Greg Kraupa, OD
Economic Gardening is a project managed by the National Center for Economic Gardening and hosted by the Edward Lowe Foundation. This is a nationwide program, but it is carried out at a county level and funded by county governments. The purpose is to help small and mid-sized businesses grow. Specifically it targets businesses with 6 to 99 employees that have been in business for at least three years in the county and are ready to expand, but could use help to achieve that growth. Through an application process, 15 business owners are picked to participate. Over the course of a year these business owners will meet in eight full group forums and four smaller group forums. The forums will be led by Steve Quello. In addition, each business will receive 50 hours of customized one-on-one consultation from a team of advisers using business tools employed by Fortune 500 companies. Only business owners with an ability to make decisions for the company will be considered. You cannot delegate this opportunity to employees. The motivation for the county is to retain existing jobs, grow new jobs and expand the tax base by growing established small and medium businesses already functioning in the county.
Steps:
Contact your county’s Housing and Redevelopment Authority and see if they are participating in Economic Gardening. If they are, apply to be a participating business.
Investment:
No monetary investment, just your time and effort.
Benefit:
Grow revenue through infusion of new business tools, wisdom sharing and networking with local businesses.
