My wife owns a small business. We don't need a tax cut.

[rucky]

We need our customers to be (or at least feel) financially secure - with their jobs, with their homes, with their pensions.

The store was doing pretty well before the financial meltdown. We're in a small town outside a big city. In a Main Street type environment, you get to know the customers pretty well. They wouldn't just come in to shop, it was sort of a gathering place for local moms - something to do before the bigger kids get home from school. It was what you'd imagine a mom & pop to be like, if you ever dreamed of opening one.

In the Summer of '08, we outgrew our space - got a loan from the city and did a small renovation in a much bigger building right in the center of town. Everybody thought it was a good move. Articles were written about it in the local paper. We even received an award from a national small business association. Things were looking good.

Just a few months later, that all changed by about December of '08. People still came into the store, but a sense of hesitance started creeping into the atmosphere. Credit card sales down, layaways way up. Instead of it being a place for people to escape, the racks of clothing (some of is not cheap) has become a reminder to them that some belt tightening is needed. Little by little, more regular customers would go straight to clearance rack if they were shopping - and the clearance rack got pretty big that season. Maybe it's a bit of shame and guilt, but they're not sticking around to chit-chat so much anymore, either. More people are returning items, others even try to negotiate discounts. Some just quit coming in altogether. It's awkward when you run into them at the grocery store.

Yesterday my wife had to cut her sisters' hours (one is a single mom) - this is after she had to lay off two other part-time staffers last Summer. She's been drawing no pay herself for over a year now, and now has to work longer hours. I'm not even going to get into my situation (working for another small business), but let's just say we can save on child care expenses with me being around the house alot more this past month.

I'm pretty sure her business will no longer even qualify for a tax break. I've got to give them credit for trying - free marketing stuff like Facebook and email-lists. Holding special events and publicizing them in the paper. Sale after sale - sometimes at a loss. Margins have become just slim enough to pay the outstanding invoices. Even though she can say she's tried everything, my wife can't help but feel that she made a horrible mistake when we took that loan to expand. This is no fun anymore, but at the same time, it's hard to admit that it's over. It's getting past the time to close the doors, and every day is like another punch in the gut. I've been ready to take the loss and end the painful and prolonged withering, but it's not my call to make.

Our "neighbors" - the shop owners in the same area - are all going through something similar. This has been our new "community" - a support group that is completely out of ideas, so things quickly turn into a pity party and partial hate-fest against the Chamber who's idea of economic development is to lure in the next big box store to the long-vacant open space uptown. But that's where our customers shop now when they need something. We simply can't compete on price with the mass market retailers.

It kind of makes me wonder what the pols say when they talk about helping small business. What kind of small business do they have in mind? How will we be able to create or preserve jobs from a tax cut, if our customers are dropping like flies?

If Congress MUST make a choice between tax cuts and job growth, PLEASE pick jobs. Our customers need them!

[midnight]

1. Put money into to the consumers hands and the demand

for good and services will grow and so will jobs.....

[Billy Burnett]

3. In China.

Simply putting money into the hands of the consumer won't create enough jobs.

We need to return to being a producer nation.

We need to stop the economic royalists from running the country into the ground.

[rucky]

4. Seems obvious, doesn't it?

But all the plans we hear about from Washington seem to want to do everything but that.

[dkf]

2. A tax cut doesn't necessarily benefit you because you pay less taxes.

It may give your customers more money to spend. If your wife's clothes are higher end, you need rich people to keep spending.

Just giving you food for thought.

[Pab Sungenis]

6. But the people they want to cut the taxes of

aren't the ones spending the money.

If you cut taxes for someone on the low end of the financial spectrum, they are going to spend the money they get. If you cut someone on the rich end, they're just going to squirrel it away.

[dkf]

20. It's been trending the opposite this year. Lower and middle class started saving while the

Top end started spending. The top earners had a negative spending rate in the beginning of the year. The top 5% of earners are doing 37% of consumer spending because they have the savings cushion while you and I are saving.

[xchrom]

5. I had the VERY same experience with my store in

The Bush 1 recession.

