business source - july 2014
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Southern Indiana Buisness Source, July 2014TRANSCRIPT
JULY 2014 :: THE ENTREPRENEURS EDITION
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Southern Indiana Business Source | July 20144
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Southern Indiana Business Source is published by the
News and Tribune
PUBLISHERBill Hanson
EDITORDaniel Suddeath
ADVERTISING MANAGERMary Tuttle
CONTRIBUTORSPaul Sanders, Todd Logsdon,
Timothy Weatherholt, Blayr Barnard, Wendy Dant-Chesser,
Michael Lamsfuss, Aprile Rickert, Vern Eswine, Andew Campbell,
Stephen Hall
DESIGNBrandi Jones
PHOTOGRAPHYChristopher Fryer
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EDITORDaniel Suddeath
SOUTHERN INDIANA BUSINESS SOURCE221 Spring StreetJeffersonvi l le, IN 47130
A reason to walkK&I can be an economic tool for Floyd County
With the opening of the Big Four Pedestrian Bridge, there’s been a plethora of discussion about how infrastructure de-signed for walkers and cyclists can serve as an economic development tool.
Jeffersonville offi cials have touted how the Big Four Bridge has already spurred more business for downtown, and the development of the area in terms of new establishments certainly preceded the opening of the pedestrian span.
Now there’s talk about how New Albany could benefi t from a similar project with the opening of the K&I Bridge to pedestri-ans.
However, this isn’t an apples to apples comparison; at least not yet.
First and foremost, Norfolk Southern Railroad has to sign off on opening the K&I, and that likely won’t happen until public entities assume all liability.
Trains still use the bridge, and it’s hard to expect Norfolk Southern to open the span to the public without assurances they won’t be sued if some fool-ish person decides to play tag with a caboose.
That aside, New Albany has some work of its own to do before opening the span would make sense, at least from a business perspective.
Investors have laid out plans to redevelop portions of Port-land, which is where pedestrians from New Albany would be walk-ing to if they crossed the K&I.
However, there’s not much on the eastern end of the city at the moment to draw Portland residents to New Albany.
Once vibrant restaurants in that corridor — such as Tommy Lancaster’s and La Rosita Grill — are now closed and vacant.
The Ohio River Greenway
connects near the K&I Bridge, but it would still be a good hike or bike to downtown New Albany from that entrance. Merely opening a bridge so people can walk on it doesn’t make too much sense. Give people a reason to walk across that bridge, such as Jefferson-ville has accomplished with the Big Four, and then it’s a brilliant idea.
With some incentive from the city, the eastern portion of downtown and midtown could become a viable business cor-ridor again.
Sandwiched between the area and downtown is a sizable block of residents. Many of those people live a little bit too far to walk downtown on a regular basis, but would likely frequent establishments along East Market, East Main and East Spring Streets, if there were more to offer.
The “build it and they will come” philosophy from the movie “Field of Dreams” is pretty much the opposite of what would make sense for developers and public offi cials in New Albany when it comes to the K&I.
Instead, they need to build it and give people a reason to come. In other words, put development pieces in place that provide a viable argument for opening the K&I.
Norfolk Southern hasn’t given any public indication that they will open the bridge to pedes-trians and cyclists. City offi cials have said that in a best case scenario, it would probably take fi ve years for the K&I to open.
That gives New Albany quite a bit of time to get a plan in place to capitalize off the pedes-trian bridge if the project comes to fruition.
DESIGNBrandi Jones
Brandi Jones is the production managerof the News and Tribune. She regularlydesigns Southern Indiana Business Source.
EDITOR’S MESSAGE
on the
COVEROwners Brent Rogers, left, and
Chris Hughes stand in front of a sound rig at Sounds Unlimited
Productions in Jefersonville.
PHOTO BYCHRISTOPHER FRYER
Community DevelopmentRecent news and updates Personnel & PromotionsWho’s going where, and whenLaw Talk Abusive patent litigationsLabor LawsBreaking bad employee behaviorSmall BusinessRisk It: IndianaEconomic DevelopmentGrowing our next big businessMarketingMyths about working for yourself
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FEATURES:
Entrepreneur SpotlightMatt McMahan the brains behind The Irish Exit in New Albany and Big Four Burgers + Beer
Entry-Level EntrepreneursHigh Schoolers attendbusiness academy
S O U T H E R N I N D I A N AB U S I N E S S S O U R C E
PARTNERS
20Getting in the mindsetto be successful
book review
PAUL SANDERSSullivan UniversityDale Carnegie Group 10
2426
5 Southern Indiana Business Source | July 2014
Southern Indiana Business Source | July 20146
Coyle Chevrolet breaks ground on remodel
Coyle Chevrolet recently broke ground on a 12,000-square-foot expansion to the dealership, which will add up to 12 new jobs, the company announced.
The dealership, which will celebrate its 70th anniversary later this year, will add 3,500 square feet to the sales fl oor and 8,500 square feet to the service depart-ment. Total employment will be about 80 when the expansion opens in December, according to a news release from the Coyle family. Total square footage will be 37,000 when the additions to the dealer-ship — built in 2000 – are complete.
Coyle Chevrolet’s exterior front facade will have a new look that is larger with signage that is consistent with GM’s Essential Brand Elements program. The EBE initiative is a large-scale project being implemented by GM at dealerships across the country that aims to enhance the customer experience.
“Our business has been outgrowing our facility for some time, so the timing is right for the GM remodel, in addition to adding to our overall square foot-age,” said Mike Coyle, president and dealer principal of Coyle Chevrolet, in the release. “As we approach our 70th year in business, we are looking forward to making this investment that will bet-ter serve our customers long into the future.”
Other facility changes at Coyle Chevrolet, 1801 Broadway St., just off Veterans Parkway, that customers will see include a brighter, more modern showroom and service entrance area, a remodeled customer and business lounge area with free Wi-Fi and a kids play area. The dealership will also expand the service bay area to be able to service additional vehicles and will add an automated car wash, the news release says.
The general contractor on the project will be AML Inc. of Floyds Knobs.
COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT
Neace Lukens adopts new brand identity
Neace Lukens — which specializes in commercial property and casualty insurance, employee benefi ts and individual insurance coverage — has a new name.
Already an AssuredPartners Inc. company, the business is now Assured Neace Lukens.
The main changes will be related to brand identity, as Neace Lukens will incorporate the AssuredPart-ners tagline.
“This rebrand is an important next step for our company,” said Larry Schaefer, president of Assured Neace Lukens. “Our new brand refl ects the Neace Lukens history and culture, while also showcasing our strong relationship with our parent company, AssuredPartners.” Though the corp rate headquarters for Neace Lukens are now in Louis-ville, the company maintains a New Albany pres-ence, and has a location off Green Valley Road.
