ultrasound studio. I am a Registered Diagnostic Medical Sonographer who saw a need for a reputable center in the Ventura area. There is one main competitor but he is the only center in the area so by default, he gets the business. Aside from the fact that the market is ripe for competition, he does not run a center that employs Registered Technologists to do the ultrasounds. He uses lay people. Many people in the industry do this type of work without any formal ultrasound training which is wrong and unethical. Putting a baby in the hands of anyone other than a trained professional, be it for ultrasound electively or diagnostically, is simply wrong. We operate a center with Physician oversight to make sure that we are operating properly and according to guidelines. And honestly if you think about (URL removed) would you rather have doing your ultrasound? A trained professional or a Joe Shmoe who had enough money for a machine? Our services include packages where moms to be get undivided ultrasound attention and receive pictures, CDs, and DVDs set to music of their ultrasound session. They also receive incentive gifts for referring other clients. Getting these ultrasounds done is the "it" thing now. Market research indicates an overwhelming majority of pregnant mothers have these elective ultrasounds done. And if they are going to be done, they need to be done by a reputable facility. And that's where we come in. Having worked in the industry for almost two decades, and having been formally trained in maternal-fetal medicine and perinatology, I have a handle on what needs to be done. I've also taught and led instruction courses in ultrasound to physicians and clinicians alike. It is time for me to branch out on my own and work independently. I started Babies Beginning because of these reasons. I have business management experience as well having managed several departments in my career. An internet search for 3D 4D ultrasound will yield results that should give you an idea of the popularity of these centers. We have a blog up: (URL removed) where you can see a little more about us and what we do. Thank you for taking the time to read this. As for funding, I do not have good credit. My father does and he is the financial co-signor and guarantor for much of the business operations. My family has invested in this business but I need the one critical thing to operate: the ultrasound machine. Without the loan, I'd have to use cash that is critical for operating expenses during the lean months. The bank keeps saying they've got the loan for us but something always comes up. We're looking for an unsecured loan of $25K for the machine. My father and I will both put up the other $10K which makes for the total purchase price of $45K. Thank you.