Why does downtown matter? I’ve been asked why downtowns matter to small towns. Why should you invest your time and money into revitalizing your downtown? What makes it more important than any other area of town? What about that highway frontage? Or the edge of town where the discounters locate? In our Survey of Rural…
Editorial by Becky McCray Not everyone who says they’ll help your town is telling you the truth. If you want a resilient small town economy and prosperity for the people in your town, I have some self-defense ideas for you. Focus more on your own people, less on attraction. Stop paying people to bring business…
We walk and drive by small businesses every day. We go in their doors, make purchases and continue on our way without another thought. We depend on small businesses. They fill our need for products and services, and we expect them to be open on a regular basis to meet our needs (and sometimes we…
This first appeared in our weekly email newsletter, A Positive View of Rural. Even though I love local business, I’m about ready to ban “shop local.” Sounds crazy, doesn’t it? I mean, I’m something of a shop local champion. So why am I ready to get rid of “shop local”? Because I’m afraid it has…
When rural entrepreneurs prosper, they help their communities prosper. That’s why I support rural entrepreneurs. The best way I can help your community to prosper is to help your entrepreneurs and business owners. They are the ones who will help find solutions to local problems. That’s why I was excited by the CNN story of…
Seth Godin took on the role of technology in changing the role of geography, in Sovereignty and the new world–the end of nations? Technology has allowed us to move both information and goods in ways that completely changed long established business patterns. In addition to the changes in communication, look at the changes in containerized…
By Glenna Mae Hendricks (Maesz) With some pride, I tell you that my hometown owns and runs a very excellent retirement community for the people who can still live independently. It is called the Homestead Retirement Community. Since the economic downturn, our little town has been seeking ways to cut costs. Some short sighted people…
Wondering what business to start? Looking for business ideas? Andy Hayes offers an excellent coaching package, two hours of one-on-one brainstorming and planning. He calls it Fireworks and Firebombs: Find a Business Idea that Gets You Excited and Will Pay the Bills. Disclosure: Andy Hayes is a friend. I am not an affiliate and do…
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