-->

A business incubator is being proposed for the Bloomington-Normal Area. The concept of a business incubator is that it is a place to help nurture and grow business in their formidable years (or months) before they are able to go out into the real world. An incubator primarily provides physical space for an entrepreneur to locate for a short period of time but also provides all types of other ancillary and complimentary services for an entrepreneur and we hope we are the position to do the same in BN in the near future.

I imagine that the business incubator will be more than merely a place for people to grow their business. I have often described the BN business incubator as a community center. This incubator could serve as a “Financial Center” or more appropriately a place where people who need to learn about building prosperity and wealth can go and accomplish that goal. There are many great examples of successful businesses in BN and no doubt these business owners could serve as examples and mentors at this community financial center, as well as teach and pass on their wisdom. Already our Circles of 7 mentoring program has proven this to be true.

Vey often I receive phone calls or meet people who want to start a business but really have no idea regarding the basics of money and finance. In fact, the conversation usually starts with the client asking me if they can get a grant to start or finance a business. Money, capital, cash flow, and the lack of it is the primary issue when it comes to starting a business. Everybody needs capital to start a business and they need capital to grow. The lack of sufficient capital is the single largest reason why businesses fail, and frankly it’s the reason people start businesses, right? They dream of making money and being financially self-sufficient.

Without a basic understanding of money and how it works within our system, one cannot expect to succeed, or at least succeed without a lot of pain. I have actually counseled people who wanted to start a business that had no checking account or even understood the “magic” of compound interest. Sometimes it is a mistrust of financial institutions that has been drilled into their head by their environment, or in other cases it might be a fear of looking “stupid” if they have had little experience with institutions.

A basic knowledge of money, and more appropriately “cash flow” and how it is the king of business success is needed. A business incubator can be the first step in helping people. I have a vision that people who need help would come to classes on understanding financial principles, banking and compound interest, then they could graduate to business finance, then they would proceed to understand business accounting, collection, credit and so forth. As they are taking these classes new entrepreneurs can be learning about other business issues such as marketing, advertising, human resources, and other issues more pertinent to their specific business.

So the business incubator is more than small start-ups and others leasing space and growing before they go out into the world. It is about interaction, about learning, and getting the confidence one needs to grow and contribute to their own financial self-worth and ultimately the community’s.

You will hear more from me about the business incubator as time goes on. Are you a candidate to learn? Will you be the next growth story in BN? Do you know somebody who needs help? Tell me your thoughts or send me your ideas.

Om Tuesday we heard about the feasibility of starting a business incubator in Bloomington-Normal. The EDC along with Illinois State University has been working on developing a business incubator in McLean County for the past several years. An incubator is a place people can go to and learn how to start and grow a business. They receive a physical location to work, services, counseling and other types of services.

Our consultant, Jim Greenwood has developed a number of incubators throughout the country. He has developed a system for making sure that a real measurement of a communities chances for success can be determined. On a scale of 1-100 with 50 being average we scored a 73. So we are halfway between average and excellent. Our strongest score came in the area of demand and market, having a local champion and several choices of available buildings. Our weakness was that we aren’t a distressed community therefore we cannot get EDA (Economic Development Administration, a part of the Commerce Department) funding. They fund incubators, but usually for communities that have real distress.

Once we get the incubator built, we will be able provide all types of assistance to small businesses, entrepreneurs and people interested in being part of the world of commerce.

Tuesday was also our weekly radio show. We interviewed Brian Simpson of Babbitt’s Books. I love his story. He started his first business, a used clothing store (vintage, I believe), in 1985 after he raised his initial equity by making $500 in a garage sale. He didn’t have a mentor, the luxury of an incubator or any other assistance. He merely had the willingness to take a chance and to live simply. He said he didn’t go out to lunch for five years until he hired his first employee. He got tired of eating in the store.

There is no best way to start a business. In both cases, being the recipient of counseling and services at an incubator or bootstrapping with $500 of garage sale equity, if you have a passion for something, the willingness to FAIL, and don’t know any better, then you might succeed. I wish you luck.