It's Memorial Day weekend and Venice Beach will be packed with hundreds of thousands of beach goer's spending time at Southern California's #1 tourist attraction bringing in the start of summer. Unfortunately they will all miss Paul and Jule Embry of Paihia Mosaics who have decided to participate in the Fiesta Hermosa (Beach) Art Show about ten miles south along the coast instead of manning their spot on the Boardwalk.

Being involved in numerous enterprises and being a patron of the local artists, I was wondering what happens when they become too successful? Is there such a thing? Will they have to compromise their artistic license to satisfy customers? Will they have to hire assistants to produce their work in larger quantity? Perhaps as they become more popular they may choose to raise their prices and not increase the quantity of work they produce.

Each of us has numerous talents and may be able to figure out large portions of what it takes to be successful in business. But few of us can do everything. Paul and Julie not only design, fabricate and market their artwork but they also manage their own financials, and each aspect of the business.

In talking with them periodically I can see how they could expand their business, but only if they have the desire, and only if they are willing to delegate. I have seen many businesses falter for the principals failure to do so, and more than once been told that a business can only grow as much as the principals are willing to delegate. It does not matter whether you are managing a Fortune 500 company or Paihia Mosaics the ability to execute a business plan is instrumental to success, but if you can not bring together the right mix of talent then delegation is all that much more difficult.

If you have a chance to visit the art show this weekend look for Paul and Julie, I can assure you that you will be treated courteously and receive great value. By the way the saxophone pictured here is not available any more... I got to them first.

Those of you who are new to BloggingStocks can check out my other stories and read Chasing Value or Serious Money to find more potential opportunities and verify my track record as well.

After a long walk on the Venice Beach boardwalk (CA) yesterday I may have gotten notice of things to come. Speaking to several artists on the beach, I learned that they are having a tough summer. Business is noticeably slower this summer than last. They speculate that fuel prices and fewer people wanting to fly has reduced tourism and their customer base.

I have no way of knowing if there is a direct correlation but I can report that the boardwalk was packed and parking was hard to find. Based on my observations, it does not seem like a viable explanation. How could the beach be as crowded as ever and business be slower?

The answer is simple, although unscientific: Consumer priorities and discretionary spending have been altered. The number of people visiting the boardwalk may not be appreciably different. People still love the beach, the sites, the sounds and the people-watching. However, after spending more on gas to get there, ($3.15 to $3.45 per gallon) and paying more for parking ($5 if you walk a distance, to $15) they have less in their pockets. They buy hot dogs, pizza, ice cream, beer, and t-shirts. They have less money to spend on art, jewelery, and novelties.

Why Venice Beach as an indicator?