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    Free Help from Uncle Sam to Start or Expand Your Business
    Free Help from Uncle Sam to Start or Expand Your Business
    Free Help from Uncle Sam to Start or Expand Your Business
    Ebook222 pages1 hour

    Free Help from Uncle Sam to Start or Expand Your Business

    By Fred Hess

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    About this ebook

    Business author Fred Hess is telling all - revealing little known sources of free government help for small businesses. Everything from advice, counseling services and publications, loans, loan guarantees, financial incentives and much more, all free for the asking. Hess has just finished updating the 6th edition of his book revealing 100 of his "secret" sources for getting free help from Uncle Sam. He gives the names, addresses and details on government sources that specialize in small business assistance. "Many small businesses are eligible for free assistance, services, even loans, and grants," says Hess, "but they have no idea how or where to find this free help. Uncle Sam offers everything from advice to assistance for women business owners wanting to sell to NASA, to grants, loans, and financial incentives." Included in the sources are 100 government agencies that purchase from small businesses and government programs that offer financial help, services, export assistance, publications, free help for women and minorities, loans for teenagers, special help for handicapped business owners, etc., all listed with names, addresses, telephone numbers and descriptions for easy reference. New in this 6th edition is live website links that can take you directly to the referenced site being discussed.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublishereBookIt.com
    Release dateApr 26, 2016
    ISBN9781456603373
    Free Help from Uncle Sam to Start or Expand Your Business

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      Free Help from Uncle Sam to Start or Expand Your Business - Fred Hess

      review.

      Acknowledgments

      To my wife, Jeanne, who endured the long hours. To Bill Alarid, for his great advice and counsel. And finally, to the excellent workers on my oDesk team for the research work, editing and cover design.

      About the Author

      Fred Hess is an entrepreneur who has used government aid to start several small businesses.   He worked for IBM for 23 years before striking out on his own. He has consulted for many companies, large, medium and small.   Fred is an engineer by degree, but has used that training in logic to apply to business startup and improvement.   He resides in Long Beach and Palm Springs, California, with his wife Jeanne.

      INTRODUCTION

      In down times or up times, entrepreneurship goes on and on and on like The Energizer. There always are and always will be those who say to hell with prognosticators. These men and women see an opportunity, an opening in the economic fabric of our nation, and they jump into it with both feet, or head first. Never mind that only 80 percent of them will survive the first five years.

      The true entrepreneur is a bit of a gambler, but a concerned and calculating gambler. The more knowledgeable he or she is, the greater his or her chances of survival. Knowledge, then, is the ace in the hole. Money? Sure, that’s important too. Money is vital as a lubricant, but it’s not the driver that steers the vehicle. The entrepreneur is the driver, and it is knowledge and all the human characteristics that make up the complex and somewhat mysterious entrepreneur, that first of all motivates him or her.

      Money comes next. And that’s the topic we take on in this book. Much money flows from one of the thousand agencies and offices of the federal government and that of the 50 states. Not that Uncle Sam’s money is a leaky faucet -- quite the contrary. Money from Uncle Sam is getting more difficult to tap -- but not impossibly so. It just takes know-how and know-who.

      Throughout this 6th edition of Free Help from Uncle Sam, we’ve trod on the side of fiscal conservatism. The sources you find listed and the suggestions we’ve made are realistic and pragmatic ones. We’ve tried to avoid the blue sky and rose-colored glasses that some books focus on.

      Uncle Sam’s money, don’t forget, is our money. The only source of income for the treasury of the United States is your and my taxes. As the custodian of our money, our government is charged with dispensing -- investing, if you will -- some of that money in viable private businesses. In order to get that money, you in private enterprise must regard the source as realistically and honestly as you do the neighborhood bank.

      The government, on the other hand, has become more banker-like, since those lush days of free and easy money during past years. Now commercial bank refusals, financial statements, valid collateral, pragmatic cash flow schedules, and a credible payback plan must accompany every application for Uncle Sam’s money (that is, our money!). There are few exceptions. Normally, you wouldn't want those exceptions -- disabilities, disasters, and dramatic social disadvantages -- that could result in direct government loans at lower interest rates. However, in these exigencies, such loans do exist and it’s only right that you should know about them.

      In this 6th edition we have also emphasized more and new case histories and success stories. Few portions of a written record are as inspirational and stimulating as actual life happenings from which you can draw experience and incentives. Also, included for you are new contacts, updated addresses, phone numbers and live links to websites, which are accurate up to publication time.

      Incidentally, the many parts of Uncle Sam are always on the move and change frequently. If you notice that any part of the book is out of date or not correct, please go to my www.buyfreehelp.com website and let us know.

      More emphasis has also been placed on entrepreneurial areas that are growing -- such as international trade (primarily export) and minority enterprises.

      You should also be advised of some new trends. More and more men and women in their middle years are getting their parachutes and are floating to earth without a preconceived place to land. These folks are squeezed out by increasing corporate mergers. Many of them are mid- to upper-level executives who, instead of the proverbial gold watch, are sent into temporary retirement with a sizable pension fund poke or financial settlement. Members of the Armed Forces and even longtime employees of Civil Service are taking early retirement. In most cases these men and women take with them profound skills and accumulated fiscal security. Many of them will apply these twin assets to new businesses, or to the acquisition of existing businesses. Sometimes these skills and contacts can even be converted into doing business with their former employers.

      According to the 2009 Kauffman Index of Entrepreneurial Activity, approximately 558,000 entrepreneurs in the US started a business each month in 2009. With allowances for the economy, this means that about 6,000,000 entrepreneurs will start a business this year. Most of them follow their dreams regardless of the risks inherent in entrepreneurship. However, you should be mindful of the reality that the businessperson who minimizes the risk is the one who is going to survive -- and prosper -- the longest and best. Usually, inspiration, enthusiasm, motivation, hard work and persistence are great propellants. Knowledge, nonetheless, is the glue that holds them all together. Money is the great lubricant that keeps them all flowing. Much of that funding comes from and flows through U.S. agencies and state governments.

