Today, BizEngine is hitting you with a piping-hot plate of news from around the world of franchise. Get your forks and knives ready!
Small Biz Borrowing Up
It seems like a long while since we had any good news on the borrowing front. I’m only too happy to deliver some.
A recent Thomson Reuters/Paynet survey found that small business borrowing is up 26 percent in May over a year ago. That’s the largest single rise in a very, very long time, and it’s made more impressive by the fact that May is usually a pretty good month for small businesses. The fact that they’ve been able to get any access to capital, given the climate, is just shy of remarkable.
Why does this matter from a franchise perspective? If small businesses are able to borrow more and are doing so, it follows that franchises will be able to, as well. Let’s hope this boom ends up being a sustainable one.
However….
Grim News Follows
It’s not all merry. The Wall Street Journal reports that the borrowing trends were very bad between the beginning of the year and the end of March (which we knew) and that access to credit is actually tightening (which I’m pretending I didn’t know).
How to reconcile the current volume with the access piece? Simple. It’s the smallest of the small businesses who are finding it the most difficult to get the lending they so clearly need, because of their size and the credit struggles that come with that.
Banks face their own challenges, but they need to make credit available. Small business lenders like Direct Capital will step into the void if they do not; indeed, they already have.
Paint And Sip, But Not From The Same Bottle
It’s also fascinating to see what businesses rise to the top in a given year. Right now, it appears the “paint and sip” crowd is doing pretty well.
This is an entrepreneurial opportunity that is both strikingly simple and kind of awesome. People come in, learn a particular style of painting and drink. Effects on their future Mona Lisas aside, it’s a gathering place for artists of all stripes, a decent business model given the price of lessons and wine, and a niche that hasn’t been filled to this point.
Sounds like fun to me.
A Franchise Trend Report From Direct Capital
Over at our sibling blog, PointBlank, we’ve got a brief breakdown of some of the emerging trends in the world of franchise. Be sure to read the whole thing!
Franchise links to share for future editions? Leave them in the comments, please!
Photo credit to ColinBrough at http://www.sxc.hu/photo/1340017
Follow Us On Twitter | Join BizEngine On Facebook | Subscribe To BizEngine By E-mail
Subscribe via RSS
Follow on Twitter
Connect on LinkedIn
Connect on Facebook
Loading ...