For more information, visit neacelukens.com
New gallery open downtownGadabout Gallery and Artisan Shoppe, 249 Spring St., is just a few
blocks from the base of the Indiana ramp to Big Four.Gadabout is owned by Dawn Spyker and Jennie DiBeneditto, local
artists and owners of Silica Ceramic Studio, located across the street at 246 Spring St., according to the release.
The gallery and shop will include pieces for sale from dozens of regional artists who work in a variety of media, from functional ceram-ics to ceramic sculpture, as well as paintings, jewelry, photography and basket-weaving. Slumped and blown glass also will be featured. Among the artists on tap are Molly Gruninger, painter and muralist, and Sebas-tian Moh, ceramic artist.
Monthly shows will highlight work from notable artists in the gallery space.
New Albany native opens BBQShawn Pitts opened Shawn’s Southern Barbecue
at 822 State St., near downtown New Albany, fea-turing his award-winning, Memphis-style barbecue, based on a century-old family recipe.
The menu features ribs, rib tips, pulled pork, chicken and beef brisket, all slow-smoked on the premises with hickory and cherry woods.
Pitts’ barbecue was recently recognized for both the “Top Hog” people’s choice award and the “Smoke King” judge’s award at the Horseshoe BBQ Battle.
Pitts makes his own rub and sauce based on recipes that have been in his family for a century.
Shawn’s Southern Barbecue is open from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays. The restau-rant is closed Sundays.
Walk-ins are welcome, with some seating avail-able, as well as carryout. To place an order or inquire about catering, call 502-741-7836.
John Jones breaks groundon new dealership
SCOTTSBURG — John Jones GM City is expand-ing by breaking ground on a new, state-of-the-art, 28,000-square-foot facility at 1351 W. Ind. 56, Scottsburg.
The new facility will include an indoor service write-up area that will be completely air conditioned/heated for customers’ comfort. It will hold several vehicles for service drop-offs, a customer lounge, kids’ play area, a huge service department, Quick Lube bays for fast oil changes and an automatic car wash.
As an added convenience to our customers, the facility will boast customer electronic work stations featuring computers and full Wi-Fi Internet capability so customers won’t experience any down time while waiting.
Kovert Hawkins Architects was chosen to design the new facility and Koetter Construction was tabbed as the general contractor, both of whom collaborated to produce the latest design.
John Jones has been in the Scottsburg community for 13 years. Call 812-752-5000 or visit johnjonesau-togroup.com for more information.
Ground was recently broken on John Jones GM City in Scottsburg. Pictured, left to right, are Nathan Jones, Pat Daily, Ryan Barker, Brett Wilson, John Jones, Scottsburg Mayor Bill Graham, John Hayes, Pat Glotzbach, Phil Koetter, John Hawkins and Kenny Fritz.
SUBMITTED PHOTO
7 Southern Indiana Business Source | July 2014
Southern Indiana Business Source | July 20148
Julie Barnett, Emily Devos and Moira Bertram have joined Semonin Realtors New Albany offi ce as a sales associates. They are specializing in residential sales. Call 812-944-9800 or email semonin.com for more information.
Southern Indiana Rehab Hospital named Brad Kruer director of outpatient services. In this role, Kruer will be responsible for the hospital’s outpatient and contract services. He will also manage Frazier Rehab’s Indiana and Meade County
facilities. Kruer joined SIRH in 1998 as a staff level physical. He advanced throughout his career and most recently has served as rehab services supervisor, a position he has held since 2002. Kruer is a graduate of Our Lady of Providence High School and the University of Evansville. He holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in physical therapy.
Attorneys Neal Bailen and Bruce Paul of Stites & Harbison’s Jeffersonville offi ce, were named to the Rising Stars list of the 2014
Indiana Super Lawyers magazine. This is Bailen’s third time as a Rising Star and Paul’s fi fth time being honored. Super Lawyers — superlawyers.com — is a Thomson Reuters rat-ing service of outstanding lawyers from more than 70 practice areas who have at-tained a high degree of peer recognition and professional achievement. Only 5 percent of the lawyers in each state or region are named to the Super Lawyers list and no more than 2.5 percent are named to the Rising Stars
list. Bailen focuses on civil litigation, fi nancial institutions litigation and health care law. Paul is a member of the Torts & Insurance, Business Litigation and Financial Institutions Services Litigation practice groups.
Havens Medical Group, Clark Physician Group recently hired three nurse practitioners: Nicole Flippen joined the practice in January. She formerly worked as a nurse practitioner
at Baptist Health. She has bachelor’s degree in nursing from University of Louisville and a master’s in nursing from Indiana Wesleyan University; Courtney Montgomery also joined Havens in January. She graduated from Western Kentucky University with a bachelor’s degree in nursing. She worked in critical care for three years while completing her Family Nurse Practitioner through the University of Cincinnati. Montgomery worked in nephrology as a nurse practitioner for 18 months before joining Havens; Tina Woodrome graduated from Spalding University with a bachelor’s in nursing. She worked in critical care for 15 years before becoming a nurse practitioner in 2012 and earning her master’s in nursing. She joined the practice in February. Call 812-283-4441 to schedule an appointment.
Callie Durham, board certifi ed women’s health nurse practitioner, joined the Just for Women practice in April. She received her bachelor’s degree in nursing from U of L. After receiving her degree, she worked as a labor and delivery nurse for fi ve years before becom-ing a nurse practitioner. For more information, call the offi ce of Just for Women at 812-280-7063.
KRUER
PERSONNEL & PROMOTIONS
PAUL
BAILEN
A company’s business plan usually focuses
on manufacturing and labor costs, product
sales, growth, revenue and other success
factors. Frustratingly, there has been a rise
of companies that exist only to threaten and
initiate lawsuits for patent infringement,
which are often referred to as “Patent As-
sertion Entities” (“PAEs”) or, less favorably
in some circles, “patent trolls.” According to
a recent Federal Trade Commission report,
PAEs focus only “on purchasing and assert-
ing [pre-existing] patents against manufac-
turers already using the technology, rather
than developing and transferring [new]
technology.”
Th e number of patent infringement law-
suits by PAE’s has shot up from about 500
cases in 2006 to over 1500 in 2011. While
not every PAE who sues to enforce its pat-
ents does so abusively, there is a certain ilk
who, having obtained their patents second-
or third-hand from the original owner, seek
only to bring value to (or “monetize”) the
patent via litigation and threats of litigation.
In some cases, the strategy involves very
broadly identifying companies suspected of
practicing the patented technology; using
a mass letter campaign aimed at target
businesses; and providing very limited time
for each recipient to agree to pay a license
fee or face a patent infringement claim.
