(Spencer)– Local economic development officials say they have a new tool available to help keep small businesses in the area. Kiley Miller, CEO of the Iowa Lakes Corridor Development Corporation tells KUOO news it’s being made possible by a grant from Google that was recently awarded to the Corridor and Buena Vista University…
“You might have heard that Iowa is getting older. We’ve got a lot of folks that are of gray haired age, just like me. And a lot of those folks are business owners. Now one of the things that happens is somebody owns a business, they build it, they grow it, they come to the end of their career and they haven’t adequately planned for what to do next. And in those cases we lose a lot of businesses. We’re talking literally thousands of businesses across the state that have owners that are ready to transition without a succession plan. So that’s what we’re trying to address right here.”
Miller says there was a lot of competition for the grant…
“There were 60 applications, I think there were five recipients. We got 170,000 bucks and we’re using that money in partnership with Buena Vista University to develop a program to support business succession. We’re calling it Match, Learn, Launch. Step one: match business owners with potential successors. Step number two: train up. The learn piece for those successors so they’re ready to own and operate their own thing. And then launch. It’s self-evident. Let’s get rolling. Now what I think is exciting is, okay, so that helps us keep our businesses here. But if we have a good cohort of business owners, we can actually buy some businesses into the community from other states. Now wouldn’t that be great, instead of business succession being something to be worried about, it’s something we see as an opportunity.”
Miller encourages those who are seeking more information about the program to contact the Corridor office…
“Everything you tell us is confidential and we will do everything we can to connect you with the resources to develop a plan to have a succession plan for your business so that you walk away happy to see your business continue to thrive when you’re not there.”
The Iowa Lakes Corridor Development Corporation can be reached at (712) 264-3474.
