Small Business Development Center

Small Business
Development Center
2013 A N N U A L R E P O R T T O T H E C O M M U N I T Y
Boone • Ogle • Stephenson • Winnebago Counties, Illinois
Small Business Development Center
Growing businesses. Creating jobs. Energizing our economy.
KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATORS
Clients
Loans
Loan Amounts
Jobs Retained & Created
Business Starts
20122013
215
250
5
20
$1,169,000
$2,064,020
182
177
15
21
Letter from the Director
In 2013 the Illinois Small Business
Development Center at Rock Valley
College had the privilege of assisting
250 ambitious and determined
entrepreneurs pursue their American
Dream—to start or grow their own
business in northern Illinois. This was
a 16 percent increase over the 215
clients served in 2012.
Our assistance included –
• creating a professional business
plan that financial institutions view
as realistic and achievable,
• conducting the proper market research,
• introducing them to financial assistance sources that approved their loan
applications,
• providing free, individualized
counseling and low-cost training workshops,
• and other specialized business
assistance.
On the following pages, you will meet
six entrepreneurs who will attest that
2013 was a positive year. With their
determination and optimism, plus
some SBDC help, they made great
strides. Most of them, after working at
their day jobs, devoted countless hours
and boundless energy to their dream.
They started their own business.
Half of our clients are existing business
owners. We helped them solve complex
business problems. We helped them grow.
As you know, small business is big news.
Small businesses created 66 percent
of all net new jobs in the U.S.A. since
the 1970s. The jobs improve and
strengthen our community.
Thank you for your interest in and
important support of the Small Business
Development Center that serves Boone,
Ogle, Stephenson and Winnebago
counties.
Brian McIntyre, Director
Small Business Development Center
at Rock Valley College
1
About the Small Business Development Center at Rock Valley College
The Small Business Development Center (SBDC) helps existing and
startup entrepreneurs and small businesses succeed through free
business counseling and low-cost training. The SBDC’s resources
include one-on-one advising, financing assistance and statistical
analyses of thousands of industries, bilingual Hispanic services,
and more. This center is one of 900 service sites supported and
networked by the U.S. Small Business Administration.
2
The Illinois SBDC at Rock Valley College is funded in part through
a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Small Business Administration,
Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity,
and Rock Valley College.
Meet Some Aspiring Entrepreneurs
FEMALE VET OPENS ROSCOE’S FIRST BIKE SHOP
J
udy Taylor is a U.S. Army veteran with
10 years of service, including a deployment in Iraq. She helped the Iraqis
rebuild damaged sports and youth
facilities, and gained experience in
contracts and other business functions.
“When I got out of the service I knew
I did not want to work for anyone else.
Family members had owned a bike shop,
and there was no bike store in Roscoe.
I’m very much into physical fitness, so my
family encouraged me to do it. I opened
Midwest Track & Trail in May 2013 and
our first year has been better than
expected,” said Judy proudly.
Judy Taylor is the proud owner of Roscoe’s
first bike shop. “Banks loved the business
plan that the SBDC helped me with,”
she said.
Judy knew that the Small Business
Administration had a loan specifically
for veterans. She had tried to get the
loan on her own but felt the banks gave
her the runaround. She connected
with the local SBDC office. “They were
amazing. They helped me get my
business plan into a format that
showed graphs and numbers, and the
banks loved that. Brian McIntyre went
to every appointment with me and I
got a loan! I think the banks felt more
secure with him as the ‘middleman.’
I felt more at ease because he was
steering me in the right direction,
instead of running around in circles
by myself. To this day I still stay in touch
with them,” said Judy.
www.bikeroscoe.com
3
MEET THE LOCAL DISTRIBUTOR
FOR A FUEL-SAVING PRODUCT
S
ay “fuel savings” and people pay
attention. Winnebago County and the city
of Rockford did. Larry Robertson is the
Midwest distributor for the InterCharger,
a product that breaks down unburned
emissions, reduces emissions and
increases fuel economy in vehicles. Both
the county and the city have installed
the units and are enjoying the benefits.
With the local SBDC’s assistance, Larry
received two bank loans and is
working on his third loan. “It was the
SBDC the whole way. They found the
bank and connected us to the SBDC
people in the State of Washington as the
manufacturer’s parent company is in that
state,” said Larry. “Getting that first loan
told people that we are a viable company.
That was worth a lot. Now my goal is
to become the distributor on a much
larger scale,” added Larry.
www.intercharger.com
4
Larry Robertson holds InterCharger (also shown installed).
The SBDC helped him get loans to become the Midwest distributor.
ENTREPRENEUR RETAINED 100 JOBS AND KEPT GROWING!
Teresa Pesina, CEO of ezHire Search &
Placement, is a savvy businessperson
who instinctively knows what to do.
While working for another staffing
company during the recent recession,
she knew that she should be ready
to open her own staffing business.
“I established a dormant company.
The out-of-town owners of the company
I worked for closed the business without
advance notice on a Friday. The SBDC
worked with me over the weekend
so that we opened for business on
Monday morning as ezHire Search &
Placement. We kept all our clients so the
temps and my staff continued working.
It involved 100 jobs!” Teresa exclaimed
proudly. Her staffing firm works with
a variety of industries and specializes
in engineering.
“I am so grateful that they were there for
me. Wherever I go, I have their business
cards and I pass them out. I tell other
entrepreneurs, ‘let them help you.