Some PAE’s that price their settlement
demand high enough to make a profi t, but
lower than the target’s anticipated litigation
defense costs. Consequently, the target has
a diffi cult decision: pay now or defend in
court later.
Virtually any company selling products or
services is a potential target for PAE litiga-
tion. Accordingly, there are fi ve things that
a company should consider, if it receives
such a letter.
First, do not ignore it. Hire qualifi ed
patent counsel to compare the patent(s) at
issue to the subject products or services. If
the letter has merit, consider an early settle-
ment, even prior to the fi ling of a lawsuit if
feasible.
Second, there is strength in numbers. In-
quire of relevant trade associations whether
other industry members have received a
similar notice letter. In some cases, joint
sharing of information, coordination of
defenses, and division of some expenses
amongst a group of targets is mutually
benefi cial.
Th ird, determine whether a claim for
indemnity exists under a contract, or a
prior license that might prevent the PAE
from suing on its patent. If a third party is
obligated to defend the infringement claim,
notify it as soon as possible to preserve
indemnity rights.
Fourth, determine whether a general
liability insurance policy covers the allega-
tions of infringement. Insurance policy
exclusions often exempt such coverage, but
coverage may turn on how the notice letter
or complaint is worded.
Fifth, make informed decisions. Get as
much information as possible and as expe-
ditiously as possible to determine whether
to settle or defend. Always remain fl exible
to changing circumstances in the dispute.
Until Congress acts or there is a signifi -
cant landscape change through court deci-
sions, manufacturers and service providers
must remain alert and equipped to respond
to these infringement claims.
BY STEPHEN C. HEIL & ANDREW B. CAMPBELLWyatt, Tarrant & Combs, LLP :: wyattfi rm.com
Abusive patent litigation
Protect your business from the heavy toll of
LAW TALK
Stephen C. Hall is a partner in the Louisville offi ce of Wyatt Tarrant Combs, LLP, and has ad-vocated his clients’ interests in the courts and before the Patent Offi ce during his 22 year legal career. Previously, he worked as a research and development chemist in the coatings industry.
Andrew B. Campbell is a partner in the Nashville offi ce of Wyatt, Tarrant & Combs, LLP, and has been a civil litigation attorney for 22 years. Previously, he served as a judicial clerk to the Honor-able Thomas A. Higgins in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee.
9 Southern Indiana Business Source | July 2014
Southern Indiana Business Source | July 201410
More than half of new businesses
will fail within the fi rst fi ve years, ac-
cording to the Small Business Admin-
istration (SBA). Statistics show that 8
out of 10 new businesses will disappear
within the fi rst three years. Almost
80% of new businesses fail within their
fi rst year.
According to Dun & Bradstreet,
“Businesses with fewer than 20
employees have only a 37% chance
of surviving four years and only a 9%
chance of surviving 10 years.”
While the reasons behind such
dire forebodings have been justifi ably
argued as ranging from poor manage-
ment skills to lack of proper capitaliza-
tion, author Bryan Cohen argues there
could be an even simpler underlying
reason. In his book, “How to Work for
Yourself,” he puts forth a basic concept
for success — having the “right state of
mind.”
Cohen believes that with current
access to tools and information from
the Internet, nearly everyone has the
ability to learn how to start a busi-
ness. With so much expertise readily
available, why do so many continue to
fail? Th e answer, he says, is that most
people lack the personal skills in time
management, energy management and
priority management. If you can’t get
your “head on straight,” how can you
expect your business to succeed?
Th e author suggests fi nding the
proper mindset applies not only to
starting a business, but also to any
creative project such writing a book or
blog.
What he off ers is a collection of
100 ways for people to gain this right
mindset, drawn from his own trial and
error as well as other books and re-
sources. Th e result is a thought provok-
ing, albeit somewhat simplistic, listing
of ideas that seek to encourage creative
entrepreneurship.
Chapter one starts with one of the
most basic threats to a new entrepre-
neur: lack of time management. Many
new business owners fail to fi gure out
what are the most productive things
possible to do for the business, instead
getting lost in details.
Learning to focus remedies the need
to constantly double check details. Of-
ten, this is as simple as eliminating dis-
tractions such as constantly responding
to your phone, tablet or laptop.
One great distractor, email, should
be answered only in the morning and
evening. Too often, the author suggests,
we check our email 10 or 15 times a
day out of the need to feel important or
loved. If you want to be successful, get
over it.
One of the hardest of time savers
is being an emotional rock. If you’re
wasting time on petty arguments or
Paul
SANDERSPaul Sanders is an award-win-ning writer who worked for the past 10 years in the training industry with best-selling authors including Stephen Covey, Ken Blanchard and Tom Peters. He is an adjunct professor who works with the Sullivan University Dale Carnegie Group.
BOOK REVIEW
BY PAUL SANDERS
“How to Work for Yourself: 100 Ways to Make the Time, Energy and Priorities to Start a Business, Book or Blog”
By Bryan Cohen
Get in the mindset to be successful
reacting to others instead of using logic, you
won’t have time to run the business.
If you want to get tuned to this focused
entrepreneurial mindset, try giving up Face-
book, TV or mobile Internet for 30 days,
Cohen suggests. If skipping Facebook for
that period of time “sends shivers down your
spine,” that’s reason enough for doing it, he
says.
Another error that many entrepreneurs
make is the failure to manage their own
physical energy. Physical energy is created
by your level of physical fi tness, type of food
eaten and even the amount of sleep you get.
While these concerns are not usually taken
into consideration when starting a creative
project or business, Cohen suggests they are
vital for productivity.
Equally important is to get energy from
others. Healthy relationships boost energy
levels as well as allowing for more time to
work on creative projects. Th ough a new
endeavor is often time consuming, spending
even an hour a month helping others or a
charitable cause can be energizing.
While good health practices and social
relationships build the energy necessary
to support a business, the most impor-
tant source of energy is you, Cohen says.
Creating a positive outlook, interrupting
your negative thoughts and building your
self-esteem are building blocks for success
in your business. “Th e people who are most
successful with their businesses, books and
blogs believe in themselves,” Cohen says.
Any aspiring business owner should
review the book’s section on goal setting.
Th e exercise on modeling your goals based
on someone who has been successful in the
same or similar business could certainly
provide a boost in your own processes.
“How to Work for Yourself ” provides
valuable insight into the personal mindset
needed to be successful. Th e author makes
the argument that perhaps more than
spreadsheets and business plans, a clear,
focused intent and right attitude may just be
the most necessary tool for creating a long-
lasting business.
11 Southern Indiana Business Source | July 2014
Southern Indiana Business Source | July 201412
LABOR LAWS
In the employment setting, there are any number of potential confl icts that may arise between employees and their employers. Sometimes, these issues may stem from certain behaviors or choices made by the employees. Th is article will discuss a few of these topics.
