Small business owners get ideas during summit
By Kevin Risner, krisner@advertiser-tribune.comUnemployment:Article Photos
PERRYSBURG - A group of more than 100 small business owners from around northwest Ohio gathered Wednesday with two basic questions. How can they access the money they need to stay in business, and who might buy their products?
The small business summit was hosted by U.S. Rep. Bob Latta, R-Bowling Green. Latta was joined by six presenters from a variety of agencies. The summit was at Owens State Community College.
"Down in Washington we're always hearing about the big banks, the big auto companies," Latta said. "We never hear about small businesses. Small businesses are really drivers of this economy.
A number of people are employed by small businesses across this country and across our area. One of the things we are going to try to do is help folks, small businesses, find some other opportunities so they can succeed where they are and also to expand their business. The only way we are going to get this economy going again is by helping small business."
The money needed by business owners could come from new borrowing options available with the help of the Small Business Administration. Government agencies could be the customers to buy goods and services produced by local small businesses.
Gilbert Goldberg, Cleveland district director of the Small Business Administration, presented first. Goldberg outlined two new tools in the SBA tool chest gained through the recent federal Recovery Act.
He said the SBA can now guarantee 90 percent of small business loans of up to $2 million. Previously, the SBA could only guarantee 75 percent, Goldberg said. The Recovery Act also provided for the SBA to waive the fees it would normally charge for loan assistance.
Goldberg said other programs still are in the works at the federal level, including short-term loans to allow small businesses that have defaulted on loans to catch up. The businesses must be able to demonstrate viability into the future, Goldberg said.
Goldberg said changes are being contemplated for the 504 loan program as well.
The 504 program is an SBA loan program to finance fixed assets, such as land and equipment. The changes are to impact how the program can be used for expansion projects.
Wendy Gramza and William Wersell presented information about services available through the Chamber of Commerce. Gramza is vice-president of the Toledo Area Chamber of Commerce. Wersell is director of the Small Business Development Center.
Wersell listed the various services available to businesses through the Development Center, including counseling by certified business advisors. The center provides assistance to new and existing businesses.
Danielle Rust spoke about a different kind of business expansion model. Rust is an international trade specialist with the U.S. Commerce Department. Rust said Ohio is number seven among the U.S. states for export business, generating billions of dollars and thousands of jobs for Ohio's economy. She said Ohio was the only state to increase exports in each of the last 11 years. Rust said a high percentage of Ohio's export business is generated by small businesses. Canada is Ohio's major export partner, Rust said.
Rust said her department, with offices in Cleveland and Toledo, offers a wide range of information and support for small businesses who desire to expand business overseas.
David Rego brought another perspective on business from his position with the Naval Undersea Warfare department. His actual job is to open lines of communications with small business owners to do business with the U.S. Armed Services. Rego and various local business owners commented that doing business with any federal government agency can be difficult because of sometimes endless red tape. Rego said it is worth dealing with the challenges to do business with the federal government. The government pays its bills, he said.
Fatou Ndiaye is statewide program manager for the Procurement Technical Assistance Centers. Ndiaye said her agency was developed in part to help cut red tape for selling goods and services to various governmental agencies-the federal government, state governments, local governments, schools and others. She said government agencies buy just about anything that other customers would buy.
When a small business owner said his business was eliminated as a candidate for a government contract because his business was too small, Ndiaye said small business owners should network with other similar businesses. It may sometimes be an advantage to form cooperative groups in businesses to bid on government contracts, she said.
Business owners had opportunity to interact one on one with presenters as the summit concluded.
Latta encouraged business owners to contact his office with issues that could be addressed concerning legislation or regulations. Latta said federal and state governments should be working to get out of the way of small businesses rather than creating road blocks to business success.
