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My daughter Lauren is an extraordinary person. Of course, she is my daughter and I am naturally proud of her, but she has always had that sparkle in her eye of wanting to get something done. She says she is stubborn (she indicates I am too), but along with stubborn comes perseverance and the type of impatience that often makes people successful. Lauren is also a talented artist, musician and artist. So this isn’t necessarily about all of her great qualities, but more about her dead-on analysis of what it takes to be a good small business person and the importance of local support for small business. She and her business partner are smart, young entrepreneurs, the type all types of communities are trying to figure out how to attract to their community to make it hip and cool. The Beloit and Rockford stores can be seen on their MySpace sites. Here is her essay:

Chamber Apologist

… the biggest problem was consumer confidence. If [all of] the people in the community felt confident and went out and shopped over the holidays, our community can prosper despite the issues at the national level.”
This is an excerpt from an online article my dad wrote. He is the CEO of the Economic Development Council of Bloomington/Normal IL, and a very smart man.
My dad and I are both pretty stubborn, we like to make our points clear, but we agree on a lot of things too, One of those things being local economy, and an essential local support system.

Support for local businesses tugs a little bit on my heart strings for what most would consider obvious reasons. Skyler and I have 2 stores. While most people would consider “Culture Shock” Skyler’s store, understandable, I have been there with him working just as hard as he has since his 5th month of ownership. He and I have helped each other reach completely new levels with that store that we both couldn’t have done without each other. “Clean Cut”, our second store, is my baby. I have done so much on that end of the businesses so far, with the exception of a few things I’ve needed help with. It is a huge part of my life. I am there everyday, I order for it, I promote for it, I talk to people all day about it. It’s literally consumed my life, and together, both businesses, along with our website, and my college has consumed BOTH of our lives.

But owning a small local business stems farther back than that for me. I remember having a talk with my dad when I was about 9 years old at the kitchen table in my house on Welsh Rd. We sat down with a manilla colored piece of construction paper to talk “business.” He showed me that if I got $0.70 per pound of aluminum cans and collected about 80 cans I’d make about $1.40. We came up with a business plan. If I asked my neighbors to save their cans for me every two weeks, and then were to collect a bag of at least 80 cans from 6 of our neighbors I’d make something, give or take, around $8.00 every two weeks. This was a lot of hard earned money for a 9 year old, and It taught me a kind of responsibility. From that day forward, I set out with my authentic wooden red wagon, collecting bags of cans from my very giving neighbors.

A little later on in life, when I was in junior high, my mom started a ‘Gourmet Dog Biscuit Bakery’ called “A Dogs Life Bakery”. Here she made cute little dog biscuits, dog cup cakes, dog birthday cakes, sold dog dishes, little doggie outfits, etc.. I helped out at the bakery every chance I could. I wanted to be involved in all my parent’s business decision making. My mom got a lot of local support. You would never believe how many people loved to pamper their pets. She eventually even had her dog treats at a few fancy hotels in Las Vegas for their special four legged accompanying guests.

Since then, along with working another job for 5 years- I have worked for, or helped out at a couple other local businesses. I love watching a business grow, and I love working so hard for something that you can actually see the results from. It’s invigorating to me.

The reason I am writing this blog: As we all know, the economy has pretty much been flushed down a HUGE toilet full of diarrheal scandalous, corruption ridden subterfuge and bull-shit. But what are we doing about it? Are you worried about all the hours you’re being cut at work? Are you worried about paying your rent, and also paying for the most expensive holiday season of any year? Do you feel like you are so small in this country, like what you do makes no difference at all?

We all need to stop feeling so small. Essentially, everyone can make a difference in their local economy, which in turn will snowball into helping the larger picture. In the quote from my dad above, he basically says that the key to rebuilding our economy is consumer confidence. I am not speaking for him, but speaking for myself when I say that If I along with everyone in Rockford were to go out, and spend the way they normally do, without being artificially brainwashed by the government into being “scared”, then the local economy would slowly, but surely, grow.