DRUGSRecreational marijuana is now
legal in two states (Colorado and Washington), and medical mari-juana is legal in 20 states and the District of Columbia. Neither form of marijuana, however, is legal in the Hoosier state. Even in states where marijuana is legal, there are typically no restrictions on the employer’s ability to discipline an employee’s use of marijuana, even if
that use occurs off -duty.
TOBACCO AND CIGARETTESOn the other hand, Indiana, like
approximately 30 other states, pro-
tects employees from adverse action
based on off -duty tobacco use.
Indiana Code 22-5-4-1 prohibits
an employer from discriminating
against an employee or prospective
employee based on his/her use of
tobacco products outside the course
of employment. Like most every
state, Indiana has not addressed
e-cigarettes, so employers should
have wide latitude in that area.
CLOTHING AND GROOMINGAs a general rule, employers may
prescribe certain rules of dress and
cleanliness. Th e primary area of
concern for employers, from a dis-crimination perspective, is religious discrimination. When an employee identifi es a sincerely held religious belief, the employer is required to reasonably accommodate that belief absent an undue hardship. In this context, the employer’s burden to show undue hardship is not nearly as great as it is under the Americans with Disabilities Act. Th e employer need only show that the hardship would be more than a minimal burden.
Employers encounter prob-lems when they seek to enforce a policy when there is no evidence an exception would be problematic. For instance, the Equal Employ-ment Opportunity Commission recently sued the clothing company
BY TODD LOGSDON & TIMOTHY WEATHERHOLTFISHER & PHILLIPS, LLP :: LABORLAWYERS.COM
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Breaking bad choices that
can affect the workplace
13 Southern Indiana Business Source | September 2013
Todd B. Logsdon is a Partner in the Louisville offi ce of Fisher & Phillips LLP, a national fi rm representing employers in labor and employ-ment matters. He practices exclusively in the areas of labor and employment on behalf of employers, with a particular emphasis on discrimination, wage and hour issues, FMLA, and OSHA issues. Todd may be contacted directly at 502-561-3971 or Html-ResAnchor [email protected].
Todd
LOGSDON
Timothy J.
WEATHERHOLTTimothy J. Weatherholt is a Partner in the Louisville offi ce of Fisher & Phillips LLP. He practices exclusively in the areas of labor and employment on behalf of employers, with a particular emphasis on discrimination, ADAAA, and wage and hour issues. Tim also has substantial experience in defending class actions and collective actions. Tim may be contacted directly at 502-561-3982 or HtmlResAnchor [email protected] .
Abercrombie & Fitch because it termi-nated a Muslim teen employee who wore a religious headscarf. Th e store manager permitted the employee to wear the heads-carf, and the employee wore her headscarf for several months. Subsequently, a visiting manager concluded the headscarf violated Abercrombie’s dress code. Th e employee refused to take it off and was terminated. Th e EEOC prevailed in this case because there was no evidence of undue hardship.
TATTOOS AND PIERCINGSTattoos and piercings are now com-
monplace in society and, of course, in the workplace. Forty percent of people age 26-40 have at least one tattoo. Th irty percent of people age 18-25 have a pierc-ing somewhere other than their ears. As with clothing and grooming, employees subject to an adverse employment action may argue that they should have been given an accommodation based upon their religious beliefs. Such arguments can be diffi cult for employees though. For instance, an Indiana district court held that an employer’s requiring an em-ployee to cover a tattoo of a hooded man with a burning cross was not a failure to accommodate. A case like this one presented a double-edged sword for the employer, because if the employer had permitted the tattoo to be visible, that could have been evidence of a racially hostile work environment.
GOSSIP AND DISPARAGEMENTFinally, decisions by the National
Labor Relations Board (“NLRB”) and the Administrative Law Judges (“ALJs”) who enforce the National Labor Rela-tions Act (“NLRA”) have called into question employer policies aimed at curtailing gossip and disparagement. Under Section 7 of the NLRA, employ-ees have the right to engage in concerted activities. Th is generally means that two or more employees have the right to act together to attempt to improve working conditions. Th e NLRB and certain ALJs have recently found that no-gossip and
non-disparagement policies that preclude employees from discussing and complain-ing about workplace issues to be problem-atic. To comply with this precedent, these policies must be narrowly tailored, but even that may not be suffi cient. It is also a good practice to include broad disclaimer language, such as, “nothing in this policy is intended to prohibit conduct protected by Section 7 of the NLRA.”
Building relationships since 1934.
yourcommunitybank.com
SMALL BUSINESS
In mid-May, the Southeast ISBDC
hosted our third annual Risk It: Indiana, a
13 county business idea pitch competition.
We hosted seven innovative competitors
from across Southeast Indiana to a packed
house and put the pressure on three knowl-
edgeable judges to determine a winner. We
also allowed the audience to get involved by
selecting their favorite with our Audience
Choice Award – Cold Hard Cash.
Our competitors ranged from the Land
Zeppelin, a polycarbonate enclosure that
mounts to any standard bicycle and pro-
tects the cyclist from inclement weather, to
Natural Furnishings, a handmade artisan
furniture manufacturer started in Floyd
County. We had Flatrock Bread Company’s
new idea for Belgium Street Waffl es, a four
way traffi c signal to take the guess work out
of stop signs, and organic skin care products
from Royal Pampering Day Spa.
All four of our previous winners have
been men, but our 2014 Risk It: Indiana
winners were both women entrepreneurs:
Dawn Andrews with garb2ART Cosmetics
of Columbus taking 1st Place and Audience
Choice and Jyll Stuart of Veracity Technolo-
gies of New Albany taking 2nd Place. Both
of these innovative women business owners
are making strides to radically change their
markets and I want to share their stories.
Jyll Stuart is the Founder and CEO of
Veracity Technologies, which focuses on
embedded hardware and software solutions,
customized web applications, and custom
software solutions. Stuart’s Risk It: Indiana
pitch revolved around an innovative product
for personal protection and quality of life
for endangered persons; such as the elderly,
persons with mental/debilitating diseases,
children, patients, etc. She has developed a
product that can be embedded into a silicon
band, bracelet, or necklace to monitor exact
location for real time data access with a
designated mobile device. Stuart is still in
the design stages so the product does not
yet have a name, but she wants to change
the way you think about personal location
devices.
Dawn Andrews started garb2ART a few
years ago because she was concerned about
recycling and has sense morphed the busi-
ness into a full cosmetics line. She is well
known to her online social media follow-
ing for posting fun photos of her and her
customers before/after makeover shots along
with videos of herself buying truckloads of
packaging that would have made it to the
land fi ll.
