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Memo- Open to BusinessPlanning & Economic Development MEMORANDUM TO: Honorable Mayor and H kins City Council Members FROM: Kersten Elveru it ctor of Planning & Development DATE: October 6, 2011 SUBJECT: Open to Business Hennepin County has made available funding to help support a business assistance program called Open to Business. The program provides one-on-one consultation services to new, existing or expanding businesses, as well as access to a variety of loan programs. The cost to offer the services is proposed to be $10,000 for a one-year membership. Hennepin County has set aside funds to provide $5,000 as match and the city is responsible for the remaining $5,000. I have approached the Hopkins Business & Civic Association and they are willing to contribute 50% of the local match, leaving $2,500 that the City of Hopkins would be asked to provide. I am recommending that we elect to participate at this amount and use the Think Hopkins budget as the source of funds. There is no cost to the business owner to receive the consultation services. Our responsibility under the program is solely to market the program and make sure it is utilized. We will work closely with HBCA, the Blake Road Community Collaborative other community partners to accomplish this and will utilize all of our communication tools to get the word out. I have attached several newspaper articles and a brief description of the program. If the Council is supportive of offering the program, an application will be submitted by October 15, 2011, deadline and a resolution of support will be on the October 18, 2011, Council agenda. M`iliD is M in your community Promoting entrepreneurism. Entrepreneurs are starting and growing small businesses in your community. By helping them gain access to financing and other business assistance, you can encourage small business development that grows your tax base, creates local jobs and increases community vitality. How we can help. MCCD's Open to Business program brings on-site business services specialists to your city that can expand your community development staff's expertise in such areas as start-up financing and business plan development. We can respond to requests for business assistance when those requests are beyond the range of the services normally provided by your municipal agencies. How we work. Our staff can provide one-on-one assistance customized to meet the needs of your small business owners and operators. Many of our clients receive help in planning and organizing their business ventures. We can also assist with financial management, marketing and regulatory compliance. Accessing capital for your businesses. MCCD operates a small business loan fund that can help your entrepreneurs access the capital they need to grow their businesses. We can also draw on our long-standing partnerships with area banks to help your businesses obtain bank loans and revolving lines of credit. As a participant in MCCD's "Open to Business" program, your community development agency can help promote more effective access to capital for your local businesses. How we partner with you. MCCD will work with city staff to develop materials that brand this as a program of your city and assist with outreach ideas to the business community. Or staff can meet clients at our office or their place of business. In addition, we can schedule on-site hours at your city hall or other public venue for walk-in consultations. This fee-for-service arrangement can provide you with a cost-effective alternative to an "in-house" business development program staffed and funded by your agency. Who we are. The Metropolitan Consortium of Community Developers is an association of 43 non-profit community development agencies that work to improve housing and economic opportunity throughout the Twin Cities metropolitan area. During this past year, our team of business development specialists has provided access to more than $1 million in business capital for our clients and technical assistance services for more than 200 area businesses. You can find our Web site at www.opentobusinessmn.org. For more information, contact: Rob Smolund Metropolitan Consortium of Community Developers rsmolund(a)mccdmn.org 612-789-7337, ext 11 10MCCO MsaoDabtin Consorpum StarTribuneecom Sharing business savvy Richard Sennott, Star Tribune Brooklyn Park is offering a program that Provide free one on one intensive, confidential counseling to entrepreneurs who are thinking of opening a business or expanding one. Rod Smolund is the counselor who call himself a "Business Therapist" and works with the entrepreneurs. Rod Smolund talked with Lynn Huynh in a conference room in City Hall, she wants to expand and move her restaurant. A business counselor is on hand every third Tuesday in Brooklyn Park to help people navigate the entrepreneurial waters -- and it doesn't cost them anything. By MARIA ELENA BACA mbaca@startribune.com Last update: March 26, 2011 - 7:07 PM Take notice, Brooklyn Park: The "Business Therapist" is ready to hear your money -making ideas. Advertisement F -w"'. e �. WW " mobile browser to �p httpt//startribune.cam Last Tuesday, adviser Rob Smolund met with Lynn Huynh, manager of her brother's restaurant, Kim Anh Pastry and Deli, on Edinburgh Center Drive. The siblings are contemplating a move and expansion to a former Dunn Brothers coffee shop across the street, and were looking for help to secure financing to take the step. In a half-hour meeting at City Hall, Smolund went through the restaurant's financials, listened enthusiastically to the details of the new location, and gave Huynh a handful of resources to check out for private financing, as well as a to-do list to check off before their next meeting. Smolund, an enterprise facilitator with the Metropolitan Consortium of Community Developers, is available for consultation the third Tuesday of each month at City Hall as part of a program made possible by the Brooklyn Park Development Corp., a nonprofit funded by the city's Economic Development Authority. Users are business owners seeking to expand operations in Brooklyn Park, or entrepreneurs with a great idea and the drive to make it happen. The city has a deal with Smolund's organization, to pay his $50 hourly fee, up to $5,000. Participants pay nothing for his services. Smolund does a similar sei vice in Minnetonka and North St. Paul. Other cities are in the pipeline. Brooklyn Park's business developer, Amy Baldwin, praised the way Smolund follows clients through the process, possibly strengthening and expanding the city's small business core. 17-,.A TD MISSION . __ anawrucs nmcw FRII)Ay rNROUGH APRIL 29 WIN A PORSCHE" BOXSTER tAY5+ (. LAKE* THIS FRIDAY! CASINO • NOT Ct 0-4 ,,Gat, ,�, .. ,, mysticlake.com -1- Print Powered BY ,..etll e» Qynarni;s StarTribune-com "We don't have the capacity to do what he does," she said. "If they run into a hiccup along the road, they have an ally to help them through." After about six months in operation, the program has been popular enough that the city has expanded Smolund's hours. He starts most of his Brooklyn Park days with several half-hour appointments; his free time often is filled by drop -ins. Smolund has seen one of his early protegees, Lara Babalola, to the point of opening her business, Diva's Ave. Boutique, at the Shops at Village Creek, with loans from the city development corporation, WomenVenture and the consortium. He or a colleague has spent more than 50 hours counseling with 19 residents. In last Tuesday's session, Smolund warned Huynh about potential damage a move could do to the restaurant's brand-, she countered that the new space was within sight of the old one. Plus, it has space for a large roaster, a drive-through window, better curb appeal and favorable lease conditions, she said. He encouraged her to get all the details in writing, and promised that with more information he'd help her make financial projections three years out, as part of an eventual loan application. Huynh is an unusually savvy entrepreneur, Smolund said. He called attention to the "Business Therapist" line on his business card. Sometimes, his work is just a matter of helping people streamline their ideas and fill out applications. Sometimes, he helps them to create a multi-year plan. Sometimes, he encourages Advertisement -2- ;— 7Phttop://startribune.com ir~t your bile browser to them to concentrate their efforts elsewhere. Bad ideas can succeed "I can't predict winners or losers," he said, adding that he's seen what he considers great ideas fail, and crummy ideas succeed, based on smart execution. What he does is help people identify their strengths and weaknesses, and when necessary encourages them to find partners to make their dreams reality. The city has microloans available for people who can't get access to commercial bank loans, but Smolund said entrepreneurs should be able to put at least 10 percent into a deal. He said he believes that the recent popularity of the program is a reflection of both people's renewed confidence in the recovering economy and of the desperation of people who are looking for any revenue source. "It's a long process, and I help them with that," he said. "I take a very holistic approach. If I don't feel their business has legs, I still help them. i tell them, look out a year." Maria Elena Baca • 612-673-4409 Call Now! SECURITY CHOICE Print Powered By L-;Yllarnic s Minnetonka pleased with success of Open to Business program BY Marc Ingber - Sun Newspapers Published: Wednesday, April 27, 20112:41 PM CDT When Bethany Buchanan was looldng to open a second location of her business, she wasn't sure how to proceed. She's the owner of Grace Homes in Minnetonka, a six -bed residential care home for the elderly. In opening a second location, Buchanan and her husband wanted help in both finding a home, logistics and financing. Earlier this year she happened to see an ad for the city of Minnetonka's Open to Business program and decided to check it out. Thanks to the program, she was able to accomplish her goals with the help of its primary staff member, Rob Smolund, enterprise facilitator for the Metropolitan Consortium of Community Developers. Buchanan and her husband have been meeting regularly with Smolund for four months. He has helped them find a second location in Hopkins and is also helping them secure a small business administration loan. "He is very helpful," Buchanan said. "I was very happy. There is not really any help for new small business owners like ourselves." That is one of the reasons Minnetonka decided to partner with the Metropolitan Consortium on the Open to Business program. The only other cities in the metro that offer it are St. Louis Park, Brooklyn Park and North St. Paul. "We were talking about the lack of resources for small businesses in the community," said Julie Wischnack, Minnetonka community development director. "It's hard to entrust all your business information to a city government. We thought it was a good idea." Through the first quarter of 2011, 26 businesses have been assisted through the Open to Business program. The clients are split evenly between existing and start-up businesses. They have received assistance on topics such as business feasibility, financial planning, loan packaging, marketing, revenue -stream analysis, employment regulations and more. "Some are start-up ideas," Wischnack said. "Some are operating and are making a business move and want some assistance." Smolund said he was impressed with the number of business owners who had taken advantage of the services. "The initial response was much better than we expected," he said. "I have found it to be rare that cities offer intensive one-on-one counseling to prospective and existing entrepreneurs." The program's services are provided free to the clients. The city contracts with the Metropolitan Consortium to provide the services. Wischnack said Minnetonka benefited from the program as well. "As a city, seeing vacancies isn't a good thing," she said. "You don't want businesses to fail. It's a good opportunity for people." "It is the city's program," Smolund said. "We are just providing the service for much less than it would cost the city to hire an extra employee." The program is adding a new component beginning in May called "Test Drive Your Idea." One day per month, Metropolitan Consortium staff will be at the Minnetonka Community Center and will be available for a 15 -minute walk-in consultation. "This connection creates a follow-up contact for the business," Wischnack said. "It's a long-term connection." Buchanan said she had recommended the program to other business owners in Minnetonka and felt its presence in the city would continue to grow. She and her husband plan to continue utilizing its services as their business progresses. "He really thinks outside the box," she said of Smolund. "He's really intelligent. In these tough times, you appreciate an ally." Smolund said it's been a joy to work with the city and its business owners. "The staff understands the importance of supporting small businesses in the community by providing technical assistance and financing resources to existing and start-up businesses." Wischnack said she hoped more people would discover the program. "Don't be too shy to call," she said. "You never know what opportunities are out there." For more information on Minnetonka's Open to Business program call Rob Smolund at 612-789- 7337 ext. 11 or visit eminnetonka.com. 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