Small Business Stories: Navigating The Recession
Small businesses have been hard-hit in this economy — nowhere more so than in California.
In California, Small Businesses Hit By 'Perfect Storm'
()Tight credit, falling home prices and high unemployment contributed to a high bankruptcy rate among small businesses in the state. Keanyn and Estella Gray know all too well that owning a small business in California is hardly smooth sailing.
Sharp Edge Of Downturn Hurts Metal Business()
December 9, 2009 WPLNRon Smithfield, the CEO of a Tennessee metal cutting and machine servicing company, is one of the executives who have been forced to deliver some bad news to employees during the recession, including layoffs and reduced hours.
Two Restaurants Combine In Tough Economy()
December 3, 2009 KSMUA breakfast joint and pizzeria in Springfield, Mo., share restaurant space to cut costs. At lunchtime, the aromas of frying bacon and bubbling pizza sauce mingle.
Tortilla Machine Maker Is Starving For Credit()
December 1, 2009 KQEDIn California's San Gabriel Valley, Chip Masters, a company that assembles tortilla-making machines, has reduced its employees from 55 to nine to make ends meet. The company has also changed its business model and now repairs machines in addition to building new ones.
Expansion May Be On Tap For Craft Beer Maker()
November 25, 2009 KUNCA provision in the federal stimulus bill waiving the closing costs of an SBA loan allowed a Colorado brewery owner to buy an additional beer fermenter, which increased the amount of beer he could brew. More beer led to more jobs and more customers, and now Kevin DeLange is looking for more space.
Children's Furniture Store Struggles To Survive()
November 24, 2009 KUERSales at That's My Room in Salt Lake City have slowed to less than $5,000 a month. Despite making cutbacks, the owners say, they haven't taken a paycheck since the store opened a year and a half ago — right when the recession hit.
Small Business Stays 'Attached' To Laid-Off Workers()
November 23, 2009 A Charlotte, N.C., construction firm is among an increasing number of small companies trying a strategy that makes the firing process a bit gentler. It's called "attached unemployment," a kind of temporary layoff aimed at softening the blow of job cuts.