Garb2ART Cosmetics motto is “we
are here to create a unique awareness for
recycling while adding a little light and a
lot of color”, and Andrews does just that.
Her fl agship product is LipGarb, a light
up, high quality lip gloss with an integrated
mirror that makes touching up your lipstick
eff ortless and has now been expanded into
an organic line. She now has light up nail
polish and is working on light up mascara
as well. While the lights are a very handy,
Dawn knows that the novelty could wear off ,
but her customers keep coming back again
and again for the high quality of the actual
makeup she sells. Andrews wants to expand
garb2ART into a full service cosmetics fi rm
in Columbus, fi lling her own product to
keep absolute control of quality and to sell
internationally.
Th ese two innovative entrepreneurs
proved to the audience that they deserved to
be on top. In fact, the audience choice vot-
ing mirrored the judge’s votes within 10 of
670 total votes. While I am not in need of a
personal location device, I can say that I use
some garb2ART Cosmetics products and
am looking forward to seeing what the Risk
It: Indiana winners have in store for South-
ern Indiana.
For anyone that would like to compete, we are accepting applications for the next round of Risk It competitors at www.riskitindiana.com.
Risk it:IndianaBY BLAYR BARNARDSoutheast Indiana Small Business Development Center
An evening of inventive ideas
Blayr Barnard is the Regional Director of the Southeast Indiana Small Business Development Center, which is located in Suite 200 of the Elsby Building in New Albany at 117 E. Spring St.
Competitors for the third annual Risk It: Indiana held in May.
PHOTO SUBMITTED
15 Southern Indiana Business Source | July 2014
Southern Indiana Business Source | July 201416
INSURANCE
PLAN TODAY FOR THE FUTUREAs a business owner, you recognize the
importance of insuring your building,
inventory, and equipment. Th ese assets are
vital to the success of your company. But
what would happen if a key employee died
unexpectedly or became disabled?
Key employees are the foundation of a
successful business. Th ey are business own-
ers, sales directors, CFOs, or any other in-
dividuals who are sources of leadership and
profi tability, and who would be extremely
diffi cult to replace. Unless the proper steps
are taken, the death or disability of a key
employee can be devastating to the fi nancial
well-being of your company.
THE SOLUTION: KEY EMPLOYEE PROTECTION
Funding a plan to protect key employees
may give your business the additional funds
it needs to:
• Hire and train replacements.
• Replace an employee’s contribution
to profi ts.
• Maintain the confi dence of clients
and creditors.
• Meet possible loan obligations if
the key employee was also a guarantor
on business loans.
Th ere are three basic options for funding
the costs associated with the sudden loss
of a key employee: cash accumulation or a
sinking fund, borrowing from a bank, or life
insurance.
CASH OR SINKING FUNDIn this option, a business establishes a
savings plan, much like a bank account, to
protect itself from the death or disability of
its key employees. At death, the cash in the
savings plan is used as a source of fund-
ing. Unfortunately, this method has several
drawbacks:
• A savings plan accumulates funds
over time. What if funds are needed
tomorrow?
• Accumulated cash could cause an
accumulated earnings problem.
• Any growth on the accumulated
funds may be income taxable.
• A savings plan may be depleted to
pay for other expenses.
• Th e business owner will pay dollar
for dollar, thus depleting the amount of
cash that could be used elsewhere.
BORROWING FUNDSIn this option, funds are borrowed, usu-
ally through a bank loan, to replace the
fi nancial loss caused by a key employee’s
death or disability.
Drawbacks of this option include:
• A potential slowdown in business
growth due to additional loan repay-
ments.
• A reduction in future profi ts may
occur because of the loan repayment.
• Th e business owner will pay dollar
for dollar plus interest.
• Th e company’s credit may be ad-
versely aff ected due to greater debt.
INSURANCEPurchasing life and/or disability insur-
ance on your key employees can be a cost-
eff ective way to safeguard your business and
minimize the impact of a key employee’s
death or disability. Life insurance and/or
disability insurance can provide your busi-
ness with the following advantages:
• Funding with insurance is easy to
administer.
• Funds are available even if death or
disability occurs the day after coverage
begins.
• Although the premiums are not
deductible, the life insurance proceeds
at death are generally received income
tax-free to the business.
FUNDING THE FUTURE PLANTh e business applies for a life insurance
policy on the life of a key employee. Th e
business is the owner and benefi ciary of
the policy. As policyholder, the business
pays premiums to an insurance company
for the policy as long as the key employee
is alive and an employee. Should an insured
key employee die, the death benefi t pro-
ceeds from the insurance policy would pass
generally income tax-free to the business1,
providing an immediate cash source for
debt repayment, liquidity, or other related
concerns.
1The Pension Protection Act of 2006 established that
the death benefi t of an employer-owned life insurance
policy will be income taxable to the extent that the
benefi t exceeds premiums paid unless the parties fi t
into one of the specifi ed exception categories, a speci-
fi ed form of notice is provided to the employee, and the
employee consents to be insured.
BY MICHAEL LAMSFUSSNew York Life Insurance Company
Key employee protectionPreserving your business
One Southern Indiana (1si) is often
highlighted when our assistance to big
companies leads to new jobs and new
investment. Most of the headlines stem
from new companies that come from afar
to locate in our part of the world, or from
existing local employers who are celebrating
new opportunities to grow their operations.
But none of these big companies started
out where they are today – they all started
with an entrepreneur. Someone had an
idea, took a risk, and made a “courageous
decision” to grow that idea into a successful
venture.
Statistics show that entrepreneurs are
adding value to the economic sustainability
of Clark and Floyd counties. According to
the website www.census.gov, non-employer
businesses (self-employed workers) in Clark
County alone generated more than $255
million in receipts in 2012. When com-
bined with the self-employed workers in
Floyd County, this number grew to $462
million in receipts.
Fortunately for Clark and Floyd counties,
this boom in economic growth is not ex-
pected to slow down! Th e State of Indiana
predicts the self-employed workers located
in Economic Growth Region 10 (which
includes both Clark and Floyd counties) is
expected to increase 6 percent by 2018.
Knowing this growth trend, how does
a community rally support behind these
small businesses and start-up operations?
Access to capital is often reported as the
number one deterrent for small business
growth. Small businesses suff er the greatest
diffi culties in accessing aff ordable fi nancing
for emerging businesses or business expan-
sions. Th e Horseshoe Foundation of Floyd
County Small Business Revolving Loan
Fund, managed by 1si, was designed to
encourage and assist business development
within Floyd County by providing fi nanc-
ing for small, emerging private business
enterprises to expand operations and to
increase or maintain employment.