They can connect you with the right
decision makers,’” she attested.
www.ezhiregroup.com
The SBDC worked with Teresa Pesina over a
weekend so she could open her new staffing
business on Monday morning.
5
CLOTHING DESIGNER IS READY
FOR NEXT STEP
W
hich of his three lines of clothing
should he launch first? And what about
supply chain decisions, trademarks
and copyrights? These are the types of
questions Daryl Joyner discusses with
Brian McIntyre, the SBDC director. “He
helped me do something I did not think
I could do, build a business plan and a
financial plan,” said Joyner, an aspiring
clothing designer.
Over the years, he had designed urban
wear for himself and friends, and had
pursued clothing ventures. Urban wear
includes jeans, T-shirts and baseball caps
adorned with names of cities and other
icons of exclusivity. Daryl is now ready to
take the next step, thanks to the SBDC.
After the website is up for his line of
RawDawgUrban clothes, Daryl will focus
on marketing to wholesale buyers in
Chicago so his clothes can be purchased
at retail shops.
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Daryl Joyner will market his designer urban clothes to wholesale buyers in Chicago.
SBDC CHAMPIONED HIM TO FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS
“A
bank loan officer actually referred
me to the local SBDC office because
the business plan I had bought online
was terrible. It wasn’t providing the right
information for the bank,” said Ken Banks.
“Brian helped me create a better business
plan, set up meetings for me, and a bank
approved my loan! The SBDC office was
definitely instrumental in getting loans
approved and they continue to look for
more funding for me,” Ken added.
After working for a national tire franchise
for 20 years, Ken wanted to open his own
tire business here. He opened Tire Guys,
1717 East Riverside, in August 2013 and
sells new and used tires, custom wheels
and wheel alignments with four employees.
“Without the SBDC’s help, all this may not
have happened. They gave my plan a lot
of credibility. Having them champion
me carries weight with the banks,”
said Ken.
www.tireguys.biz
The SBDC was instrumental in getting
loans approved for Ken Banks so he could
open Tire Guys.
7
A BETTER, SAFER WELDING HELMET
W
orking on his invention at night
and on weekends, after his day job,
Edgar Marin-Ruiz is close to achieving
his dream—selling a safer and more
comfortable helmet for welders, one
that blows away harmful metal fumes.
“The existing helmets often give welders
headaches because of the fumes, plus
they’re heavy and very uncomfortable,”
explained Edgar. “Our Breeze Welding
Helmet is lightweight at just three
pounds. It has three-speed fans that blow
away the fumes and keep the air inside
the helmet cool. The people who tested
these asked, ‘Can we buy this prototype?’”
Edgar credits the SBDC for helping him
get this far. “We couldn’t have done
this without them,” said Edgar. “They
believed in us. They connected us
with people who helped us with the
financial side of starting a business,
like how to forecast costs,” he added.
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Edgar Marin-Ruiz’s son, Edgar Junior, holds a Breeze Welding Helmet
and shows the inside of one.
SBDC Tools & Services
SBDC TOOLS & SERVICES
FOR EXISTING BUSINESSES
SBDC TOOLS & SERVICES
FOR NEW BUSINESSES
• Growth Wheel is a decision-making
software program taught by certified instructors at the SBDC.
• Liveplan, a licensed and proprietary plan that helps businesses write a complete and professional business plan.
• BizMiner tracks 9000 lines of business and provides granular statistical reports, benchmarks, market trends and market analyses.
• AdvancetoProfit, a step-by-step management tool that helps entrepreneurs succeed.
• ReferenceUSAGov is an Internet based reference service database on more than 14 million U.S. businesses, 89 million U.S. residents and more.
• C Team (commercialization) provides accelerated growth assistance through a team of top-level, experienced executives.
• Profit Mastery is a powerful financial and management training program available through the SBDC.
• Additional specialized and proprietary tools and services are available.
• Numerous workshops and training opportunities, both online and in-person.
PARTNERS OF THE SMALL BUSINESS
DEVELOPMENT CENTER
• Illinois International Trade Center (ITC)
The ITC helps businesses access international trade information, evaluate export potential and readiness, pursue
trade opportunities and reach their international business objectives.
• Illinois Procurement Technical Assistance Center (PTAC)
The PTAC helps small businesses and groups obtain and perform within federal, state and local government opportunities when doing business
with the government.
• EIGERlab
This is northern Illinois’ one-stop incubator resource for new and existing entrepreneurs to lease space, participate in peer groups, access rapid prototyping services and other business services.
• Accion
The only nationwide micro- and small-
business lending network in the country, Accion champions small business owners. SBDC is a partner with Accion and is authorized to close loans at the local office.
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Thank You For Your Interest and Support
We hope this annual report has deepened your understanding
of what the Illinois Small Business Development Center at Rock
Valley College does to help improve the economic vitality of our
community. By counseling and advising small business owners,
we retain and create jobs. We help entrepreneurs make their
American Dream come true as they start and grow their own
business here in northern Illinois.
If you know of an entrepreneur who could benefit from our free,
one-on-one counseling and low-cost training, please ask them
to contact us.
Brian McIntyre, SBDC Director
[email protected]
815.921.2081
Cari Fuller, SBDC Administrative Assistant
[email protected]
815.921.2081
Illinois Small Business Development Center
at Rock Valley College
605 Fulton Ave, Rockford IL 61103
www.RockValleyCollege.edu/Business/SBDC