March 2008 - Posts
I was shopping at my local fishmonger the other day and my jaw dropped when I saw the price of Rockfish went up nearly $2 a pound.
I didn’t say anything but one of the owners caught my shocked facial expression and rushed over to say two words, “gas prices.”
We both shook our heads in quiet understanding. But I still went on to protest a bit about the size of the jump in fish prices.
It was easy for me to see the prices for all the items at the fish shop. There are only about 20 to 25 products sold at the small bare-bones store, and prices are written on a blackboard.
I realized at that moment I was being a bit unfair. When I walk into a giant supermarket or department store it’s harder to figure out right away whether price tags have been jacked up. And there’s probably no one in power to complain to even if I did notice.
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I’m feeling pretty lonely.
Lately I’ve noticed my emails are going unanswered for longer and longer periods of time.
I check my email every few seconds, and I can’t imagine not getting back to people in a flash.
But maybe I’ve bought into this crazy way of life.
Maybe I should take a page from the owner of a tea lounge in San Francisco who has taken a machete to email.
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I live right outside of downtown Wilmington in a suburb that’s overloaded with retail stores because Delaware is the land of tax-free shopping, so folks on the Pennsylvania border flock here.
When I need to buy a book fast this is what I do.
I drive down the main suburban retail drag and go to Borders. When they don’t have what I want – which is typical because none of these big box stores stock variety anymore – I go to the Barnes & Noble a few blocks down and check for the book. When that turns up nothing, I head to my favorite bookstore, the Ninth Street Book Shop, which is right downtown but is the farthest away.
It’s an independent store and tends to have a more eclectic mix of books.
Well, when I heard Borders was putting itself up for sale and that Barnes & Noble is considering buying its competitor, I immediately thought this would be good news for Jack and Gemma Buckley, who own the Ninth Street Book Shop.
I was wrong.
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I got a call last week from a source at the national Better Business Bureau and she wanted to get the word out about how some small firms are getting scammed by Internet loan companies.
With banks tightening credit, small business owners are scrambling to find other sources for loans to build their business or just to keep their heads above water.
The Internet, as usual, is where a lot of you have turned.
Even the Wall Street Journal did a story last week on how entrepreneurs are turning to online networks to get loans. I don’t blame you all. You have to find other sources, and it makes sense to turn to the Web.
But that doesn’t mean you throw all your common sense out of the window and turn into a cyber-space cadet.
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This letter is to inform you that if you don’t do something about the healthcare crisis in this country you might as well be pointing a loaded pistol at the head of small business owners everywhere.
This is my letter to Barack, Hillary and John. It may sounds a bit melodramatic, but it's not to most entrepreneurs.
What if you could send a letter to the person that may end up running the country one day and urge them to help small business owners deal with the growing healthcare crisis?
Would it help?
That’s the tactic a small business advocacy group tried this week and I'm keeping my fingers crossed.
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| Saul Loeb / AFP - Getty Images |
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I was one of those teenagers who had really bad acne growing up, and I tried everything to clear my skin up.
I even swore off chocolate and Kalamata olives for 2 years but it really didn’t make much of a difference.
When I hit my twenties a friend of mine treated me to a facial for my birthday and I was in shock how much it helped my skin problem. I vowed to get lots of facials so I to could become one of the lucky clear-skinned humans. That is until I found out how much my really nice friend ponyed up for the facial.
It was nearly $100 for a half-hour treatment at some fancy schmancy Manhattan salon. Being a poor journalist at the time, I figured it would be the last time I’d make it to a facial spa.
But what if there were drop-in facial shops that offered cut rates on facials? (Look at all the cheap manicures you can get on almost every street corner today.)
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| Ivan Hunter / Getty Images |
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When someone doesn’t pay you what you’re owed for the products you make or the service you provide don’t threaten them with bodily harm.
I love that piece of advice from the National Federation of Independent Business.
I know deadbeats can make you want to hit someone, but cooler heads must prevail or you could end up in jail. It’s harder to collect when you’re in the slammer.
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| Everlast |
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Let’s say someone asked you to pick the top ten government rules and regulations that get under your skin as a small business owner?
That’s exactly what the U.S. Small Business Administration did.
Last year, the agency solicited comments from the small business community on the rules that cost businesses big bucks, about $1.1 trillion, and last week the dreaded list was released to the press. Now, the hope is, government will get into gear and reform these rules.
Only thing is, the federal agency’s notable initiative may be too little too late.
Hello, did anybody tell these guys President Bush has less than a year left in office?
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