However, being well-fi nanced is hardly
the only criteria necessary for small business
success. In addition to capital needs, En-
trepreneur.com cites several other obstacles
that impede small business success, includ-
ing:
• Inadequate preparation for getting
started in the new venture;
• Lack of branding and marketing
expertise;
• Inexperienced management;
• Improper staffi ng; and
• Mismanagement of client relations.
Fortunately, such case studies help com-
munities grow the local economy from
within by overcoming these obstacles.
Twenty-fi ve years ago in in Littleton, CO,
an entrepreneurial approach to economic
development known as Economic Garden-
ing, was pioneered. Economic Gardening
is more than connecting entrepreneurs
with support organizations. It also involves
helping with their operations or incentives.
Growing ournext big businessBY WENDY DANT CHESSER
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
$462MILLION
Adding Value
Statistics show that entrepreneurs are adding value to the economic sustainability of Clark and Floyd counties. According to
the website www.census.gov, non-employer businesses (self-employed workers) in
Clark County alone generated more than $255 million in receipts in 2012. When
combined with the self-employed workers in Floyd County, this number grew to $462
million in receipts.
continued on page 19
“Whenever you see a successful business, someone once made a courageous decision.”
- PETER F. DRUCKER
17 Southern Indiana Business Source | July 2014
business resourceseconomic developmentadvocacy
812.945.0266 | www.1si.org
The One way to grow your business.
According to the Edward Lowe Founda-
tion, it is “about leveraging research using
sophisticated business intelligence tools
and databases” so entrepreneurs can make
informed decisions on core strategies and
the business model.
Th is premise revolves around local
entrepreneurs creating the companies that
bring new wealth and economic growth to
a region in the form of jobs, tax revenues,
per capita income, and a vibrant local busi-
ness sector. Economic Gardening focuses
on growing and nurturing local businesses
rather than hunting for company relocations
from outside the area.
Th e Ogle Foundation, Inc. directs a
portion of its grant funding to this eff ort
locally. “We are trying to create more Paul
Ogles, in the sense that we want to help
create individual wealth which will, in turn,
add jobs and economic sustainability in the
community,” said Kent Lanum, President &
CEO of Ogle Foundation, Inc.
For example, the Ogle Foundation Inc.
provides fi nancial and technical support
to Velocity Indiana, a Jeff ersonville based
not-for-profi t leadership entrepreneurial
education and business accelerator orga-
nization that drives initiatives designed to
enhance the ecosphere for startups in image
of Southern Indiana and the Louisville
region as a dynamic and focus driven places
for entrepreneurs and their new ventures.
“In counseling small businesses, we listen
to the whole story,” said Kathleen Crowley,
Senior Director of Business Retention and
Expansion at 1si. “We want to understand
everything they have gone through and
where they want to go. Th en we look at the
full package – management structure, loca-
tion and facilities, inventory, etc. Th is adds
value to 1si in that many of their needs can
be met by present 1si members in areas such
as recruiting, branding, legal and fi nancial
services.” If 1si cannot assist directly, we also
suggest the services of our many partners,
such as the Small Business Development
Council (SBDC), Service Corps of Retired
Executives (SCORE), higher education
programs and FranNet, to name just a few.
Growing our community resources to
support entrepreneurs and small businesses
is a vital piece of our overall economic de-
velopment strategy. It adds to our business
attraction and retention eff orts by nurturing
local risk-takers in meeting the needs of
small businesses hoping they will become
the next big business in our region.
Wendy Dant Chesser, a na-tive of Jeffersonville, Ind., is the President and CEO of One Southern Indiana, the local economic develop-ment organization and chamber of commerce for Clark and Floyd counties.
Wendy
DANT CHESSER
Growing our next big businesscontinued from page 17
19 Southern Indiana Business Source | July 2014
Southern Indiana Business Source | July 201420
COVER
Are we having fun yet?
It’s somewhat of a backhanded compli-ment, but the pair believe the statement is usually made with no harm intended.
Chris Hughes and Brent Rogers are often greeted with a question that touches on their past but doesn’t fully embrace their company’s present and future.
“You two are the deejays, right?” Yes, Hughes and Rogers have served as
deejays and emcees at hundreds of events over the past 17 years. But the owners of Sounds Unlimited Productions in Jeffer-sonville have grown what was once pretty much a DJ outfi t for weddings into one of the premier event production companies in the region.
“The best and worst thing about our com-pany is people think we’re still just deejays,” Rogers said.
Hughes and Rogers launched SUP from their homes in 1997 and stayed busy. Climbing the ladder wasn’t easy, but the owners fought through the setbacks and kept the faith.
They provided DJ services for 300 to 400 events a year initially, but Hughes and Rog-
ers were drawn to the production and party planning side of the business when they realized there weren’t many local groups offering the complete package.
There was never a blueprint for SUP, as Hughes said there wasn’t a production service locally they wanted to pattern their company after.
And since SUP expanded its operation, Rogers said the offers keep coming, and the capabilities of the business keep grow-ing.
In other words, Rogers and Hughes be-lieve SUP has entered uncharted waters.
“We’re literally making this up as we go,” Rogers said.
Hard work and attention to detail paid off, as the company moved into a more than 7,000 square foot facility off Fabricon Boulevard in Jeffersonville in 2010.
While SUP has stayed true to its roots by remaining in the wedding business, the company has garnered several high-profi le jobs as well.
BY DANIEL SUDDEATHNews and Tribune :: [email protected]
continued on page 22
SUP helps Southern Indiana fi nd its groove
Owners Brent Rogers, left, and Chris Hughes stand in front of a sound rig at Sounds Unlimited Productions in Jeffersonville.
PHOTO BY CHRISTOPHER FRYER21 Southern Indiana Business Source | July 2014
Southern Indiana Business Source | July 201422
COVER: SUPcontinued from page xx
SUP helped with booking entertain-ment and other services for Downs after Dark at Churchill Downs in 2010, and has been involved with the annual Barnstable-Brown Gala.
Anyone who has attended a Harvest Homecoming Business Luncheon is likely to remember the animated Rog-ers, who has embodied the energy and loose nature of the event while serving as the emcee.
SUP also manages the Jeffersonville Riverstage entertainment. With the Big Four Pedestrian Bridge open, Hughes said the city’s riverfront is becoming a prime location for regional entertain-ment.
“Jeffersonville is knocking it out of the park,” Hughes said.
And there’s a plethora of talent to choose from in Southern Indiana when it comes to bands and musicians.
“There’s just some killer local enter-tainment here,” Rogers said.
SUP has seven full-time employees and also hires several contract work-ers for various events. They work hard but they enjoy their jobs too, as one
might expect in the party planning line of employment.
“We’re fortunate that we have an unbelievable team,” Rogers said.
The owners admit they have different styles when it comes to management and business, as Rogers confessed he doesn’t comprehend the word “no” too well when it comes to projects.