I want to open a store that produces locally made
Furniture - but I wouldn't do it in this
Environment- and I don't see it getting better
'in any serious way that counts.

Support The People - that's what will make the economy better.

[T Wolf]

8. Support PEOPLE!!! What are you, some kind of Muslim socialist? The economy only does well

when the wealthy, through their largess (I have a cousin who actually used that word) invest wisely. That trickles down to (on) the working middle class, don'tcha know.

How the hell do you counter a mindset like that?

[Melissa G]

7. Well said. I own a small business and I would prefer customers

to a tax cut which does not do any me any good if I am unable to make any profit for the government to tax anyway.

Regular folks need jobs more than they need tax cuts. People who already have plenty of money want tax cuts. Those of us with small businesses just trying to get by need customers. Customers need jobs so they can have money to spend in our shops. I just want to say 'Duh' to the government at this point. How hard is this to figure out?

[Coyote_Bandit]

9. We have an economy

that is dependent upon consumer spending. We fail to understand the difference between value and price. And even when we do we ofter have more loyalty to our personal finances than to those of our community. But then we are not a nation - we are splinters of red and blue, rich and poor, white collar and blue collar. We teach our kids to value white collar work at the expense of real productivity. We have a mindset that small business people are too independent to fit into the corporate world - and that somehow makes them flawed misfits. We think that those who buy and sell in volume should be rewarded - while those who do not are penalized. We think that bigger is always better. We pride ourselves on being unique individuals but we are largely happy to shop at national chain stores and buy the same shit as other folks all across the nation. Our economic problems begin with our attitudes.

I love small businesses, prefer to work with them and make an effort to patronize them. I wish you well in your endeavors and upcoming decisions. Good luck.

[griffi94]

10. it's funny

you mention people shopping at the same box storesand buying the exact stuff across the country.

my mother is that way. she shops constantly, but she really only likes chain stores at the mall so she'll go to a different mall eery day and buy the same shit over and over.

[SoCalDem]

22. Yep.. we have to have a national mindset-revamp

and I don't see that happening anytime soon.. It's as if we are all on the consumer-train, barreling its way into oblivion.

Winning "the big one" back in the 40's transformed us all (the whole world) into a citizenry of wants & entitled-tos from people who had needs filled.

As long as we shop, as a hobby, or to please our inner-demons, we will never find our way back to what's sensible to the planet:(

[sandnsea]

11. They mean small businesses that employ the husbands

of the SAHMs who used to come into your shop. Some of them are probably working themselves now, which is another reason they aren't coming in anymore. My daughter would have been a customer of yours, she is now a "recessionista" and has discovered the Goodwill. Her now ex-husband's income has dropped 2/3 so he wouldn't be stopping by your shop either.

I know what you mean. Can your wife get any kind of a readjusted SBA loan? Can she add consignments? My daughter sold a lot of her baby items on Ebay and would have been happy to consign them locally if there were some place to do it.

I'm so sorry. I remember your wife's shop and expansion, etc. I hope you can find a way to hang in there a while longer.

[rucky]

16. Thanks for the thoughts and ideas.

We're readjusting the terms of our loan with the city - taking it out 5 more years & lowering the payments. It's too risky to try to borrow any more, and even then, it would have to be for capital assets, so payroll and payables wouldn't be covered.

We've floated the idea of going consignment, but ruled it out. There has to be cash flow to get it going - plus it's pretty labor intensive for low and unreliable margins. There are a few consignment shops around here, but they survive because they are nonprofits and staffed by volunteers (and even then, we had one just close down).

We have been carrying lower-priced items (our top seller is now a $2 scented pencil), and pushing more drop-ship & special order items. That's how we've made it this far, but if they don't come in the door... Fortunately my wife has more fight in her than I do. I hope we can stick around to see some economic growth around here. If the tax cuts do the trick, I won't argue with 'em - that's for sure. My fear is that the taxes/jobs relationship is too indirect, and leaves the decision of what to do with them in the hands of people who don't necessarily have the welfare of the community in mind.

[sandnsea]

17. Small business needs a lot more than tax cuts

I agree there. I don't know what exactly, but more.

