L et’s think back on the past week for a second and all your activities, shall we?
If you’re a typical American, you probably did things such as fill up your car’s gas tank, met friends at a local bakery and coffee shop, planned a Mother’s Day dinner for next weekend, grabbed lunch at the little deli down the street from your office, shopped for a high school or college graduation gift … the list goes on and on.
Now think about where you did most of those activities.
Again, if you’re like most Americans, most of the time you stopped at the corner gas station, met at the local coffee shop, called that nice, new local restaurant or went by that unique gift shop in the shopping center in your neighborhood.
In those activities and many more, you were unconsciously celebrating America’s millions of small businesses — the backbone of the U.S. economy.
From April 29 until tomorrow, we’ve been in the middle of observing Small Business Week 2018, drawing attention to the role small businesses play in making the United States’ economy the largest in the world.
According to the Small Business Administration, more than half of all Americans either work for or own a small business, usually defined as a company with 100 or fewer employees. Entrepreneurs — the risk takers with a big idea — who take the plunge and start their own businesses account for two of every three new jobs in the United States, according to SBA data.
And though the first year of a small business’ operation is the toughest and most precarious, statistically, more than 50 percent of small businesses are still in operation after their fifth year, growing stronger and more vital.
When you patronize a local small business, you help grow the local economy. Local small business owners are usually the first to jump in to take risks, such as venturing into a still-revitalizing downtown to open up shop. They also patronize other small businesses for their needs, too, such as the local restaurateur who buys her produce and meats from local food distributors or co-ops. And more of the dollars spent at a small business that’s locally owned stays in the local economy, rather than getting shipped off to the distant coffers of a corporate headquarters.
And yes, even the big businesses in the area often patronize local small businesses for many of their needs. Think cleaning services, maintenance of critical building systems such as electrical and HVAC, landscaping and local venues for corporate events.
The United States has been observing Small Business Week since 1963, and it’s nice to have a week set aside on the calendar to reflect on the many contributions small business owners and entrepreneurs make toward the economy. But in reality, every week, technically, is “small business week” when you, as an individual, or as a business owner yourself choose to patronize a small business in town.
For small business, you see, really does power the country.