NH Enterprise: How weak are small companies in New Hampshire? – WMUR Manchester

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WELCOME TO NEW HAMPSHIRE’S BUSINESS. I’M FRED COKER. JUST HOW VULNERABLE OUR SMALL BUSINESSES IN NEW HAMPSHIRE. IN NEW ENGLAND. BECAUSE OF INFLATION. SUPPLY CHANGE IN AN EXPECTED RECESSION. WELL, THERE ARE TWO SURVEYS AND A POLL THAT ARE OUT THAT GIVE US A CLUE. SURVEY HALF OF SMALL BUSINESS OWNERS AREN’T CONFIDENT THEY COULD FIND AN UNPLANNED AND $5,000 EXPENSE. ANOTHER SURVEY FOUND THAT MOST SMALL BUSINESS OWNERS HAVE APPLIED FOR A LOAN OR OTHER FORM OF CREDIT IN THE LAST 12 MONTHS. AND FINALLY, THE POLL, FULLY 93% OF SMALL BUSINESS OWNERS ARE WORRIED ABOUT THE U.S. ECONOMY EXPERIENCING A RECESSION IN THE NEXT 12 MONTHS. WITH ME TO TELL US WHAT THEY’RE SAYING AND HOW THEY CAN HELP ARE ACTUALLY TWO INDIVIDUALS IN OUR OWN BACKYARD. AND DETROIT AND REGIONAL ADMINISTRATOR OF THE U.S. BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION, MICHAEL GLASSER, WHO IS ALSO A FORMER ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR HERE IN NEW HAMPSHIRE. AND THE DISTRICT DIRECTOR, THE U.S. SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION IN NEW HAMPSHIRE. AND BASSETT, WHO HAS BEEN WITH SBA SINCE 1990, IN NEW HAMPSHIRE AND MAINE. WELCOME MANY AND WELCOME. MICHAEL, MY QUESTION TO YOU BOTH, WHAT ARE YOU SEEING RIGHT NOW FOR SMALL BUSINESS OWNERS COMING TO SBA FOR FINANCIAL HELP GIVEN THE INFLATION AND GIVEN THE FACT THAT THEIR RECOVERING FROM PANDEMIC? AMY, SO SMALL BUSINESS OWNERS FACE UNIQUE AND BIG CHALLENGES ON A DAILY BASIS. THEY WEAR MANY HATS AND HAVE TO BE REALLY ASTUTE AT ADAPTING AND FORESEEING HOW THE CURRENT AND UPCOMING CHANGES ARE GOING TO IMPACT THEIR BUSINESSES. AND DURING MY TIME AT THE SBA, I’VE BEEN REALLY IMPRESSED WITH THE RESILIENCY AND THE COMMITMENT THAT SMALL BUSINESS OWNERS HAVE TO THEIR BUSINESSES AS WELL AS THEIR EMPLOYEES. MICHAEL, WHAT ARE YOU SEEING RIGHT NOW? I MEAN, GIVEN THE CURRENT CONDITIONS? THE REALITY IS, IS THAT, YOU KNOW, EVERY JOB THAT WAS LOST DUE TO THE PANDEMIC HAS COME BACK AND THEN SOME. WE HAVE SEEN RECORD GROWTH IN NEW BUSINESS APPLICATIONS NATIONALLY AND KNOW AS MY FACT, THERE WERE 5.4 MILLION APPLICATIONS IN 2021 AND THAT’S A 30% INCREASE FROM PREVIOUS YEARS. AND THE REALITY IS THAT WE KNOW THAT THERE WAS A $5 BILLION INVESTMENT MADE IN NEW HAMPSHIRE ALONE IN PANDEMIC ERA PROGRAMS LIKE KEEP AND IDLE. WE’VE BEEN ABLE TO FORGIVE A LARGE PERCENTAGE OF THE PPE LOANS, AND WE’RE DEFERRING A LOT OF PAYMENTS ON IDLE TO HELP GIVE THOSE BUSINESSES A LITTLE BIT OF RELIEF AS THE FACTORS THAT YOU’VE