Small Biz Survival

What Our Research Has Revealed About Rural Entrepreneurship Support

Marci Goodwin — Mon, 27 Apr 2026 18:04:25 +0000

By Marci Goodwin, co-founder of SmartStart Business Development Over the past few months, the SmartStart Business Development team has been deep in the weeds researching rural entrepreneurship programs to better understand what is actually happening on the ground with local microbusinesses and how communities support them. Microbusinesses are those with less than 10 employees and make up…

Source

Let’s Talk Newspapers: Working Together Locally

Deb Brown — Fri, 17 Apr 2026 14:02:23 +0000

Hometown newspapers are small businesses, just like the hardware store, the cafe, or the auto repair shop. They’re not just “media.” They’re employers, sponsors, storytellers, and neighbors, and their work ripples through every corner of the community. This year, collaboration is a focus of ours at SaveYour.Town, and I want to talk about how newspapers and local businesses can truly work…

Source

The Treasure Hunt Economy: exciting retail experience for small towns

Small Biz Survival — Fri, 10 Apr 2026 11:54:34 +0000

I’ve been noticing something interesting happening across the small towns we work in, and I don’t think it’s temporary. In a time where inflation is still pinching wallets, customers aren’t just spending less, they’re shopping differently. They’re hunting. Not just for cheap, but for value, uniqueness, and the thrill of the find. You see it everywhere right now. Packed thrift stores…

Source

Review of The Idea Friendly Guide book by Becky McCray

Small Biz Survival — Mon, 06 Apr 2026 14:09:05 +0000

Thank you to Paula Jensen, one of our contributors, for sharing her thoughts on my book, The Idea Friendly Guide. I’m particularly honored because Paula has worked and lived in rural communities for decades. She sees and understands small towns in a way that few people do. She liked the guide so much, she ordered copies to share with others and hopefully spark community book and action clubs! …

Source

How a Two-Alarm Fire Almost Ended Our 30-Year Candle Business, But Didn’t

Small Biz Survival — Fri, 03 Apr 2026 11:42:03 +0000

I run A Cheerful Giver out of Elmer, New Jersey. The population is about 1,300. We make candles. Been at it since 1991. January 11, 2025, I got the phone call. Our building was on fire. Two-alarm. They had to bring in trucks from Gloucester County to help put it out. By morning there was nothing left. Thirty-something years of equipment, raw materials, finished product. Gone. So yeah.

Source

Want to Open a Cafe? Start With Wing Night Wednesdays

Becky McCray — Fri, 13 Mar 2026 21:58:35 +0000

You want to open a place to eat in your small town. Maybe a coffee shop, a little cafe, a bakery. You’ve been thinking about it for months, maybe years. But you’re not sure if enough people will come. You don’t know what they’ll actually order. You’re not certain you can handle running it day after day. Here’s how to find out before you spend serious money: borrow the community hall and start…

Source

Want your town to do well? Welcome new people as leaders

Paula Jensen — Sun, 01 Mar 2026 19:34:56 +0000

In small rural communities, leadership matters. But are we unintentionally shrinking our own leadership pool? We care deeply about who leads. We trust the people who show up, pitch in, and carry history with them. But over time, we’ve absorbed quiet assumptions about who qualifies as a leader, and those assumptions may be holding us back more than we realize. We assume leaders must be deeply…

Source

Small town marketing secret: Have something to invite people to

Becky McCray — Tue, 24 Feb 2026 21:33:29 +0000

You’re supposed to be exciting enough to pull people away from their phones, their families and the comfort of online shopping. You’re competing with everything else demanding their attention. Here’s the big secret: You don’t have to create all that energy yourself. Your community probably already has regular events that pull people out of their homes. Art walks. First Fridays.

Source

More experience-based retail: the Charm Bar, Valentine’s Rose Bouquet Bar

Becky McCray — Sat, 14 Feb 2026 18:24:57 +0000

Following up on the trend of rural experience-based retail, I spotted these Valentine’s Day offerings from my local women’s boutique, The Daisy Village. I’m seeing more and more use of the term “Bar” to refer to any assemble-your-own type experience. Think like a salad bar, where you pick just the parts you want, but for anything from western hats to charm bracelets. The fun of picking your…

Source

Buy Inventory Online Using Wholesale Apps: Tips for Small Town Retail Stores

Becky McCray — Wed, 04 Feb 2026 21:01:11 +0000

I walked into a local retail shop in Alva, Oklahoma, population 4,000. It’s called Bates & Co., and they are best known for their handcrafted hairbows for infants and kids. But when I walked into their store, they had all kinds of things under one roof: women’s clothes, fashion jewelry, travel accessories and more. It was a rural women lifestyle kind of shop. I asked the owner where she…

Source