My Friend is Going Out of Business

Crossposted from http://bluejersey.net, with small edits, where appropriate.

I have a good friend out here in western Warren County NJ who told me last night that he will be closing his small business at the end of August. While this is sad, sad news for both him and me, it is just as sad for the community, which is largely bereft of small businesses. The few that are here are struggling. Except for the bars and the liquor stores, of course.


My good, loyal and considerate friend is a master craftsman in his business. His business is one that you do not see much anymore, is needed and he embodies everything good in the word "artisan". His work is always of the highest quality and his prices are fair. But he cannot make it anymore.

What I experienced last Thursday might reflect on his plight:

I had to go to the NJ Department of Labor office for an appointment. While I was there, people were arriving for two classes that they were giving, manditory classes for those receiving unemployment benefits. It seems that these days, there is not a state benefit you can receive without having to pay a penalty in time and effort, for if you are out of work in this economy, you must be worthy of some form of recompense. Call it "punishment", because at the core of things, that is what it is.

But, if my eyes were not deceiving me, the economy , to use a scientific term, sucks. The Job service was packed with people for these two classes. No, these were not three-tooth dirtbags with the IQ of a wet fern, either. These were people who, from their dress, accesories and demeanor, had good jobs of real responsibility, attainment and remuneration. These were people who were undoubtedly considered good members of their communities. These were people who campaigning politicians target. I would say that most of them were from the business world and the building trades.

And they were all out of work and going to classes on how to find a job. The Job Service runs these classes every week and they are similarly attended. Seems there is no shortage of people who need a job, especially jobs that don't include the phrase "deep fat fryer" in their description.

These are also the folks who, a while back, formed the backbone of my friend's customers. The people who had the money and the inclination to avail themselves of my friend's high quality craftsmanship. At one time, he did very, very well.

Now, my friend's phone never rings and in his mid-fifties, he too will be looking for work.

These are stories like these all over the landscape, but somehow, they don't seem to get reported. Of course, there is no end of stories in the newspaper and on TV, telling people how strong the economy is.

Sooner or later, Democratic Politicians are going to have to stop running interference for the depredations occurring to our workforce. They are going to have to discard the "Hey! I am so business-friendly you'll get a nosebleed!" stance and start taking a look at the realities of the workers. People are really, really hurting out there and it never seems to get noticed. Or mentioned. Or addressed.

That all said, I am not holding my breath. Like the change in the civil rights laws, nothing really happened until after Martin Luther King was assassinated and the cities burned. I honestly don't think that anything will change, substantively, until things degrade to that drastic point. I get no joy from that thought, either. But I see politicians, I hear what they are saying and I know how the campaign finance system works. There just isn't the will or courage to change things yet. It's gonna probably take a lot of time and a real socio-political crisis before this situation is addressed.

Meanwhile, my friend is going out of business. Sad to say.

Oh, and a digression: While I was there, I mentioned to someone that there sure was a lot of people going to the class. What ensued from this person was a political rant of the likes I have never given in my life. This person simply went off, talking about the poor job market, economic conditions and the impact of energy prices. This person ended up by saying "I would not be surprised to see a revolution start in this country. That's how bad things are."

I was gobsmacked. I had not expected to hear or say anything political while I was there. How wrong I was. It might also be noted that this person was not there as a consumer of the services. This person deals with the realities of the economy and the job market every week.

Unlike most politicians. They are too occupied with being business-friendly.

While my friend is going out of business.

They had been in business for 11 or 12 years, and doing very well until George Bush was elected. He said it was almost an immediate change, as soon as Bush took office, things started to slow down. And then, 9/11 happened. There were some good days in with the bad, but the bad days were more prolific.

So much for success under the Bush Administration's focus on helping small business succeed. In fact, this story pretty much defines the Bush Administration and the GOP: FAILURE.

Damn, I wish he was right, but I'm afraid we're in for many more bad years before people get angry enough to throw the monsters out.

I don't want that to happen. I don't expect it to happen. But I would not be surprised if it did happen.

effective way to throw the bastards out, although I'm not sure, when bush called in the military to subdue us all, that the military would join us (as we'd hope, and frankly, NEED).

The situation now, however, is really grave. And those in power, in their nice, cushy, well-paid ivory towers, would do well to remember the Romanoffs.

People actually wake up from the national stupor and pay attention to what is going on.
Maybe demand an end to the current state of politics in which those elected do the bidding of their financiers as opposed to that of the people who they are supposed to "serve".

How revolutionary it would be if people understood that there are consequences to every action, that there is no free lunch, that growth cannot continue forever, and that all resources are limited. Then they began to behave accordingly, and demanded the same of their elected officials.

employed state in our Country. I can oly hope you had a chance to mention to the people at that office and that class that it was MANDATORY that they vote to oust the idiots that created the environment for what happened to them.

I think you're right about a Dem leadership not making a dramatic difference, but it at least will stop the bleeding and head in a better direction.

I'm very afraid that people who recognize how bad the economy really is for the average person will be so disgusted, they'll just stay home and b*tch on election day, and the current idiots will have won AGAIN!

He repaired some earrings & a couple of necklaces of mine. I commissioned him to make a small pin for a friend. He did a wonderful job. I was in a few weeks ago & he said if business doesn't pick up he will have to close his doors. He said he still gets an occasional 'big' job, but the smaller jobs like I had him do have all dried up.

I'm sorry for your friend & for all the others in the same boat.

My Bergen County town is beginning to look like a ghost town, so many businesses have closed down. Not just small ones, we even lost a CVS. It seems there is no end to bank construction though.

Then there are the tech jobs (which is my field). The drain is wide open and the jobs continue to flow to India. A large group was just let go from a large toy retailer, another bunch from a large payroll company. Those left behind have the pleasure of training the offshore replacements.