He doesn’t believe there’s a job too big for SUP, and Rogers conceded Hughes has to reel him in sometimes.
Hughes is a steady and calming force for SUP, and the duo’s success speaks for itself.
“It’s been an unbelievable partnership for us because we’re able to see what the other one doesn’t,” Rogers said.
SUP plans and oversees a multitude of private events each year, and works closely with many area nonprofi ts. While the business has certainly grown since its inception, Hughes and Rogers said they can sleep soundly at night because they believe their rates are fair.
It’s a locally-owned business run by two Southern Indiana guys with a lot of
ties to the community and a passion for Clark and Floyd Counties, they said.
“We have a plan to expand and grow,” Hughes said. “We’re not going to do it until we can do it right.”
While SUP has garnered a strong client base locally, the business isn’t restricted to Indiana and Kentucky. SUP has managed events in 18 states from California to Massachusetts.
SUP’s niche is that its able to com-bine the experience of planning smaller events and weddings with the capabil-ity to produce large scale corporate parties and concerts.
Being able to serve a wide range of party and event needs helped keep SUP moving in the right direction even when the economy soured fi ve years ago.
“When everyone else’s business took a nose dive, we were growing,” Hughes said.
SUP has been recognized locally for excellence. It received One Southern Indiana’s Business of the Year Award in 2014 for businesses with less than 25 employees.
The owners, staff and crew of Sounds Unlimited Productions stand outside of their location on Fabricon Boulevard in Jeffersonville.
PHOTO BY CHRISTOPHER FRYER
Sounds Unlimited Productions
1519 Fabricon Blvd.Jeffersonville, IN
For booking info:[email protected]
On the Web:www.supdjs.com
Southern Indiana Business Source | July 201424
Matt McMahan, the brains behind The Irish Exit in New Albany and Big Four Burgers + Beer in Jeffer-sonville, always knew he wanted
to be self-employed.The young entrepreneur started buying
rental property while he was still in college, and purchased his fi rst restaurant, The Main Menu, in 2005 when he was 22 years old. His latest enterprise, Big Four Burgers + Beer, which opened December 2013, is the eighth venue he’s been involved in, and with two more projects in the works, he’s showing no signs of slowing down.
“I love the branding and building the restaurant,” McMahan said. “That’s my marketing background — taking something that’s not doing well and rebranding it and making it something that people go to.”
McMahan said although he feels that his direct competition is the slew of restaurants and bars across the bridge in Louisville, he believes that Southern Indiana is growing into a place where residents don’t have to leave to have a great time.
“New Albany and Jeffersonville are working great with the businesses to do all sorts of events — there are always things to do on the weekends,” McMahan said. “On the restaurant/bar side of things, there is so much to offer on this side of the river and ‘keep it local,’ I don’t know why many would still cross the bridge.”
The Big Four location, at 134 Spring St. in Jeffer-sonville, was known to residents for years as the biker bar Third Base, until McMahan and his team revamped the place for the new restaurant.
Chuck Starcher, head chef and general manager at Big Four Burgers, met McMahan in October 2013 and the two collaborated on creating a place where people could get interesting gourmet burgers — and beer — in a modern and inviting environment.
“He wanted to do something cool that nobody else had done,” Starcher said.
Starcher said they have worked hard?putting a lot of time, effort and money into making the place look great and have a family-friendly atmosphere, and the community seems to be receiving the new business well. A second location is slated to open in New Albany later this year.
“We’re a growing business ... we have our ups and our downs but by the sales and the popular-ity of our Facebook page, I can tell we’re making the right decisions and going in the right path,” Starcher said.
Although much of what it takes to build a busi-ness takes place behind the scenes, Starcher said he believes McMahan’s success as an entrepre-neur has a lot to do with the social aspect.
“One of the great things is that he surrounds him-self with successful people, Starcher said. “The management staff we have here are very educated
and experienced and all his other businesses, the managers I’ve met with from there all seem like very successful people themselves. When he fi nds somebody he knows can help him, he takes care of them.”
McMahan knows he has a good team, and his advice to business owners runs along these same lines.
“If you fi nd good people, pay them good and don’t let them go,” he said.
He also stressed the importance of maintaining a consistency with a business that people can trust.
“If you do something great, stick to it,” McMahan said. “Don’t do a million different things and lose track of what you do great. Sometimes I lose quality on things I do when I have too much going on.”
McMahan said he wants budding entrepreneurs to realize that with hard work and strong focus on goals, they can see their business dreams actualized.
“If you have a good work ethic and determina-tion, you can be successful,” he said.
FOR MORE INFORMATIONBig Four Burgers + Beer: www.bigfourjeff.com
or facebook.com/BigFourBurgersBeerThe Irish Exit: facebook.com/IrishExitPub
No signs of slowing down
STORY BY APRILE RICKERTENTREPRENEUR: Matt McMahanPHOTO BY CHRISTOPHER FRYER
SPOTLIGHT
Southern Indiana Business Source | July 201426
FEATURE
Th e idea was already put
together, they just had to fi gure
out how to sell it.
For the second year in a row,
25 students from the region at-
tended Purdue University New
Albany College of Technology’s
Entrepreneurship Academy at
IU Southeast.
Jay White, dean of the School
of Business at IU Southeast,
said the weeklong camp for
students isn’t exactly a breeze,
either.
“We call this an academy,
but I call it a boot camp, really,”
White said. “But these kids are
really self-motivated, they’re
taking a week of their summer
to do this.”
Paul Moses, director of the
academy, said the students were
divided into fi ve equal groups.
Th ey were each given a product
concept based on a real idea
formulated in one of the Purdue
Research Parks across the state.
Students stay in one of the
residence halls at IU Southeast
for the week. After a day of
rigorous instruction, they get a
break but can work through the
night on their projects.
With the technology fi gured
out for them, he said they just
had to put together a business
plan in a few days and market it
to a group of judges. Each stu-
dent had a chance to win $500
in scholarship money to IUS or
Purdue.
“What it really shows these
students is a school that’s very
technology and engineering at
Purdue and the research park,
and a very good business school
at IU Southeast,” Moses said. “It
really fuses them together. It’s
not just about the technology or
just about the business, you have
to bring them together.”
Moses said the academy is
based on courses off ered to pro-
fessionals in Purdue’s Foundry
program. Juliana Casavan,
academy coordinator, said the
Foundry has courses that meet
once a week for six weeks. She
said the academy crams in a lot
of the same information in a
much shorter timeframe.
“Th ey just absorb the infor-
mation so well, it just makes my
job easier,” Casavan said. “What
they’re going to do a whole lot
of work and fi gure out what
their plan is going to be.”