DESCRIBED, THE GLOBAL INFLATION THE SOME OF THE CHALLENGES THAT WE ARE STARTING TO SEE A LITTLE BIT OF IMPROVEMENT, IF NOT STEADY IMPROVEMENT, BUT IT’S A WORK IT’S A WORK IN PROGRESS. I’M VERY EXCITED ABOUT THE RECENTLY SIGNED INFLATION REDUCTION ACT BY PRESIDENT BIDEN. I’M HONORED, OBVIOUSLY, TO SERVE IN THE ADMINISTRATION. I’M THE FIRST PERSON FROM NEW HAMPSHIRE TO BE IN THIS ROLE. BUT THE REALITY IS, YOU HIT IT ON THE HEAD. THERE’S A LOT OF WORK THAT NEEDS TO BE DONE. YOU WILL APPRECIATE THIS MORE THAN ANYBODY. WE’VE SEEN GROWTH IN EXPORTS. SBA PROVIDES SUPPORT THROUGH ITS STEP PROGRAM. WE SAW A 20% INCREASE IN FINDING NEW MARKETS ABROAD FOR OUR BUSINESSES, AND WE’VE SET RECORDS FOR GOVERNMENT CONTRACTING FOR SMALL BUSINESSES. IN THE PAST YEAR, EXCEEDING THE PRESIDENT’S GOALS. JUST FOR OUR VIEWERS SAKE, HERE IS A GRAPHIC WITH SOME OF THE PROGRAMS THAT YOU RUN. AND THESE ARE THE MOST POPULAR ONES. I KNOW, SEVEN AA LOAN PROGRAMS, SHORT LONG TERM WORKING CAPITAL, THE AA LOAN PROGRAM, ECONOMICALLY DISADVANTAGED FIRMS, INDIVIDUALS, THE FIVE OR FOUR LOAN PROGRAM, LONG FINANCIAL AID AND MICROLOAN PROGRAM UP TO $500,000 THAT ARE STARTUPS AND EXPANSION. WHAT IS THE MOST POPULAR LOAN PROGRAM RIGHT NOW? MICHAEL I KNOW. CERTAINLY AMY HAS HER VEER TO THE GROUND THE MOST, A SEVEN DAY, ONE OF THE MORE POPULAR AMY. I WOULD CERTAINLY SAY ALL OF THE SBA LOAN PROGRAMS ARE GOING TO BE HEAVILY UTILIZED IN TIMES OF UNCERTAINTY. SEVEN EIGHT IS MOST LIKELY USED BECAUSE OF THE WIDE DIVERSITY OF PURPOSES THAT CAN BE USED FOR. BUT FOR BUSINESSES LOOKING TO EXPAND AND WE KNOW MANY BUSINESSES AS THEY’RE LOOKING TO BORROW, BUT MANY DO HAVE CAPITAL ON HAND. AND THIS IS AN ONGOING EFFECT OF SOME OF THE PANDEMIC RELIEF PROGRAM. OMS, WHERE SBA DEPLOYED $5 BILLION IN NEW HAMPSHIRE THROUGHOUT THESE PROGRAM. SO BUSINESSES DO HAVE MANY BUSINESSES HAVE ACCESS TO CAPITAL RIGHT NOW TO MAKE THESE INVESTMENTS. AND THEY’VE NOW CREATED GREATER RESILIENCY. AND THE OTHER THING I WANT TO MAKE SURE WE TALK ABOUT IS OUR SBA PARTNERS WHO PROVIDE THE TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE. THESE ARE THE NO COST SERVICES THAT CAN BE PROVIDED BY THE NEW HAMPSHIRE SMALL BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CENTER SCORE AND THE CENTER FOR WOMEN AND ENTERPRISE TO HELP PEOPLE WHO ARE LOOKING TO MAKE SOME DECISIONS AND MAKE SOME IMPACTS WITH THEIR BUSINESSES. MY THANKS TO MICHAEL BLANCHARD, NEW ENGLAND REGIONAL ADMINISTRATOR OF SBA AND AMY BASSETT THAT JUST A DIRECTOR IN NEW HAMPSHIRE FOR SBA. THANKS A LOT. AND IF YOU MISSED PART OF THIS BRIEFING ON SMALL BUSINESS, YOU CAN GO TO WMUR DOT COM WHE