Classes offer edge to small businesses

This is where the Small Business Development Center at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee can play a vital role.

A program of UWM's School of Continuing Education, the center offers professional development programs and resources for small-business owners, whether they are starting or growing a business.

Tim Peterson, the center's director, believes it's critical for small-business owners to tap into education to buffer the effects of a weak economy.

"We've found that many small-business owners are so busy, it's hard for them to get away from their businesses to develop themselves," Peterson said. "It's hard out there. There's a lot of bad economic news. If we can give people some skills, education and knowledge, it's going to help them to compete better.

When you're so busy concentrating on every phase of growing a business, it's hard to look up and realize that you may need additional training. This is especially true of minority entrepreneurs, who traditionally have underutilized small-business development programs. Since taking over the program in the fall of 2006, Peterson has been working to change that.

"We haven't had as much success as we would like," he said. "Our message to people is, you've got to take time to work on your business instead of in your business."

To make its programs more appealing to minority entrepreneurs, the development center offers grants and scholarships and works with the Milwaukee Public Library, the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Wisconsin and local churches to offer programs at their sites. Its Exploring Entrepreneurship series is held at several Milwaukee Public Library branches.

"The affordability and accessibility is something we try to target," says Sheree Walker-Armstrong, an SBDC outreach specialist.

From marketing to hiring

Entrepreneurs can take a variety of workshops and seminars that cover a range of core business principles such as budgeting and planning, improving cash flow, cost-effective marketing, building successful Web sites, hiring and firing, and managing conflict.

The entrepreneur training/business development program has been the most popular of the center's programs. This 12-week course is designed to give people entrepreneurial skills with emphasis on creating a feasible business plan.

Tom Steepy, 52, owner of Signs Now, a five-employee sign-maker at 17800 W. Blue Mound Road in Brookfield, is a recent graduate of the entrepreneur training program.

After working as a corporate executive for many years, Steepy was looking to purchase a business in the Milwaukee area. He used the center to learn the ropes of small business before flying solo. Steepy purchased Signs Now in November with a loan from West Bend Savings Bank.

Even though Steepy holds a bachelor's degree in architecture from UWM and a master's degree in engineering management from the Milwaukee School of Engineering, he believes people can never have too much education, especially when it comes to running a business.

"I wanted to learn what it meant to be a small-business owner. I had been in large corporations for 30 years, but I was never the sole owner of a business," Steepy said. "The education piece is invaluable. The training program makes you spend time thinking about how to run your business. It helps to point you to the things you need to be focused on."

Educational programs also provide an opportunity for small-business owners to network and share ideas. For example, Steepy said he learned that Signs Now was for sale through a contact he made through the Small Business Development Center.

"From my personal perspective, it was having an opportunity to meet other professional small-business people and the insight they offered that was invaluable," he said.

More than knowing a product

Rendall Thomas had a passion for wine and was looking to open a wine franchise but felt he needed to sharpen his financial knowledge before going into business. Last spring, he enrolled in several Small Business Development Center sessions after his wife told him about the courses.

Thomas, 55, is the owner of WineStyles, 17000E W. Blue Mound Road, in the Brookfield Fashion Center. WineStyles is part of a Florida-based franchise that categorizes wine by style, rather than by region or grape variety. Thomas opened his wine shop in January.

"I wanted to improve my knowledge of business from a financial perspective," said Thomas, a former TV news director who moved from New York to Wisconsin with his wife about two years ago. "You have to have the knowledge. If you can't get it formally, there's so much you can get out of these kinds of courses."

In any case, education can help a budding entrepreneur to understand that you have to ride the up-and-down cycles of business and not give up.

"Don't expect everything to be all rosy right away," Thomas said. "There are some days when only a couple of people will stop by the store. You've got to keep moving forward. You can't get discouraged."

Having a community resource such as the Small Business Development Center makes it easier to stay the course.

Tannette Johnson-Elie writes about how small businesses and start-ups are using networking and business associations to tap the expertise needed to grow. She can be reached at (414) 223-5172 or by e-mail at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it .