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Show Thursday, July 24, 2008 AMERICAN FORK CITIZEN Page 3 HELPING BUSINESSES tili ' ' .. " : I i I s i ' 1 ! j JjU JJ . I ! i j ' ilrj ' " t , , -V:' I I ! ! i Mil . Y I i 'i A LJJiLL1 LLL V i . & - a-' - 8 ?x;L 7 fi; c, X? -;-1..f' M; sv Ai. - ? i kff:i ' Tfc.si" ' , fir 1 "V. 1 ' JL MICHAEL RIOERTNorth County The Orem Small Business Development Center, located just west of Utah Valley University, assists startup business owners and entrepreneurs to navigate the often treacherous waters of becoming self employed. Among the center's staff are left to right consultant Marynika Miche, managing director Ken Fakler and consultant Laurie Ann Thomas. rem small business center aids entrepreneurs Michael Rigert NORTH COUNTY STAFF With the economic turmoil depleting personal finances, displacing employees and forcing some to go into new career paths, more and more Utah County residents are turning to self -employment to support themselves and their families. Floralyn Martinez, a master mas-ter hair stylist for 17 years, researched the possibility of opening her own salon last summer. It was at that time that she came into contact with the Orem Small Business Development Center located just west of Utah Valley University. Uni-versity. She didn't have a clue about the steps to starting her own business. "I'm an artist behind the chair but I'm computer illiterate," illiter-ate," she said. "I was either going to start up my own place or go to another salon." A free resource provided to entrepreneurs, startup businesses and existing merchants, mer-chants, the Orem Small Business Busi-ness Development Center is one in a network of such centers cen-ters across the state tasked with not only helping the self employed get into business, but stay in business, said Ken Fakler, the Orem center's managing director. Funded through the Small Business Administration, the state of Utah and Utah Valley University, the Orem center assists clients in applying for SBA loans, putting together a business plan, market research re-search and strategies, and learning the nuts and bolts of business ownership. It serves clients in both Utah and Wasatch counties. Martinez said Fakler and Orem center consultant Laurie Ann Thomas taught her how to write up a business busi-ness proposal, where to find resources, apply for funding and how to navigate the often treacherous waters of self employment. em-ployment. In October, Martinez and her husband, Marcos, opened Katumba's Day Spa and Salon, 1015 S. State Street in Orem, that offers a wide range of services from hair styling, massage therapy, skin care and esthetics. Their salon employees a full staff of stylists and therapists and business is slowly but steadily increasing, she said. "Ken is absolutely incred ible and knows what he's talking about," Martinez said. "It was a huge, huge help. I would say they are a major aspect of getting me started." With the housing slump and high gas and food prices hurting hurt-ing businesses and residents, Fakler said the center has seen a large influx of clients in recent months. From the newly unemployed to every , day people looking to earn some income on the side, the center's clients come from all walks of life and range in age from college-aged students to clients in their 70s. The center supports clients who owned businesses with dozens of employees to stay-at-home moms that want to take their e-Bay sales to the next level. The center works with about 35 to 40 new businesses a month, or nearly 500 per year. About 50 percent of the center's clients are women entrepreneurs, en-trepreneurs, Thomas said. "It's really an entrepreneurial entrepreneur-ial area," she said. Because approximately 80 percent of small businesses go under in the first five years, the center stresses the importance impor-tance of formulating a strong business plan and funding options as well as forming a long-term relationship with the owner to continue to provide pro-vide advice as their companies grow. Free classes on a variety vari-ety of related topics taught by professionals in the industry are also offered at the center. "We have very, very few businesses that go broke if they're doing the things we ask them to do," Fakler said. Just two weeks ago, Martinez Mar-tinez said Fakler stopped by her salon to inquire about her business's progress and see if there was anything he could do to help. Without the assistance as-sistance of resources like the Orem Small Business Development Develop-ment Center, she doubts if she would have taken the risk of living out her dream. "I would have probably ended end-ed up going to another salon," she said. "I wouldn't have had the guts to try go out on my own." For more information about the Orem Small Business Development De-velopment Center and the services ser-vices it offers, contact them at 863-8230, send an e-mail to sb-dcinfouvsc.edu sb-dcinfouvsc.edu or go online to www.uvsc.edusbdc. fjm$9G03DI i i lilt vi e; iiirriiii si i m L We carry building materials, paint, cabinets, lighting fixtures, furniture and appliances. BE5T PRICES ON LITTLE GIANT LADDERS! Donate all your surplus building materials, hardware, tools, and furniture to Habitat for Hu-manity Hu-manity to help Utah families and further our cause. 1 Habitat for Humanity 626 N. 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