I’m not sure about you, but I know that I absolutely do NOT have more than $100,000 dollars invested in any single stock or account right now, and if you can point me to anyone my age, who I know, who DOES have that kind of money, then I would tell them to put that money into 100 different accounts, or stuff it under their f-ing mattress because we all learned in 8th grade Social Studies class that the banks in America can only insure your money is safe up to $100,000 if something really screwed up happens… (like a depression….? hmmm….?) What I am saying, Is that it is up to us, the people who feel so small in the general scope of things. We don’t have or make over 100,000 dollars a year, like all the stock brokers who are being laid off once did. We are still making our paychecks work, we are making ends meet. Go out and buy a shirt now and then, just like you used to. Go out for coffee with your friends. Don’t be scared away by your government. Since when has our generation ever listened to someone blindly without first asking “Why?” and then asking “Why?” again and again?

This christmas season work on building up your local economy. I am not just saying shop at my store, but make a point to shop at as many local stores as you can. You can find so many amazing things at local stores and for so much cheaper and your gifts will have more quality. Do you think that the corporate owners of Walmart care as much as they say they do in their commercials? I doubt it. They are making 6 figures, and they really don’t a flying shit if you purchase an over sized XXXXXXL bling-bling Mickey Mouse shirt for your weird cousin. Wouldn’t you feel good about supporting a local store, and purchasing a gift from a business who actually cares about you as a customer? There is really a big difference in the customer service you receive between Walmart and Culture Shock.

“Entrepreneurship, I believe is the key to economic growth for many communities. How can a community seeking to raise their economic standards seek to attract new businesses in their community when they are not helping existing businesses?”
(another quote from my dad’s article)
I am not, by any means, just talking about shopping at our store either. There are small local businesses EVERYWHERE! In Beloit there is a “Slow food movement” grocery store, a local market have you, where all the food that you can purchase is grown and produced locally. Have you ever been to Phoenix Traders in Rockford? It’s an awesome store with two owners who care a lot about every customer who walks through the door. Have you ever been to Just Goods? They specialize in fair trade and are very educated and totally willing to share their knowledge with you about anything they can, not to mention they have very unique gifts. There are so many other stores and businesses I could mention. Minglewood, CD source, Toad Hall. Don’t forget about the thrift stores, those are my favorite places to find old posters and vintage jewelry, Three Angels Emporium is a good one, there are a bunch of thrift stores on broadway that I never know the names of, but I make sure to stop in every time I’m around. Buy food locally too! In the summer there are Farmers Markets at colonial village, at the perryville plaza, and in a few other places. Support locally owned restaurants and coffee shops! They are feeling the economic crunch as well.

If you continue to support local businesses, your efforts will go into YOUR economy, meaning YOU’LL be making a difference. This means, your favorite dives will invest more into their businesses, bringing you new products, or better sales, and deals, not only that but putting any money into YOUR local economy will snowball effect into more jobs, more opportunities, more community growth etc. This is how you can help.

So this holiday season, I’m begging you to take a look around, and before you head out to the same mall you’ve been going to for 458730975 years, ask yourself if you’re in for a much more adventurous day of shopping around the entire city of Rockford/Rockton/Roscoe/Beloit. There are a lot of local businesses and the only way our economy can improve is if we all have confidence in it, and invest in the economy accordingly.

-Lauren

Dignity. That is what I say when people ask me why I named my Turkey. My Thanksgiving Turkey that is. OK, I sound a little possessive. But it’s true that once you place a down payment on a turkey at a farmer’s market I feel as though the turkey is mine. I wonder if they put a little name tag on the turkey that says, “Marty’s Turkey” just in case I wanted to go out and visit with him. I think it’s a him.

Anyway, my turkey is a good turkey, or at least I imagine him to be. Oh, and forgot to tell you that my turkey’s name is Boris. That’s right, Boris. Last year my Turkey’s name was Anton. Anton was a very fine specimen. He was a huge bird, 27 pounds of all-American poultry. I like to imagine that Anton and now Boris lived a pretty good life. They probably ran around the turkey pen, gobbling and eating little grubs and worms and seeds on the ground. The good farmers that raised Boris probably gave him plenty of other things to eat that made him big, fat and juicy.

