Hot Cities

Innovation. Plenty of disposable income. A diversified economy. A skilled work force. And a quality of life that makes you say "Ahhhh . . ."

That's the simplest way to sum up the No. 1 city on Dun & Bradstreet and Entrepreneur's 1999 list of hot spots for small businesses. But that doesn't begin to explain why the West Palm Beach/Boca Raton area--affectionately known as the "Treasure Coast"--continues Florida's tradition of populating our list.

Thirty years ago, as was the case with most other areas of Florida, tourism and agribusiness dominated the Palm Beach County economy. But that changed with the birth of the personal computer, created by then-local IBM in Boca Raton. Although long gone from the area, Big Blue's legacy includes highly skilled workers and a technological infrastructure that's helped the county develop a high-tech hub on Blue Lake--prompting the moniker--in-the-making Silicon Beach.

Other hot industries include aerospace engineering, with a few sizable companies such as Sikorsky Aircraft Corp. and B/E Aerospace Inc. serviced by several smaller firms nearby; business and financial services; and the medical/pharmaceutical/health-care sector. And while Miami remains the East Coast's gateway to Latin America, West Palm Beach/Boca Raton is beginning to attract its share of international companies that like the more laid-back lifestyle of this metropolis.

Access to capital is a problem for small nontech businesses in this area, but the county has several programs that can help in other ways. One provides employee-training grants to entrepreneurs who add at least five jobs within a two-year period, and another is a partnership with NASA where the space agency provides up to 40 free hours of engineering and manufacturing consulting assistance to small firms.

Officials are confident that while their booming economy is tied to the country's overall economic high tide, the depth of the area's industry diversification and the strong entrepreneurial spirit pervading the county will allow it to sail smoothly around any obstacles.

This article was originally published in the October 1999 print edition of Entrepreneur with the headline: Hot Cities.