Playlist and Podcasts

SONGS

·         Cowboy Mouth - Glad To Be Alive, Light It On Fire and their entire live performance... at the Mandeville Trailhead for the Tammany Trace, Norfolk downtown park, and Pennsylvania Ave in Washington D.C....

·         Rob Thomas - Streetcorner Symphony

·         Jack Johnson - Upside Down, Talk Of The Town, We Are Going To Be Friends

·         Israel Kamakawiwo'ok - Over The Rainbow/What A Wonderful World

PODCASTS

·         Smart City

·         Arlington Street Church (UU)

·         National Public Radio

·         City Talks (Syndey)

·         Ask A Ninja

·         The Onion

Children's Activities

As the saying goes, “it takes a village to raise a child.”  However, our modern lifestyles encourage a highly mobile and fast paced society.  The result is that the challenge of parenting is tackled with minimal support from our extended families.  Parents with young children not only want opportunities for them to grow socially but they also yearn for the chance to nourish their own body, mind, and soul.  By providing for both needs, Bo Tree will be unique amongst other local businesses.

Patrons will be able to check their children into the child care area while they visit other areas of Bo Tree.  The service will be available from approximately 7:00 am to 7:00 pm and there is no charge.  Further details (age or height limits, number of children, time limit, as example) still need to be determined.

Theater/Classroom

Education is a key component of achieving our vision.  Class fees will be minimal but the promotional value will ensure their overall contribution to our social, environmental, and financial goals.

These services are limited only by our imagination.   Teachers will come primarily from those staff members with demonstrated expertise.  Other subjects will be taught by volunteers (possibly compensated by discounts to other products/services) or by paid instructors.

Bo Tree will continuously work with the community to provide classes that are useful, entertaining, and insightful.  Some ideas include: 

Ø  College Prep class (ACT/SAT, applications, interviewing, study/test skills, scholarships)

Ø  Job Prep class (interviewing, resume writing)

Ø  Leadership / Mentoring

Ø  Time Management

Ø  Critical Thinking

Ø  Writing / Journaling

Ø  Literacy

Ø  Nutrition / Cooking

Ø  First Aid

Ø  Finance 101 (saving, investing, loans, budgeting, record keeping)

Ø  Civics 101, History 101, Philosophy 101, etc. (reviewing all the information adults wish they would have remembered from school)

Ø  Being “Green” 101

Ø  Simplify the Holidaze

Ø  Parenting (Positive Discipline, Nutrition, Le Lache, etc.)

Ø  Meditation

Ø  Gardening / Landscaping

Ø  Foreign language

Ø  Art / Photography (for all age groups)

Ø  “Brown Bag” lunch presentations

Ø  Planning / Design Charettes

Ø  “Pecha Kucha” (presentations of 20 slides, 20 sec each slide: http://freethinkr.wordpress.com/page/16/) 

Other educational opportunities will include guest speakers, summer camps, youth leadership workshops, and a mentoring forum.  Some options will be developed into regular clubs (instead of just a set number of classes).  Reading clubs were already mentioned but other ideas include: 

Ø  Chess Club (or Checkers Club for youth)

Ø  Socrates’ Café

Ø  Walking/Running Club (originating from the store)

Different classes or clubs will take place in different venues throughout Bo Tree but the chief space will be a small theater with stadium seating and tabletops across each row.  The theater setup will also allow for us to provide our customers with entertainment, such as: 

Ø  Small scale theatrical productions

Ø  Comedy/improvisation shows, including movies with live comedic commentary

Ø  “Dinner and a Movie” theme night

Ø  Movie marathons

 

 

Retail / Rentals

Retail

Bo Tree will also carry a diverse selection of eco-friendly and certified fair-trade gifts, including: 

Ø  Organic Food

Ø  Greeting cards

Ø  Book accessories (bookmarks, booklights, etc.)

Ø  Fitness clothes and accessories

Ø  Journals/Diaries

Ø  Baby clothes and accessories

Ø  Kid’s Toys (focusing on classic, durable, eco-friendly products)

Ø  Unique kitchen accessories

Ø  Distinctive home decorations

Ø  “Green” tools (solar charger for personal electronics, countertop compost bin, Earthbox growing kit, etc.)

Ø  Locally produced artwork

Ø  Bo Tree Logo products (stickers, shirts, reusable bags, mugs/cups, etc.) 

The focus will be on providing a wide sample of quality products that customers may not have access to in traditional retail outlets or are pertinent to the other elements of Bo Tree.

Rentals

The close proximity of the Bogue Falaya river and the Tammany Trace bike path (with the new Covington Trail head) will create a market for kayak/canoe and bicycle rentals.  

This service will provide residents and tourists with a convenient and healthy mode of touring the local area.  As the program expands, guided tours may also be offered.

 

Fitness

Bo Tree will distinguish itself by offering fitness programs specifically designed for children from ages 1 to 19 in addition to classes available for adults.  This “playground” will emphasize the idea that exercise should be fun and it should be part of developing the “whole person.”    

