David Hall, owner of Rokko’s Teriyaki & BBQ, has worn through three pairs of shoes in the last six months. He attributes this to the amount of time he spends working at his restaurant.

Though Hall is no stranger to hard work, it is a wonder that the small businesses in Cheney are still making it work even with the copious amounts of elbow grease continually being poured into them.

In late August, the owners of the Ben Franklin Variety Store made the announcement that the store doors will close when the inventory is sold.  If this business could not make it, how are the rest of Cheney’s smaller businesses doing it? Making it clear that no insults are intended, Hall offered his insight as to why Ben Franklin did not survive.

“You either move forward, keep your business relative, keep it meaning something or you close down your doors. You go to Ben Franklin and it’s like going back in time about 25-30 years. It’s a sterile environment with just racks,” said Hall.

He went on with a comparison about a store he went into when he visited Budapest, Hungary. He said there was no atmosphere or environment. It was as if people did not care.

“When you don’t care, you end up with a business that will fail.”

Needless to say, Hall cares. He and his wife, Inez Hall, are at their restaurant from the early morning hours until late at night.

Though their menu is small, the preparations that go into making the menu items are large. There is no freezer in their restaurant so nothing is pre-cooked.
Everything is made from scratch. Batches of their wasabi macaroni salad are made two to three times on a daily basis.

Hall said that the families with children, summer school students and the athletes kept them going through the summer months when the student population left. He also acknowledges that he would not be where he is now without the help and dedication of his wife.

“You know, Inez is the key to everything. I just do what she tells me. This is her environment and her food. Every recipe is hers. Everything that is made here comes directly from her.”
Rhonda Shultz, owner and manager of Red Rooster Coffee Co., says she believes that the students are what keep her businesses going.

“We recognize the kids are the town,” Shultz said. “Everything is set up and designed for the kids.”

Shultz said that during the summer when the primary student population went away, her business made about 60 percent less than it did during the school year. There is also a discount of $.50 off per drink offered to EWU students.

Shultz makes a point to talk to all of her customers when they come in to place their order. Shutlz also asks how classes are going for students, asks about family and just makes her business a welcoming space for all.

While the students are a large chunk of her customer base, Schultz recognizes it takes more than customers to run a business. Good, old fashioned, hard work is also a requirement. She, like Hall, arrives at her business early and leaves late.

“You’ve got to be willing to put in the effort,” said Shultz. “Be willing to do whatever it takes to make it work.”

Brad Barsness, a self-described manager, bathroom cleaner and owner of Rosa’s Pizza and Cheney Lanes, shares the sentiment that owning a business requires sacrifice and a lot of elbow grease.

“I’ve worked more in the last two, three years than I’ve worked in the last 20 years,” said Barsness. “When things get tough as a small business owner you [got to] adapt.”

Barsness says he believes when somebody owns their own business they get out of it what they put into it.  He says he could hire a bunch of people and expect the business to make money, but he is there almost every day to help it run. At 23 years old, Barsness started Rosas’s as a take-out only pizza place and was located on the opposite side of Cheney from where he is now. They now offer free delivery and are joined with a bowling alley.

Barsness teaches a bowling class through EWU and he says he thinks that helps keep people interested. This will be his fifth quarter teaching the class and he says that many students have done the class multiple times.
In addition to the bowling class, Rosa’s will be having some themed nights during the fall starting during Eastern’s Homecoming Week, Oct. 15-20.

The summer is another story for Barsness.

“You hope to make enough money in the nine months of the school year to get through the summer,” said Barsness. “I’ve said, for years, that if the summer was a month longer in Cheney, I wouldn’t be around.”

In addition to the hard work, long hours and marketing tactics, Hall says that he thinks some of the culture around Cheney needs to change in order for more businesses to thrive.
He says that he wants to bring the “culture of going out” to Cheney.

“The economy affects a lot of things, but if you have a fair price for food people still want to go out,” said Hall. “You can’t just lock yourself in your house and eat Top Ramen. Once in a while you’ve got to go out. I’m trying to create the feeling here in Cheney that it’s okay to go out.”

“I think there’s been a culture in Cheney, that I’ve noticed, that is ‘You get what you get,” said Hall. “I don’t like that kind of attitude. I’m thankful for every single human being that walks through that door. “Every time somebody walks through the door, I’m still surprised.”