Put some fireworks in your Independents Week.
We just finished with National Small Business Week, and now we turn around and talk about Independents Week. What’s the difference, and why does it matter?
Small business is a designation of size. So anything under 500 employees, according to Small Business Administration definition. I don’t know about your small town, but in mine, 500 employees is extraordinarily large. And small businesses are unquestionably the heart and soul of small town business.
Independent is a reflection of ownership. Independent businesses could be any size, but they are owned by local people. Control remains local. Decisions about what to carry, what business to pursue, what donations to make are all made locally. More profits remain local. More business is given to other local businesses.
Of course, there is a lot of overlap: many businesses in small towns are both small and independent. These business people are the ones who invest themselves in the future of your community.
According to the Spring 2013 American Express OPEN Small Business Monitor, nearly all small businesses (96%) find some way to contribute to their local communities (including donating to local causes, participating in community projects and sponsoring local athletic teams) and 83 percent shop at independently-owned businesses in their neighborhoods.
According to the Independent We Stand Community Support Index, small businesses contributed 16 percent more resources to charities this year compared to last year. The survey indicates that the number one reason small businesses support local charities is to invest in their own community.
- Downtown is your town’s core: How to make your case - February 22, 2021
- Zoom Towns: attracting and supporting remote workers in rural small towns - December 10, 2020
- In an economic crisis, spend your brainpower before your dollars - November 25, 2020
- Video: How to fill empty car dealership buildings for the holidays - November 6, 2020
- How has 2020 changed the challenges rural small towns face? Tell us here - October 20, 2020
- The Idea Friendly Method to surviving a business crisis - October 6, 2020
- Join me for the Rural Renewal Symposium online Oct 13 - September 26, 2020
- Cheap placemaking idea: instant murals - September 11, 2020
- Refilling the rural business pipeline - July 7, 2020
- Huge vacant buildings: grants to renovate? - June 9, 2020
