Chambers of commerce and other economic development or business organizations contract with professionals to offer free or low-cost workshops Continue reading
Author Archives: Taura Costidis
Seed-stage Investors
Many startups rely on personal assets or family for initial funding. A leg up may be available through the following programs:
Continue readingFatPipe ABQ
FatPipe ABQ is a 10,000-sq-ft facility in the Lofts at Albuquerque High Courtyard that provides high-tech startups with a collaborative environment. Continue reading
Furniture Maker First New Mexico Manufacturer to Earn B Company Status
By Finance New Mexico
At Dapwood Furniture, artisans craft tables and bed frames using wood grown and harvested from American forests that are certified as sustainable by the Forest Stewardship Council. An Albuquerque charity gets leftover wood to use in projects that benefit people in need, and some goes to people who rely on wood for winter heating.
The company hopes to convert its smaller byproducts — sawdust and shavings — into useful products, such as biochar — a type of charcoal used to improve soil and plant health.
Every aspect of the business, in fact, is seen through the prism of sustainability and social responsibility. Continue reading
Small Business Week Winners Include Family Restaurant Veteran
By Finance New Mexico
Angela Atencio-Sanchez grew up busing tables at her parents’ restaurant on State Route 76 in Española, and she was promoted to working the cash register before going off to college and a career as an assistant comptroller for Santa Fe Public Schools.
Today the daughter of El Paragua Restaurant founders Luis and Frances Atencio is the president of Las Brazas Enterprises — a company that owns and manages El Paragua and El Parasol restaurant in Española. The business was just named this year’s Family Owned Small Business of the Year by the Small Business Administration in New Mexico. Continue reading
Albuquerque Pair Elevates Production of Private-Label Products
By Claudia Serrano, Projects Coordinator, New Mexico MEP
When Karen Converse of the New Mexico Manufacturing Extension Partnership met André and Keith West-Harrison, the Albuquerque men were manufacturing skin- and body-care products and marketing them to spas and salons from the garage of their Albuquerque townhome.
The self-described “chefs” used a KitchenAid mixer to blend their specialty natural and organic lotions, bath salts and balms. They then packaged and labeled the products for sale under their clients’ brand names.
When demand for their private-label products outgrew the pair’s minimalist operation, they contacted New Mexico MEP for help raising their production processes to match the business’s sophisticated marketing profile. Continue reading
Businesses Can Learn From Crisis Communications Mishaps
By Tom Garrity, President, The Garrity Group Public Relations
Good policy fosters good public relations, just as flawed policy fosters bad public relations.
New Mexico residents have only to look at recent crises at the Albuquerque Police Department, Waste Isolation Pilot Plant and state Human Services Department for proof of how an organization can exacerbate its situation with poor communication and vague, inconsistent messaging.
Business owners can learn from these examples how — and how not — to handle crisis communications. First they need to understand why high-profile accidents or events develop into stories with “legs” that carry them forward for weeks or longer. Continue reading
Entrepreneurs Connect With Experts
By Kathy Keith, Executive Director, Regional Development Corporation
Entrepreneurs who seek a “temporary, mutually beneficial relationship” with a scientist or engineer might get lucky at a new and innovative style of event that aims to stimulate potentially productive hookups. The May 14 event, called “The Eureka Effect,” is sponsored by the New Mexico Small Business Assistance (NMSBA) program, the Santa Fe Business Incubator (SFBI) and Los Alamos Connect, the principal economic development investment by Los Alamos National Security, LLC and Los Alamos National Laboratory, administered by the Regional Development Corporation.
The sponsors liken the event to “speed dating, only smarter.” They hope to match LANL scientists and engineers with entrepreneurs who need free technical or scientific assistance to solve their technical challenges. Continue reading
Coming to Terms: Document Spells Out Investor/Owner Relationships
An entrepreneur who’s ready to let investors contribute equity to her promising venture needs to shape an agreement that allows others to share in the rewards but lets her retain significant control over her creation.
The rough draft of that agreement is called a term sheet. It’s essentially the template for the legal contract that ultimately spells out the responsibilities and relationships of business partners.
Commonly used by professionals during pre-investment negotiations, a term sheet can also be used by small-business owners to discuss terms with investors, including friends and family members. The document aims to protect the interests of all parties to the deal and prevent the disputes that can destroy personal and professional relationships if things don’t work out as expected.
Continue readingSupreme Court Case Has Lessons for Mortgage Lenders
By Alexia Constantaras, Attorney at Law, Montgomery & Andrews, P.A.
Lenders that resell or buy mortgage loans might feel the impact of a February decision by the New Mexico State Supreme Court that affects their ability to foreclose if the borrower defaults.
The case, Bank of New York v. Joseph A. Romero, involved a Chimayó man who refinanced a mortgage he had taken on a home he inherited from his father decades earlier. Romero secured the original loan to open a business in Española; the 2006 Equity One refinance was done to pay off that older mortgage and other debts.
Romero claimed his business made approximately $5,600 per month, but Equity One didn’t confirm that information Continue reading