We are not seeking to compete with large scale fitness centers.  In fact, the initial plans do not include many of the elements of a “conventional” fitness regimen – treadmills, stationary bikes, rows of weight lifting machines, and so forth.  Instead, we will focus on studio classes and functional fitness sessions (described below) with minimal equipment.

Classes will be offered multiple times each week at convenient times.  They will include familiar and innovative options all designed to promote a holistic understanding of health and fitness.  Instructors will come from existing staff or from third-parties on a contractual basis.  Some youth classes will be available as after-school programs and reservations will be available for birthday parties or other special occasions.

Here are some examples of classes or services from the fitness area:

Ø  Playground Fitness (multidimensional program emphasizing movement, social interaction, and fun instead of repetitive, one-dimensional exercises; gym area will be available for open play for a fee)

Ø  CrossFit Affiliate (specializing in scaled workouts, parkour, and CrossFit kids)

Ø  Studio Fitness: Yoga, Pilates, Meditation, and Aerobics (including Soul Aerobics, Budokon, Laughing Yoga, parent and child/prenatal sessions, etc.)

Ø  Dancing

Ø  Martial Arts

Ø  Spinning

Ø  Cycling Club

Ø  Kayak/Canoe Club

Ø  Climbing wall: introductory rock climbing, kid’s climbing lessons, bouldering

The scope of the rock climbing wall could range widely.  The most basic scale would consistent of one flat wall space (~15-25’ wide, ~20-30’ high), which would be purposely for children.  At the other end and more preferable, is a wall with multiple, rock-textured structures with different pitches, incuts, and protrusions that would provide climbing problems for all skill levels.

The addition of a pool is an important, but flexible requirement.  If included, it will be useable year-round, employ saltwater filtration, and designed for lap swimming and water aerobics.  Swim lessons would be offered on a seasonal basis.

Racquetball courts are another potential, but not vital, element of the expanded fitness center.  They could also be used as rooms for studio classes, individual calisthenics, “walleyball,” or many other functions.

Bo Tree will also provide drop-off services for children in order to allow parents to enjoy our other services.  As mentioned above, children will be able to use various areas while being supervised by qualified employees (the child care area may include the ability to use the indoor and/or the outdoor playground).  This service will be a key feature of our operations as no other local stores provide such an opportunity for parents of young children.

 

Cafe / Kitchen

The café menu will maximum selections that are organic, local, and in season.  Coffee, tea, smoothies, fresh juices, and other specialty drinks will be served throughout the day.  A limited breakfast menu will be served from opening until lunch.  The lunch menu will be mostly soups, sandwiches, wraps, and salads and will remain relatively constant.  The dinner menu will vary based on what is freshly available and the chef’s creative imagination.   Some menu options will be available as frozen, uncooked meals.  There will be ample options for those with special nutritional desires such as vegetarian/vegan, kosher, wheat/gluten-free, and so on.  Desserts (including our signature version of a fortune cookie) and freshly baked goods will be available throughout the day.               

Other food services and products may include a meal assembly service, a service that will prepare ingredients for their home cooking (i.e. chopping, cutting, etc.), drive-through pick-up, and delivery of any of the various options.   

Bo Tree's café will also be designed to provide these additional services:

Ø  Cooking classes,

Ø  Box lunches / Picnic baskets

Ø  Pre- and Post-Race meals

Ø  A “kid's kitchen” area to be used for children cooking classes or for the opportunity to prepare their own food under close supervision while parent’s enjoy time together,

Ø  Small-scale catering for events held on location, and

Ø  Special events such as guest chefs, communal meals, Sunday brunch, or midnight supper (after school dances, late night church services, etc.).

Bookselling

The store will stock a select collection of fiction and non-fiction books (printed and audio) specifically targeted toward: 

Ø  local and out-of-town visitors to the many festivals and parties in the downtown area,

Ø  those interested in local history,

Ø  children (ages 0-18),

Ø  parents,

Ø  tourists, and

Ø  students and academia from nearby schools (elementary through college). 

 Bo Tree will also stock local, regional, and national newspapers and a diverse range of magazines and journals.

 The bulk of the book selection will be new books, but used and out-of-print books will also be available.  Bo Tree will focus on the following categories: 

Ø  Nationwide bestsellers lists

Ø  Student reading lists / Abbreviated summaries (i.e. Clif’s Notes)

Ø  Current events

Ø  Local interests/writers (in order to emphasize the historical and cultural heritage of the region and the town and to differentiate itself from larger retailers)

Ø  Environmental issues / “Green Living”

Ø  Humanities (classic & contemporary literature, art, history, philosophy)

Ø  Religion (western, eastern, esoteric)

Ø  Business/Management

Ø  Leadership/Teamwork

Ø  Self-Improvement (physically – health/fitness, mentally, emotionally, spiritually)

Ø  Psychology/Sociology

Ø  Parenting

Ø  Children’s Literature

A large and interactive children’s area will be a trademark of Bo Tree.  This area will provide ample space for children and parents to read, play, or enjoy the regularly scheduled story time.