I’m thinking Boris had some friends in the the turkey pen. Maybe some other turkey’s that were spoken for by other people from Bloomington-Normal. There was one that had a name tag that said “Mike’s Turkey” or “John’s Turkey”. There was probably a “Molly”s Turkey and “Julie’s Turkey”. Maybe since they all knew they were turkey’s the tags just said “Molly’s” or “Marty’s”. The turkeys probably had a name tag similar to the type one wears at a Chamber of Commerce mixer. Do turkey’s network? Do the ask each other, “So how’s everything down at your place. You folks feeling the pinch of this downturn?” Or, “Did you see the market today, the Dow gained 400 points after loosing 450 yesterday!” Do turkey’s really care?

I must admit that imagining what a turkey might say to each other is a little bit of fun, but probably they are merely wondering how long they have before they are snatched up by farmer Jones and whisked away for a throat slitting and hot steamy bath to get rid of those pesky feathers. Do turkey’s go to heaven?

I am glad that Boris gave his life so that on Thanksgiving (don’t ever call it “turkey day” in my presence) we could stuff ourselves with a ton of him, stuffing, corn casserole, mashed potatoes, and all types of other goodies. I really do love Thanksgiving the best. There is only one goal in mind at Thanksgiving. That is to eat, take a nap, watch football, and maybe take a walk in the brisk air. There are no pressures to make sure the gifts are right for everyone, there are no problems if guests or friends are invited, and everyone is the most relaxed they will be the entire year. Right after the Thanksgiving holiday is when the pressure of Christmas starts. Gift buying, malls, and the worry if you have given enough.

Boris is in my fridge right now. Occasionally, I stick my head in there and see how he is doing. Farmer Jones shoved him in the freezer right after he eviscerated him, so I have a feeling Boris didn’t appreciate being treated this way. For what? Being a good turkey, not running away? Is this the kind of respect he gets? Well, now I have to defrost him and like I said, I stick my head in the fridge give a little pat on the back and try to build up his self esteem.

Boris, we will raise a glass to you, and thank you for the ultimate sacrifice you have made for us. You were a good turkey when you were alive, and you will be better still, roasted to a safe temperature of 170 degrees internally in the thickest part of your thigh! Hail thee Boris, your dignity is intact, you have served thee well!!

I am a member of the International Economic Development Council (my professional association) Public Policy Advisory Committee (PPAC). That sounds pretty impressive doesn’t it? I ‘ll leave you with that impression. Truthfully this group, I believe, is one of the hardest working committees I have ever been part of in any organization. It is made up of a number of really smart people all across the country who are very interested in public policy at the national level. In fact their is even one member who calls in for our monthly meetings from Hawaii! The IEDC’s PPAC is working on a transition document that is going to be submitted to the Presidential transition team. This paper is very thoughtful and well written and I am proud to say that I have participated in the entrepreneurship portion of the document.

Entrepreneurship, I believe is the key to economic growth for many communities. How can a community seeking to raise their economic standards seek to attract new businesses to their community when they are not helping existing businesses? This is key to our strategy here in Bloomington-Normal. Through our retention program (BizBAM) education, mentoring, access to capital, and our incubation programs we are making sure that the local businesses in our community are being served.

What do you think? What programs exist in your community that help entrepreneurs? If you own or operate a small business, do you know where to go to get help? Have you ever tried to seek help from an agency like the EDC? If you have ever thought of starting business (and you work for someone else) would you know where to go for help in your community? I’d like to hear from you.

The federal agenda for economic development is at best poorly developed. In fact the agenda is dispersed among various agencies and not very well coordinated. We hope that with the new administration, the various agenda items in our transition paper get attention and economic development gets more and better coordinated attention.