I also think the unemployment figures are a bit screwy for a couple of reasons. One is that many of the census workers weren't in the job market, at least not here. Well if we want to collect our unemployment, we have to be in the job market now. And spouses of people who have gotten pay cuts are in the job market, small business owners who have seen income fall or lost their business, and people who are maybe just a little panicky even if nothing has substantially changed. I think until people feel those unemployment figures go down, they'll continue to be tight with their money. Then there's the issue of ruined credit, and once its ruined you've lost your credit card customers for a few years. I think you'll have to figure out how to survive for at least a year before there is any real change in the economy. Maybe Halloween and Christmas sales will help you through?

I'm not relying on business this winter either, I'm looking for another job.

[Yupster]

12. You have a small business and you have a pension for your workers?

You certainly like to live on the edge.

You recently expanded. If you need to get smaller sometime in the future that pension obligation will wipe you guys out.

[rucky]

13. A pension?

Well, sort of. She gives her sisters a larger share of the business each year, the plan being they'd be equal thirds in a couple of years. But 33% of nothing much isn't exactly a pension.

[Yupster]

14. Oops - reread your post

It says you want your customers to have secure pensions.

I first read it as your employees having secure pensions.

Apologies.

[Dappleganger]

15. My favorite hair salon just shut down a week ago...

the sign on the door said something like "Due to the complicit nature of the economy we are unfortunately forced to close down this business". They were voted the #1 spa/salon in our area for several years in a row (10 year old business). They were owned by two completely dedicated partners who worked alongside their stylists every single day they were open. The business would have met Tabitha's approval as they were quite professional, but when the economy tanks there's not much you can do. They had cut back as much as possible but it was too late. Now we are left with a sign on the door apologizing to their clients and a list of where they all went to work. My heart really aches over things like this. :(

[revolution breeze]

18. One of my biggest gripes

We as a society do not support our local economy. It is easier to go to Target or Wal-Mart and buy nails, putty, and groceries and pick up underwear for the kids all at one time rather than shopping independently owned stores. We want fresh pineapple and peaches in January. I mindfully shop locally. yes, it is more difficult and takes me longer, especially since I now know the owner of the local hardware store and instead of just picking up the putty and getting home to fill holes, we talk about our children. I shop the farmers market and if it is not in season or canned, I do without. It made the decision to live this way when I lived in Washington and saw family farms being paved over and strip malls taking their place. The crops produced in those fields are now grown in South America (Chile to be exact, the climate is very similar to Washington). Spending your money to keep your local economy strong makes your local community stronger!

[rucky]

19. There's this organization called the 3/50 Project

that's been pretty effective in getting the word out about how important it is to support the local economy. The concept is simple enough, we challenge people to spend 50 dollars total at three locally-owned businesses each month - things they would've bought anyways at a chain store.

We tried to get other businesses on board with an awareness campaign, but it hasn't really caught on here yet. I've heard stories of it turning other communities around, though.

http://the350project.net/home.html

[revolution breeze]

21. I like the idea.

Personally, I will not buy a product that is grown/made/produced more than 200 miles away unless there is no alternative. Yes, I pay more, but freight costs, etc. are reduced, so in the long run, I have a smaller carbon footprint and we are all better for it. Thankfully, living iin southern Louisiana, I am able to live this way year round. It would be much harder in northern climates.

[DemReadingDU]

23. I need to come to your wife's store

I live about 30 miles southeast of you, and I have a 4 year old granddaughter.
:)


I have brother and sister in Indiana, and they see the same things with their businesses too. The economic situation is no better there either.
:(

[rucky]

24. Thank you! Let me know when you plan on heading up.

It would be great to meet another DU-er in person.

[sendero]

25. I continue to be AMAZED..

.. at how completely useless Obama is about matters economic.

EVERYONE KNOWS this is not about "loans to small business" or "tax cuts to small business". It is about DEMAND.

DEMAND DEMAND DEMAND. For FUCKS SAKE OBAMA stop trying to apply the GOP solutions to every fucking problem. Especially those of THEIR MAKING.