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Small Business Owners Show Concern over Economic Climate, FCSI Independence Day
October 3, 2008
One third of small business owners report the uncertain economy as the biggest challenge they face growing their businesses, according to the American Express OPEN Small Business Monitor, a semi-annual survey of business owners. One-quarter of business owners are challenged by the rising costs of doing business and to those of you working in the foodservice industry dealing with rising commodity costs, this comes as no surprise.
In reviewing the release issued by American Express, a few stats caught my eye. Specifically:
- Nearly six in ten entrepreneurs (56%) find themselves reducing or accepting lower profit margins, which is also the top tactic for business owners in the services sector (48%).
- Half of business owners (51%) find themselves working longer hours in an effort to manage with retail business owners most likely to work longer hours (64%).
- Slightly less than half will cut business or capital expenses (49%), will raise prices (48%) or will cut back or delay marketing expenses (46%).
- Cash flow is a continuing area of concern for business owners. The number of entrepreneurs experiencing cash flow issues is up from the previous fall (55% vs. 49%) but remains on par with this spring (56%), according to the study.
FCSI Americas Declares its Independence
In a release we received yesterday, The Foodservice Consultants Society International (FCSI) Americas Division announced it has officially achieved its legal independence from the FCSI Worldwide governing body. I know that this has been a hot point of discussion for many years now but don’t know exactly what it means to consultant members here in the Americas. I will do some digging around on this next week, though.
What I do know is that the FCSI – The Americas will become its not-for-profit corporation under the jurisdiction of the District of Columbia, which may mean the society’s HQ is moving from Louisville. FCSI - The Americas now will have its own set of by-laws and allows the Division to operate independently within the FCSI Worldwide bylaws, thus allowing the Board of Trustees increased flexibility to better represent the interests of its membership.
Stay tuned for more information as we get it.
Posted by Joseph Carbonara on October 3, 2008 | Comments (0)