We just got back from our economic summit and learned more about our local economy and how the global meltdown is affecting us. What a great panel. We had Bob Lakin from Commerce Bank a large regional bank; Larry Maschhoff of Bank of Illinois a local community bank; Jim Payne, Economics Chair at Illinois State University, Mike Seeborg, Economics Professor at Illinois Wesleyan University; Eric Schlipf from Morgan Stanley; and Greg Yount commercial Realtor from Coldwell Banker. What a braintrust! Here is what they told us:

The global and national economy is doing poorly (really?) and will continue to do poorly. In fact, it is likely that we will continue to see more bad numbers coming from the various leading indicators. Housing starts, GDP, productivity, unemployment are all going to continue to show bad or dissappointing numbers as we move through the next several quarters. The panel gave the national economy an average of 2 to 2.5 on a scale of 1 through 5 with 1 being the “economy will contuinue to be really bad through the next twelve months”, and 5 indicating “the economy will do super over the next twelve months”. The local economy they rated at around 3 to 3.5.

They felt as a group that the TARP program is neccessary and Secretary Paulson is correct in modifying the plan. This problem is a moving target and the Treasury should be able to make modifications to the plan as it sees fit. The problem with the original plan was that it was impossible to price the poorly performing financial instruments that the Treasury was to buy.

The local economy is sheilded somewhat from the strong employers we do have. Our largest employers, the insurance industry are conservatively managed according to our panelists and are in no danger of having a meltdown like insurance giant AIG. In fact AIG’s traditional insurance lines business is healthy and strong. At least a couple panelists felt that the biggest problem was consumer confidence. If people in the community felt confident and went out and shopped over the holidays, our community can prosper despite the issues at the national level.

Good news: The BN economy is once again reilient and will do ok, but will still take some hits. The bad news: The national economy…not so good.

Watch for an edited version of the program on our web site soon.

Today I am hosting a group of very smart people in something we are calling an economic summit. Two economists, two bankers, a broker and a real estate broker are going to tell us what the future of the Bloomington-Normal economy looks like…hopefully. The news around the world is not good. The market is up and the market is down. The whole event will be taped and posted on the media portion of the website, so please watch for it.

The US automakers are seeking additional dollars to help their companies survive. The big question is if by doing this will the taxpayers and General Motors be putting off the inevitable. Is GM really a company that has been mismanaged to the point they are bound to fail no matter what the national economic conditions are?

I am a “glass half full” type of guy and I an hoping for the best. In my lifetime it seems as though as a country we have always been able to get ourselves out of these types of messes no matter what. In my hometown in the late seventies and early eighties manufacturing was leaving town in droves. It was the rise of the Japanese and Europeans that was driving the machine tool industry out of the community, laying off people and turning once prosperous buildings and middle-class neighborhoods into vacant dinosaurs of the past. Since then I have lived through several other downturns, most not as severe. But today, I worry, for the world has changed dramatically and today I don’t know what to tell people.

A local radio talk show host I know and whose show I appear on regularly was livid over the fact that Treasury Secretary Paulson changed the rules of the game with the TARP program. While initially I didn’t agree with her I can see where she is coming from. In my glass-half-full type of way I explained to her that the whole program is subject to change and I don’t mind if they change the program in mid-stream, as long as they do it right. But what is right?

By 3:00 pm today we will know more about the local economy. I hope there is good news.

This is the very first entry to what I hope becomes a long-term compendium of my thoughts and actions in wide variety of subject matter. What you will find here most of the time is information and tidbits about this broad and interesting subject called “economic development”. But here is so much more. Most of what goes on in our world today can have a line drawn back to economic development. In other words “connect the dots”. But then, is this activity, this “thing” really economic development? Hard to say. But at least we can explore some of those issues in this blog.

I hope, if you are reading this, that you find this interesting, thought provoking, and makes you want o argue with me, for as everyone who knows me well, I love a good argument! We call all be friends when we are done and hoist an ale!

See you soon…Marty the Economic Developer