GEORGIA:The University of Georgia Small Business Development Center(SBDC) in Rome helped create 34 new businesses across its 13-county service area last year.Area Director Richard Montanaro said the organization has always had the same territory Floyd, Chattooga, Walker, Dade, Catoosa, Whitfield, Murray, Gilmer, Gordon, Fannin, Paulding, Pickens and Bartow counties .Montaro said he is prohibited from identifying specific clients but his office assisted in the injection of more than $8 million into new and existing businesses last year.
The SBDC typically works closely with stakeholders like chambers of commerce and lending institutions. The consultants meet at client locations, and quite frequently clients will make the drive to the office.“It’s been very helpful to us to have their physical presence,” said Al Hodge, president of the Greater Rome Chamber of Commerce. Montanaro said the clients who come to the SBDC looking to open a new service could be divided into three groups.Some are inspired by a vision, know what they want and come for help in refining their vision into a business.
“They tend to be action-oriented people and risk-tolerant,” Montanaro said. “We sometimes can help them avoid some of the pitfalls of opening a business under capitalization, not planning properly, not researching the market properly. They oftentimes suffer from I call the pitfall of ‘ready, shoot and aim.’ We help them with the process and some planning and try to give them the best shot at success.”Then there’s what Montanaro refers to as the second-career entrepreneur, a group he is seeing more of lately. Those are workers approaching retirement age who determine they either want or need some additional income and decide to open a business.The third group, Montanaro said, is made up of serial entrepreneurs, people who have started multiple businesses.