      How to get some of that help, where to get, and from whom to get, is the job of Free Help from Uncle Sam…

      The first two chapters are about companies like yours and people like you. They stories are inspirational and are included to give you comfort and the spirit to keep going when those bad days show up. Starting and growing a business is hard work but very rewarding. So read these chapters if you have the time. However, if you are seeking immediate assistance, Chapter 3 is where the help begins.

      It’s up to you now to find the right reference and to follow the rules. Be complete, be realistic, and be professional about your contact and follow-up. Be patient, too. The U.S. Government is a vast bureaucracy, sometimes staffed by brilliant fellow-citizens, sometimes by petty bureaucrats and time wasters who are just waiting for pension-time. Often it seems like all that red tape is not worth the effort, but remember that it’s your money you are applying for -- and the purpose of your request must be to generate profits and benefits for you and yours and for your fellow citizens.

      Fred Hess

      CHAPTER 1

      - Success Stories about Some of Uncle Sam’s Citizens

      With 1,000 different loan programs, two dozen agencies, and congressionally mandated ombudsman departments in every federal agency (most of them designed to help underprivileged and minorities to get a fair shake), success stories reported by the SBA and its supported agencies (SCORE, SBDC, SBIR, et al.) dominate the news. Often overlooked, however, are success stories from other agencies such as the Department of Commerce, Department of Agriculture, and Department of Energy. Here are a few from which you might draw helpful inspirations. Taking advantage of them can save you many $$$.

      San Francisco, CA – Nearly a third of all Americans have some kind of allergy. Chart Yu figured there had to be a way to help Americans breathe easier, so he created Gazoontite, a consumer-friendly retail store devoted to allergy products.

      In 1997, Yu voluntarily gave up his management position at Clorox to become a sales clerk at Crate & Barrel –- a daring move that gave him valuable retail experience at 15 percent of his previous salary. He easily could have spent the next several decades trying to learn all the other aspects of running a successful start-up business. Instead, he began seeking out resources to help him formulate a realistic business plan. A visit to the San Francisco office of the Small Business Administration led him to the local chapter of SCORE.

      SCORE helped me understand the big picture – addressing consumer needs and developing a strategy for meeting them, Yu says. We covered everything from the first small steps to the long term moves that would sustain my company’s growth.

      Yu’s first Gazoontite store opened on San Francisco’s upscale Union Street in April 1999. A month later, gazoontite.com debuted in cyberspace. Both were immediate hits for allergy sufferers and their families. Yu’s idea also sparked interest in the financial community, attracting over $30 million of venture capital financing that has allowed Gazoontite to open stores in New York, Chicago, and Costa Mesa, California.

      In 2005, Gazoontite LLC was acquired by The Clorox Corporation.

      Townsend, VT -- The Instrument Division of Janos Technology developed a significant product that has the ability to detect freon-based refrigerants. U.S. and import auto manufacturers are considering whether to offer the tool as mandated or optional tool to dealers. Specifically, Ford and GM are looking to this device to comply with clean-air standards to refrigerant recycling. The company received a $600,000 guarantee loan through the Department of Agriculture Rural Business Services.

      The company continues to be successful, and currently provides 77 jobs for its community. Funding will be used for company expansion and is expected to save the existing 77 jobs while providing 10 new jobs.

      Grand Ledge, MI -- E-T-M Enterprises manufactures reinforced fiberglass parts for truck, automotive, and recreational vehicle manufacturers. A guaranteed loan from the Department of Agriculture enabled the company to expand its manufacturing plant. The project saved 330 jobs currently provided by the company and will create an additional 230 jobs.

      Medford, OR -- Southern Oregon Regional Development Inc. is in the Pacific Northwest Economic Adjustment Initiative (PNWEAI) and funds are from the PNWEAI reserve. Preference was extended to businesses that create or retain industrial production of wood products. Southern Oregon Regional Economic Development, Inc. (SO-REDI), estimates that by targeting a maximum of $20,000 per job created or saved, the $1,500,000 IRP loan will create or save at least 50 jobs in the fund’s first round of loans for the communities of this two-county area. SO-REDI has initially identified 28 potential small businesses that could benefit from the IRP funds. IRP credit needs for these businesses total approximately $2,000,000.

      West Lebanon, IN -- Hubner Industries purchased a seed conditioning plant. The company purchases raw seed corn and soybeans to condition, packages and stores in a warehouse, and distributes to wholesalers and retailers. They received funding of $2,400,000 through the Department of Agriculture Rural Business Service Loan Guarantee Program. They will export some seed to Italy, France, and Spain. The funding resulted in the creation of 24 new jobs.

      Vienna, VA -- This couple bought a five-year-old quick-print shop with four employees. Within a year they ran into many problems. Primarily, they were unable to do more than break even. Somebody introduced them to a management consultant who charged them $80 for the first session. As the shop owners anticipated a long consulting relationship at considerable costs, a friend told them about the Washington area Service Corps of Retired Executives (SCORE) office. An experienced management expert from SCORE quickly pointed to the problem: employee inefficiency. It was a tough decision, but one man was laid off and a profit leak in the business was immediately plugged. Five out of six small businesses fail during the first two years, said the counselor, due firstly to poor management, and secondly to lack of adequate financing.

      Valparaiso, IN -- After 22 years as an employee in the food industry, this man decided to go into the wholesale meat packing business with his three sons. They obtained financing through the SBA but at high

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