Yet politicians continue with the tired refrain of education, training, and retraining. Good rhetoric, even good advice if only the jobs were there to back up their talk.

Then there's the visa issue. The U.S. gleefully allows tens of thousands of high-tech workers into the country each year with the H1-B program in order to alleviate the "shortage". Mind you this was a "temporary" program that began in the early-mid '90s. Previous H1B workers have provided the foundation of offshoring.

You would think there would be a revolution but people seem completely incapable of , even disinterested in, action. After all, many people can't even be bothered to vote, although I honestly often wonder what the point of it is.

The big box stores keep rising, the little guy gets shut out. Progress...???

and watch your jobs outsourced to India.

The Ultra Rich are doing very well, and Congress just gave them some more relief with the repeal of the estate tax.
Free Trade has made Cheap Chinese Plastic Crap available to everybody!:woohoo:

/sarcasm

Successful small biz, ended by eminent domain, development will "create more jobs." SUCKS. We are so screwed.

I've been hearing this from a lot of folks lately, especially old people, 70+. No one wants this, revolutions are generally ugly, bloody things, but if people get hungry they will take what they need without a "by your leave."

Pray the tide turns before folks feel their hand is being forced.

Hope it stays bloodless.

Venezuela had a near bloodless revolution when the PEOPLE rose up and put Chavez in power.

I hope we are seeing the beginnings of a revolution with viable challenges to the Democratic Party Corporate establishment (Lieberman, Clinton).

LETS ROLL!!!!

something has gotta give sometime.

he can always join the military or work at Wal-Mart :sarcasm:

Seriously, I wish your friend well, and I hope he is able to pull himself up again, and I have nothing but contempt for the people in power who destroy others lives at a whim.

They were competitors, but more than that. They were friends. We've been exceedingly fortunate to see a pretty dramatic upturn in our business - all gotten fairly and fully on our merits - but it has obviously been at some cost to others. In both cases, our friends who closed their doors were working for private sector clients exclusively. We also worked in that market, but have always maintained a serious presence in the public sector, which, while it pays less, is dependable for buying what we sell when the market softens.

And believe me, the market in our business, overall, is soft.

We're all small businesses. Our largest competitor in the entire country has fewer than 40 employees and we sell a very specialized professional service.

My husband went from self-employment to a job with the state, then the state job dried up...desperate to find work and to keep a roof over our heads while I was recuperating from surgery, we called about unemployment benefits. We were told that the next benefits sign-up was 3 monthsfrom then.

We had been on food stamps for 1 month 20+ years ago, neither of us had ever applied for unemployment benefits before.

Bad memories. :(

stores (no Home Depot), little neighborhood restaurants and cafes, independent bookstores. They are us, and a kind of human wealth in our communities is gone when they leave. We need to go out of our way to find and go to small businesses, even when we can save at the big boxes. There are certain things worth investing in.

And I am happy to be a former small business owner. The myth perpetuated by the Republicans and people like the Rich Dad, Poor Dad guy, that small business is a road to riches is complete bunkum and snake oil. Here is what I learned so I can save all of you a lot of time:

It does NOT MATTER if you have a quality product and a good location and repeat business and great customer service and a wonderful loyal staff. It is THE THINGS YOU CANNOT CONTROL that will drive you out of business. We had all of the above. I am talking about things you will NOT be able to put in a business plan.

You will not be able to factor in:
Power outages that lose you business operating hours
Hurricanes, even smaller ones
Traffic issues like road repavings or detours that you never gave one second's thought to
Gigantic increases in the costs of things like:
utilities
gasoline
fuel surcharges for products that you buy regularly
healthcare for yourself and your employees
actually every single line item in your budget - controlled and uncontrolled costs
will increase by probably a minimum of 10-20% percent a year
Parking - you need about 5 times of what anyone tells you you need

DO NOT EVER SIGN A TRIPLE NET LEASE! EVER!

Landlords that do not give a shit about your exclusive right to anything in a strip mall even though it may be in your lease.
(ask yourself why any strip mall would have 2 pizza shops or a Bronze World next door to a Just Bronze )
Do not have partners. It will not work out. Partnerships almost always break up- either sooner or later due to the differing expectations or work ethics of the partners.

The only money you can ever make in a small business is if you manage to hang onto it for approx three years and then you sell at a profit to the "Greater Fool". The money in small business is in the creation and the start-up and the sell-off, NOT THE DAILY RUNNING OF THE BUSINESS. Think of it as just another form of the "flip".

Another tip - if it WAS MAKING MONEY, THEY WOULDN'T BE SELLING IT!!!!

They are renovating the county courthouse (I also live in Warren County), just about the only thing people come to Belvidere for. I assume his friend is suffering because of that. I know there are other businesses that are.

mortgages. Mondo cars & oversized homes are their priorities, so instead of being able to afford your friend's items anymore, all they can afford is Walmart or the Dollar Store to furnish their mansions with.

My own lifelong small business has slowed down under Bush, as have many many other small business owners I know. Anyone nowadays who can't adapt to the harder times is going to go under if they don't make the right adjustments and work their asses off. Despite having to work harder to make a little less, I'm still all for owning and running my own business. I wouldn't have it any other way. Just have to make changes.

One thing that's not talked about much is the weak American dollar under George W Asshole Bush. For example, under Clinton our dollar was very strong against other countries like Canada, and I could do a significant portion of my business by taking advantage of it. Under Bush, however, our dollar took a nosedive of epic proportions, and it's had a negative snowball effect that's hurting not only the small businesses, but so many medium sized ones, too. The ones capitalizing on the hard times, though, are the richest people, of course, as always.