Additionally, there will be special groupings of recommended products (not limited to books) that simplify the customer’s search:

Ø  “A Life in Books” - Based on Newsweek’s column and National Public Radio’s segment which both asked notable personalities to list their favorite books with one line explanations of what they loved about each.

Ø  “Book Bouquet” - Customers can choose a set of books from a pre-made list that will cover any occasion and give this bouquet as a gift instead of a card or flowers: graduation, marriage or engagement, illness/grief, pregnant/birth, divorce, various holidays, etc.  Lists will also be available for contemporary topics, local issues, or traditional fields of study (health, classical literature, cooking, religion, philosophy, etc.) for someone seeking to immerse themselves into a topic.  When a minimum number of books are chosen, additional items/services will be included at no extra cost (greeting card, bag, wrapping, delivery, etc.).  Products and services from other areas of Bo Tree could also be considered in these bundles (food, classes, etc.).

Ø  Reading Club selections – We will provide easy access to popular reading club selections like the Oprah Book Club while establishing our own book club for specific topics, such as philosophy or parenting.  Members will have special privileges including free use of store space for discussion groups.

 

Location / Building

CONTEXT

Bo Tree will be located in an pedestrian friendly, transit oriented, urban (or semi-urban) environment that appreciates local businesses, values the physical, mental, and emotional health of the community, and treasures creative industries.  We want to be somewhere “funky, but safe.”

Context will also determine the final, detailed business plan.   The specific products and services that we offer will be scaled to reflect what is missing (and what is needed) in the local community. 

BUILDING

The design will be critical in providing the services described above and to meeting our triple bottom line.  The design will also reflect the same commitment to sustainability that guides our operations, products, and services.

Whether it’s a new building, an adaptive re-use, or the use of multiple buildings spread out like a campus, similar requirements will apply for how to build it: 

Ø  Extensive use of green building techniques and furnishings, with a focus on passive strategies and durability (possibly culminating in LEED certification; criterion available from GreenMatrix.net or the U.S. Green Building Council's website: usgbc.org)

Ø  Landscaping to support our diverse users and environmental goals

Ø  Adaptable and deconstructable to allow future evolutions

Ø  Aesthetically pleasing, both for the promotional value but also as a requirement for sustainability

Ø  Human-scaled, Feng Shui interior design

Determining what to build is driven primarily by the products and services offered and secondly by the inclusion of other spaces (and their associated uses) that will maximize the use of our physical area to add value to the triple-bottom line.  As much as possible, we want the ability to utilize spaces for multiple uses in order to minimize our physical, energy, and financial footprints.

In general, we anticipate the following spaces (starting in order of most essential to least): 

1.  Retail Space
2. Mechanical Systems/Restrooms (possibly including male, female, family locker rooms)
3. Childcare Room
4. Office / Staff
5. Storage / Rental Storage
6. Kitchen
1. Café food preparation
2. Instructional areas / Meal prep areas
7. Theater / Classroom
1. Stadium seating with desks / trays
2. Movie projector
3. Stage / Backstage
8. Fitness Areas
1. Studio Fitness

                                    i.      Aerobics, Yoga, Meditation, Spinning

                                    ii.      Adjustable to be indoor ballroom/meeting area for small parties/meetings, classroom space, temporary art shows/auctions, swap meets, Eco-fashion show, parties, weddings, etc.

2. Gymnastics/Crossfit/Climbing Wall
3. Other Possibilities (Pool, Racquetball court, Spinning, Kinesis, etc.)
8. Eating Areas
1. First section integrated & open with rest of floor plan.  Include indoor stage/discussion area for poetry readings, Socrates’café, etc.
2. Second section able to be closed off either to have a quiet dining area/meeting space or conversely, a family eating area (i.e. noisy kids or view of childcare area).
9. Roof-Top Spaces
1. Observation Deck (exclusive dinner parties, star-gazing tour, etc.)
2. Greenhouse (providing fresh food for café, gardening class, hydroponics, children’s education garden, etc.)
10. Outdoor Spaces
1. Outside Patio/Deck (big screen movie projector for new and classic movies/televised special events/sports shows, eating area, fireplace, parties, concerts, local farmer’s/artist’s market, pet stations with temporary kennels/water)
2. Playground (dynamic Evos-like playground for children while parents/guardians eat or enjoy other outdoor services; covered to maximize year-round utility, possibly connected with interior child care area)
3. Gazebo/sanctuary (small scale religious service or wedding ceremonies)
11. Office/Residential Space (rental income, expansion opportunities, live-work areas, business incubator project, "coworking" space, urban “bed and breakfast”)
12. Small-Scale & Adjustable “Flex Spaces” (meditation rooms, massage/spa treatments, storage, nursing rooms)