It is a Thursday morning, and normally, Cynthia Malcom would be
tending to her business. But today, she's sitting in a
classroom, listening to a lecture with a handful of other
adults.
Actually, she is tending to her business. It just doesn't
look like it at first glance. Malcom is attending BYOB, and no,
it's not what you think. This is Build Your Own
Business, a 10-week program for anybody who wants to run a
company. Situated in a spacious but almost barren room on the
second floor of the Cincinnati Business Incubator, BYOB targets
residents in underserved, urban neighborhoods. Malcom and her
classmates are paying $50 for 20 hours of instruction from a
seasoned entrepreneur; after the class is over, they can receive
ongoing free services, like financial counseling and tax
preparation from BYOB's nonprofit organization, Smart Money
Community Services in Cincinnati.
But Malcom has already mastered one important lesson in starting
a business, one that entrepreneurs new to the scene would do well
to learn: You are not alone. No matter how bleak things might seem,
there are always people willing to aid and comfort a struggling
entrepreneur.
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Malcom, who's in her 30s, runs the Hand Candy Mind and Body
Escape in Cheviot, an urban neighborhood in Cincinnati. She has one
part-time employee and more than 100 regular customers. Hers
isn't exactly a multimillion-dollar business, but she wants it
to be. She's come a long way since launching her salon with
little more than $5,000 after working several years at a casino.
Having dreamed of being an entrepreneur since she was 12 years old,
Malcom opened her business in 2000, and she hopes to open her
second store within a couple of years. But to do that, a little
advice and inspiration wouldn't hurt. "I'm the owner,
manager, secretary and janitor. You get so busy, you forget the
basics," explains Malcom, who hopes the education will help
fill some gaps in her knowledge.
Coming to BYOB was a smart decision. As any entrepreneur knows,
if you have a problem, you fix it. You might be flying solo, but
there are always air traffic controllers in the tower, ready to
talk to you, ready to help. Going it completely alone is
unnecessary-maybe even foolish. And Malcom would rather soar than
crash.
Help for
Everybody
Across the Ohio River from Malcom is Nicole Christian, the vice
president of development for the Northern Kentucky
Chamber of Commerce. "What we do is point people in the
right direction," says Christian, espousing a philosophy of
chambers of commerce nationwide.
Even if you have only the foggiest notion of what your business
is going to be, Christian-or somebody like her-can help. She
directs people with a business idea to the nearest Small Business
Development Center, which helps novice entrepreneurs formulate
blueprints for their businesses. And SBDCs are everywhere. Even if
you live in American Samoa, you're in luck.
If you have at least a vague idea of what your business plan is,
chamber executives like Christian can make finding financing and
deciding on a business location less overwhelming. As you're
writing that business plan, "we have a business panel
review," Christian says. "It's a revolving panel of
about 10 people, and they can ask questions that will help you
realize if there are holes in your plan."
And, of course, a chamber of commerce or an SBDC can steer you
to other organizations such as SCORE (Service Corps of Retired
Executives). Located nationwide, these retired executives want to
help budding young entrepreneurs; the SCORE Web site even offers
free e-mail counseling. You can seek these groups on your own, of
course, but the chamber of commerce and SBDCs are often already
working with groups like SCORE and may introduce you to their local
contacts a little faster.
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