Inside This IssueFeatured Articles
Getting Capital in Tight Times By Julianne Mattera
Anyone can tell you that banks have tightened their belts. So how can a small business or entrepreneur get the cash needed to ignite their businesses? Depending on your business' needs and industry, you might be able to tap into some of these traditional and non-traditional funding options. If yo...
Eight Critical Steps a Small Business Can Take to Survive the 2009 Holiday Season By Marianne Markowitz
According to estimates, retail and service businesses earn as much as 40 percent of total annual sales during the November-December holiday months, and a successful 2009 holiday shopping season will determine whether many businesses, already struggling through a deep recession, will survive. The ...
The Auto Industry Today By Mike Scott
Detroit is no longer a one-industry town, but auto still has big stakes The downsizing of the automotive industry has impacted metro Detroit harder than any other region in the United States. But even as alternative technologies and advanced manufacturing industries are being developed, experts ...
The Transformation of Detroit Starts with You By Marjorie Sorge
If we all begin to talk about the transformation of the Detroit region, the stories reporters write will change too. You’d think it was a dark and stormy night with no light when some reporters parachuted into Detroit over the last year. They landed with orders to chronicle the demise of Detro...
Understanding Transportation Funding By Melissa Roy
Save Our Streets If you are an average Michigan driver, you spend 3 each year in state gas taxes and registration fees. Those monies are distributed throughout the state primarily to maintain the state's road infrastructure. Unfortunately, your 3 is not enough. Because of declining gas t...
Michigan's Role in Reshaping the Auto Industry By Detroiter Online Staff
During the Industry Preview days at the North American International Auto Show, the Detroit Regional Economic Partnership hosted foreign delegations to discuss alternative fuel and other emerging technology, including the Swedish Secretary of State, Juran Haglund and the Gothenburg and Southwest Swe...
Company profile: W Industries By Michael Strong
Diversification is preached to investors and business owners alike as the key to surviving tough times economically, but few Detroit-area businesses have engaged that philosophy as successfully as W Industries. Started in 1981 as an automotive parts supplier, the company refocused its customer base...
Day in the Life
FOURSIGHT Creative's Marla Booth By Amanda Crabtree
From a corporate marketing executive to a small business owner with an MBA from the University of Michigan, Chamber member Marla Booth has a very diverse and successful business portfolio. Booth said goodbye to the corporate world in 1999 when she went to work for Joan Blough at FOURSIGHT C...
Small business owners have a big voice when it comes to legislation By Bruce McCully, president, Dynamic Edge
Whether we realize it or not, new laws are being made every day. Often, these laws pass through legislation without notice; it's not until we see their effect on our lives and businesses that their full impact is felt. As a small business owner, I've learned that there are only two approaches to ...
Trend Spotting in Detroit By Michael Strong
Sphere Trending brings together trend information to provide trans-industrial business direction Detroit is the center of the world when it comes to trend spotting. While a bit of an exaggeration, it’s safe to say that Sphere Trending in WaterfordDetroit is part of the discussion when it co...
How Do I?
Taking Advantage of the New Changes to the SBA Program By Tom Zernick
Small businesses in Michigan have an opportunity to thrive even in challenging economic times. Thanks to the American Recovery Act signed into law by President Obama earlier this year and changes in the Small Business Administration (SBA) program, small businesses have some exciting options to con...
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