Small business woes

BASTA!!!

In spite of the economy apparently growing for government and corporations, most small business owners are increasingly terrorized by the dangerous alliance of big business and government.  Across political parties, this alliance is creating an increasingly toxic environment for small business success. It makes a farce of the notion that Small Business “will lead the recovery.” Ha!

Much needs to be done and all small business owners and supporters of small business need to start backing like a wild pack of Chihuahuas! There are many issues but it may be best to focus on a select few to start:

There seem to be 3 threats to small businesses.

Numero Uno: Slow Payment – Large corporations and banks have been loaded up with ample low-cost cash to buy small businesses’ products and services, they continue to pay slowly, bargain harder and demand more from powerless small businesses who are selling their souls “where the money is.” We’ve got to find a way that is reasonable and fair to level this imbalance.

Numero Dos:  New costs, taxes and compliance — As social causes like sustainability, diversity, healthcare and fair taxation are being legislated by local governments and lobbied into favorable terms for corporations, small businesses are being choked. The new costs, taxes and compliance rules are sapping the will of owners to believe that they should risk, invest and remain confident in their businesses.

Numero Tres: “Approved” vendor programs force buying only price — Corporations and governments are hiring third party sourcing companies whose objective is to reduce small business vendor power and commoditize their products and services. And the more owners have to comply with RFPs and join “approved vendor programs”, the less they can add value through their creativity. That is just plain counterproductive. Period. What would an artist paint if he knew that he had to be the lowest priced guy in the gallery?

Small business owners endure so many hardships in trying to survive. The more we are impacted by these threats, the more business owners are distracted from taking risks and confidently investing in profitable growth.