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Main Street versus Wall Street

Topic: Growing Your Business,Managing Your Business | Comments (3)

Posted on October 22, 2009 by admin

One of the articles in the October 21, 2009 edition of the Wall Street Journal caught my eye.mainstreet

The “Small-Business” article on page A4 stated that the White House wants to increase the amount of money available to the Small Business Administration (SBA) – because it will make it easier for banks to access new government funds.

If the White House thinks this is the right economic stimulus lever, I think they are way off the mark.  Rather than making it easier for banks to access funds, why not make it easier for small business owners to access funds?  The way the SBA is structured today, applying for a loan is far from a simple, expedient process.  Faced with a lengthy and complex loan application process – with an uncertain outcome – most small business owners simply don’t bother trying.

They’re too busy building their businesses, one transaction at a time, one customer at a time.

I did find the full-page advertisement on the opposite page an amusing juxtaposition.  It featured an advertisement for a corporate jet that included the headline, “Building business is the true luxury my (jet) affords.”

Maybe it’s an example of why many small business owners don’t read the Journal on a regular basis.  They’re building their businesses without corporate jets, and without the access to capital enjoyed by larger companies.