SkateAmerica Honored By SCORE for Its
Wheelin’ and Dealin’
The sixth annual Small Business Survival Index is out, and once again, California is one of the least business-friendly states in the nation.
The 2001 index ranks the 50 states, plus the District of Columbia, by the tax and regulatory climate small businesses face there. Other factors, such as crime rates, are also considered, said Raymond J. Keating, the study’s author and chief economist of the Washington, D.C.-based advocacy group the Small Business Survival Committee.
Of the 51 contenders, the District of Columbia is the least business friendly, followed by Rhode Island, Hawaii, Maine, Kansas, Minnesota, New Mexico, California, New York and Vermont.
The states friendliest toward business are Nevada, South Dakota, Washington, Wyoming, Florida, Texas, New Hampshire, Alabama, Mississippi and Tennessee.
Darrell McKigney, president of the SBSC, said the index is intended as a way to alert state lawmakers how they stack up against other states in attracting business.
“In an increasingly mobile and competitive national economy, differences in government-imposed costs of doing business can make a huge difference between whether a state grows economically or falls behind,” he said. “Business-friendly states will reap great rewards from America’s entrepreneurs, including faster economic growth and increased job creation.”
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Skater SCOREs:
Their name may be the Service Corps of Retired Executives, but that doesn’t mean their clients are too old to ride the ramps.
San Diego-based SkateAmerica was named as the SCORE Client of the Year. The Internet-based retail business, which specializes in selling skateboards on the Web, started up about a year and a half ago, said Cher Noble, spokeswoman for SCORE.
Michael Bornstein, president of SkateAmerica worked with his SCORE counselor, Jerry Greenspan, in doubling his sales since its first year, following a business model based on growing from profit rather than projections, she said.
That, along with prior experience in retail locally, allowed him to maintain profitability from day one and avoid overspending on the business, Noble said.
Bornstein thanked SCORE for its assistance.
“They have a variety of great services to small business , great consultants that helped guide me through financial analysis and helping me through business planning excellent contacts in the industry, and business evaluation,” he said.
Tweeter to Move CV Store:
Tweeter, a popular consumer electronics retailer, announced it’s relocating its Chula Vista store, currently on 1218 Broadway. The new store, on 614 W. Palomar Street, will have 14 employees and is scheduled to open in mid-September.
Noah Herschman, vice president of marketing for Tweeter, said this is part of Tweeter’s ongoing renovation efforts in the San Diego area.
“This is the third new store in as many months we have opened in the San Diego area. We recently relocated our Encinitas store and opened a new location in Mission Valley,” he said.
Tweeter operates 13 stores throughout the San Diego area, as well as Temecula. The company also plans to open a new store in Riverside this month, Herschman said.
Nationwide, the company operates 143 stores under the names of Tweeter, Hi-Fi Buys, Sound Advise, Bang & Olufsen and others, he said.
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Road Work Ahead:
A San Diego-based company was awarded one of three statewide geotechnical engineering contracts from the California Department of Transportation.
Caltrans selected Geocon Consultants, along with Ventura-based Fugro West, Inc., and San Francisco-based URS Corp. Americas to conduct geotechnical investigations.
Have a small business tip? Call Lee Zion at (858) 277-6359, Ext. 112, or e-mail at lzion@sdbj.com. The deadline for the Sept. 10 issue is Aug. 31.
