By Joshua Archer
Staff Writer
CARIBOU, Maine — Members of the U.S. Small Business Administration came to The County last week to honor local businesses as well as to hear from local business leaders.
The U.S. Small Business Administration announced C.B. Smith, CEO of Virtual Managed Solutions, LLC in Caribou received the U.S. Small Business Administration’s 2015 Veteran Small Business Owner of the Year Award for Maine. VMS was nominated by Mary Dahlgren of Northern Maine Development Commission.
“We like to promote these businesses so they can be role models in their community and often help small businesses grow and succeed,” New England regional administrator for the SBA Seth Goodall said.
“It’s a great honor. I’m very surprised to be recognized by the SBA, and thrilled to be recognized by NMDC. They have been a great partner of ours. They have given me an abundance of education and guidance,” Smith said.
Caribou City Manager Austin Bleess was aware of the benefits an award from the SBA can have for small businesses and said that this honor is a great achievement for VMS.
“SBA awards are always a coveted thing and they aren’t handed out lightly. It just goes to show all the great work they do here at VMS,” Bleess said. “This award certainly spotlights Caribou as a business friendly area. We work closely with NMDC to help businesses locate and grow here. We’ve got a lot of great things happening with growth and expansion here in Caribou and this just adds one more feather to that cap.”
Next on the list of honorees, nominated by Craig Staples of Katahdin Trust, was Presque Isle’s Irish Setter Pub who received the U.S. Small Business Administration’s 2015 Women Small Business of the Year Award.
“We’re very proud of what they’ve been able to do and grow their business since Debbie Gustin took that over just a few years ago,” Goodall said.
Owner of Irish Setter Pub, Debbie Gustin, was overwhelmed by the acknowledgement, but pleased just the same.
“It was totally unexpected. I think it just added publicity to make more people aware what SBA and your local bank can do for you,” Gustin said.
“We do a very thorough vetting of their financials making sure they’re a healthy business, that they’re poised to grow, that they are committed to the community, and overall very well rounded. We believe strongly that small businesses are not only the backbone of our economy but often the backbone of our community and our main streets,” Goodall said.
The SBA honors small businesses with the hope of alerting entrepreneurs of the services that are out there for them in their community. The SBA not only helps with the access of capital, but also offers technical assistance in terms of business know-how, which they provide for free.
Both Smith and Gustin are invited to a formal SBA reception on May 5 at the Augusta Country Club in Manchester.
On April 2 the SBA hosted a business roundtable discussion at the Northern Maine Development Commission to discuss opportunities for strengthening economic development in the small business space.
Resource providers, nonprofit economic officials, local as well as state and federal government agencies in addition to lenders both credit unions and banks were on hand for the discussion.
“Small businesses dominate the Maine economy which is very positive. We want to make sure we’re coordinating and collaborating so the services are developed and implemented in the most effective way possible,” Goodall said.
The SBA guarantees loans with lenders, credit unions as well as banks who do all of the heavy lifting in terms of processing a loan and underwriting and servicing loans. The SBA likes to hear from local lenders so they may learn from them to make lending a more efficient process, which will ultimately get money into the hands of small businesses in a more affordable and timely manner.
“The best suggestions come from the field. The ones that are working every day. And we not only want to take that back to our offices here locally and regionally, but also to Washington, D.C. so we can improve our programs,” Goodall said.
The SBA averages 45 loans in The County each year.
“We also provide a government backstop to micro lenders that are non profit lenders such as NMDC who provide small loans under $50,000 often in the $4,000, $5,000, to $10,000 range that really help business start such as VMS,” Goodall said.
SBA and NMDC encourage small business owners who may not have the business know-how and the experience on cash flow analysis, preparing for a loan or a business plan to seek their services available in Aroostook County.
