SRR 2000, Spring 2000
Firing Employees: 10 Tips for Doing it Right
Today, an increasing number of ex-employees are suing their ex-employers. An attorney has advice for firing fairly—and carefully—to protect your business, your assets and yourself.
Turning Part-Timers into Profit-Makers
For retail business owners who count on part-time employees, motivating them can be a big challenge. Part-time jobs attract a range of workers—from students to retirees to people who just want to earn extra cash and may not view their positions as "careers." How do you get the most out of this diverse group of people who work a limited number of hours each week?
Bootstrapper's Success Secrets: Seven Golden Rules for Working on a Shoestring Budget
Bootstrapper is a universal term in entrepreneurial circles. If you ask a room full of entrepreneurial professionals how many "bootstrapped" their ventures, the majority would raise their hands. Why? Because 60 percent of all new businesses begin as undercapitalized start-ups, according to Small Business Administration statistics.
Making it Count: How to Find the Right CPA
Many small-business owners start out by using an accountant only at tax time. Big mistake! Here's why you need a CPA as a regular member of your team, and how to find the best one for you.
Time for a Change?
It's spring—a good time to evaluate the performance of your products and decide if it's time to make a change.
Guide to Financing Your Business
Adequate capitalization and cash-flow management are essential to the long-term success of any business. One of the greatest challenges an entrepreneur faces is obtaining sufficient capitalization to start or expand a business. Consider these sources of financing for your start-up specialty retail business.
Boo Bucks and Fun Feet: Pushing the Limits
A self-proclaimed pioneer of cart commerce in the New England area, Gary Bliss Garabedian, Aah! La Cart's president and CEO, began his entrepreneurial career at a time when pushcarts were still identified with corner peddlers and street vendors. But he recognized intuitively the profitability of making direct contact with large groups of customers in a mall environment.
Marci's Art
The exact point at which her specialty retail dream came true is a little sketchy, with all the exciting opportunities it has afforded her since April 1997. But Marci remembers that first early-morning trip to her new "headquarters on wheels." The cart in which she invested everything sat bare in the White Marsh Mall in Abingdon, MD. She remembers the fresh smell of polished oak, the echo from the desolate hallways, and the butterflies that fluttered in her stomach just before the doors of the mall were to open.
Inside Outlets
So you want to debut your new cart or kiosk amid the bright lights and excitement of a leading mega-mall, where the demographics are dynamic, the traffic is terrific and cash seems to flow non-stop. But the traditional mall isn't the only venue where specialty retailing succeeds big.
New Age Moves Toward Main Street
Feel the need to de-stress by banging on a shaman's drum? Chase the blahs with scented candles? Ease malaise with emu oil? It's a brave New Age for marketers and Main Street alike.
Trendspotting
I get several calls a month from friends and associates in the specialty retail field, and the question is always the same: "Have you seen any new products?" While new products and new ideas are certainly the lifeblood of this industry, we also need to look at new ways to display those products, and use the resources and equipment we have.
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