Kunal Bhanushali, an incom-
ing senior at New Albany High
School, said he wanted to go
through the camp to expand on
his ability to serve in diff erent
roles within a group.
He said while he’s more inter-
ested in the technology side of
everything, but it’s fun to learn
how a product comes into the
commercial world.
“I thought this would help
with my leadership skills,”
Bhanushali said. “I’m not always
going to lead a project, so I have
to learn how to follow, too.”
Jake Steele, an incoming
senior at Silver Creek High
School, said he’s been thinking
of ideas for his own business
since he was in the third grade.
After watching a real entre-
preneur pitch an idea to inves-
tors, he said it’s given him some
perspective on which of his own
ideas are worth the follow-
through.
“It shows people how some-
times, ideas that they think
are really good actually aren’t,”
Steele said. “Th en again, it
shows how their ideas, that they
think aren’t very good, are really
great. Th is sort of helps clarify
which is which.”
White said the academy gives
the students an idea of what
entrepreneurs go through, but if
they take the steps themselves,
he said they might be more pre-
pared when they take the leap.
“Th ey need to know that
making a business isn’t just
about hard work for a couple
of weeks,” White said. “Th ey’ll
bust their humps for a couple
of years before they see their
dream turn into something real.”
BYJEROD CLAPPNews and [email protected]
Entry-level entrepreneursHigh Schoolers attend business academy
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Southern Indiana Business Source | July 201428
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MARKETING
It all sounds great, working for
yourself. Get to set your own
terms, the hours you want to
work and be your own boss, right?
Maybe you better think again!
Over my years of teaching people how to develop
a business plan, a budget, how to price their prod-
ucts or services and how to market themselves, it
still amazes me that many really have not thought
through the entire process.
Let me explain about working for yourself. First
of all, I wouldn’t trade it for anything! I love what I
do, the changes that are going on right now and the
challenges that come with it. However, there are
Three mythsabout working for yourselfBY VERN ESWINEThe Marketing Company
some things I have learned I wasn’t prepared
for when I started over thirty years ago.
MYTH 1: BE MY OWN BOSSWhat this really means is being responsi-
ble for every decision made, right or wrong.
It also means when there is a problem you
are the one to fi x it. Even when you grow
and hire others, it is still your business and
your responsibility. As for being your own
boss? I have many bosses in the form of my
clients. After all, my clients are the ones that
drive me and pay me so listening and cater-
ing to their needs is of the utmost impor-
tance. My needs, and sometimes my family’s
needs, have had to come second.
MYTH 2: WORK MY OWN HOURSWhat this really means is working at the
offi ce and at home and not when you want.
Successful entrepreneurs have a passion for
what they do and that means it is on their
mind around the clock. It also means work-
ing longer hours especially in the early years
of your business because most of the things
that have to be done, have to be accom-
plished by you. Th ink about it for a minute.
You are the manager, the marketer, the sales
person, the secretary and on and on it goes.
MYTH 3: WHEN I HIRE SOME PEOPLE IT WILL GET BETTER
While this sounds like a good plan, for
many businesses that time never comes.
I once had a woman stop in my offi ce to
ask me to help her sell her business when I
asked her why she said;, “I didn’t sign up for
this ... I didn’t plan on being the salesman,
the janitor, the secretary, the web adminis-
trator, all I want to do is _______.”
Of course my question for her is who did
she think was going to do those jobs. When
I fi rst started my company, a dear friend of
mine who had been in business for many
years saw me in the hallway and asked how
things were going and my answer was I just
hired my fi rst employee. His response was-
“Now your problems start.”
Over the years I have developed a lot of
great relationships and friendships that have
worked side by side with me and I have had
those that had me ready to pack it up. All in
all I have worked with some very good and
talented people but any business owner will
tell you that adding Human Resources and
Benefi ts Director to your job description
continued on page 30
29 Southern Indiana Business Source | July 2014
Southern Indiana Business Source | July 201430
Congratulations to all the nominees
of 20 Under 40!
can be taxing and tiring.
So let me make a few suggestions before
you start!
1. Love what you do! I mean really love
it! Be passionate about your business, your
industry and strive to be the best at it.
2. Know your competition. Take time to
know their strengths and weaknesses, what
they stand for and determine how you can
make a diff erence and be unique.
3. Take time to plan and budget. Do your
homework and be realistic but also posi-
tion yourself for success. One of the biggest
mistakes that many small businesses make
is having a great concept but growing it too
fast. Get at least three years or so of consis-
tent growth behind you before loading up
and taking on the world. Your chances for
surviving will become much higher.
4. Build a network of good people around
you. Take time to get out and build rela-
tionships both personal and business. Th ese
relationships can be a great source to pull
from during your highs and your lows.
5. Focus on relationships and not dollars.
I have found out over the years that focus-
ing on developing strong relationships with
my clients is much more important than
focusing on budgets. If you focus on build-
ing the relationships the money will come.
More importantly it will come year after
year because the relationship and trust con-
tinues to build into more of a partnership.
Much better investment for the long term.
6. Give back! We all live and work in a
community. Use your expertise, your talent,
your gift to help those around you. Sure you
will have to set a few boundaries but you
will also develop a legacy of pouring into
those around you and not being the one
that only cares about what they can get.
In summary, as I started out, I would not
trade having my own company for anything
and I wish you all the best in planning
and starting your own. Just remember it
is a journey and you can make the trip a
hard one or one that provides a wealth of
excitement, surprises and even fun. All this
and you can make a living at what you love.
Pretty cool!
Vern Eswine has been involved in leadership, marketing and business consulting for more than 30 years and is president of The Marketing Com-pany, a branding fi rm located on Spring Street in New Albany.
Vern
ESWINE
Marketing: Three mythscontinued from page 29
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We guarantee our service with our exclusive Performance Warranty.
Service is part of our name!
We are ready to help:• Define Your Selling Goals• Stage Your Home to
Enhance Its Value• Mobilize the Resources
of the Entire Real Estate Community
• Market Your Home Aggressively
Visit SchulerBauer.com to find a realtor, or your new home!
For all our experience, our size, awards we have received and goals, we have accomplished in the past. Today the most important accomplishment we have to achieve is your satisfaction.
• #1 in Total Listings• #1 in Total Sales• #1 in New Construction Listings
and Sales• #1 in Sales of Properties over
$400,000• Three Regional Offices• Dominant Market Share
(more than double our nearest competitor)
• Over 140 Sales Associates• Powerful, Cutting-Edge
Marketing Program• One-Stop Shopping for Buyers
(including mortgage, title and insurance)
• Full-Time Relocation Department
• Concierge Services• Builders Marketing Service
www.teg123.com812.282.3700
25 Years | Enhancing Communities
ArchitecturePlanning
Interior Design
Jeffersonville | Louisville | Shreveport