Sammamish Chamber to help small businesses drive revival

Whether or not the modern economy has much to do with ancient greek mythology, these days economists and analysts are remembering the story about the phoenix rising from the ashes.

Whether or not the modern economy has much to do with ancient greek mythology, these days economists and analysts are remembering the story about the phoenix rising from the ashes.

The crumbling economy, the ashes, is old news. What is new is what is sprouting up out of that economic wreckage, an unexpected bloom in the financial desert — entrepreneurship.

A new study released by The Kauffman Foundation has found more than half of the companies on the 2009 Fortune 500 list were launched during a recession. Researches have also found that job creation from startups is less volatile and sensitive to downturns than in the rest of the economy.

“Each year, new firms steadily recreate the economy, generating jobs and innovations,” the report states. “These companies may be invisible, or they may one day grow into household names. But they constantly come into being as individuals bring forth their economic futures.”

Many recently laid-off professionals on the Eastside are launching their own businesses as a way to create their own workplace.

Aware that the business energy is out there, the Sammamish Chamber of Commerce has struck a partnership with the Washington Business Center (WBC) and the Federal Small Business Administration (SBA), to offer information for businesses and entrepreneurs in the area.

WBC staff will hold free classes and free one-on-one sessions at the Chamber office at 704 228th Ave NE, suite No. 123, as well as a monthly class on how to start a business. Additional business counseling hours and classes will be made available if the demand is there.

And according to Carole Butkus of the Washington Business Center, it is.

“We have seen a dramatic increase in the number of people who are interested in starting their own businesses,” she said. “The increase was primarily created by the layoffs that occurred due to the recession.”

Butkus said that people were being encouraged to be their own employer by the wealth of resources available.

“There is a lot of help available,” she said. “All types of business classes, SBA programs and at the community colleges, plus business technical assistance at no charge through the SBA programs.”

“There are a lot of creative people in Sammamish and Issaquah, people who see market opportunities,” she said. “In Sammamish, there are a significant number of home-based businesses, which indicates that the entrepreneurial spirit was alive and well even before the recession started.”

For the full text of our interview with Carole Butkus, see our story online at www.sammamish-reporter.com

For more information on the Sammamish Chamber of Commerce, go to www.sammamishchamber.org