A state-run program aimed at boosting business for local artisans—ranging from painters to syrup makers—and
turning them into a draw for tourists is in jeopardy because of dramatic funding cuts.
A company has started to organize logistics for trade associations and other groups that gather for conventions in Indianapolis
and want to "give back" to the city while they’re here.
The company, which guides working adults and their parents through the maze of decisions and agencies involved in care for seniors, plans to use the money primarily to augment its sales staff and operations.
In a recession, cash is a commodity few small businesses can spare. That’s why more businesses are trading goods and services without exchanging cash.
Asking our kids to take responsibility sometimes has unexpected consequences.
Bright Automotive and EnerDel are well known for their development of components for hybrid cars, but the region has several
other players poised to be big players in the sector. In fact, few realize that North America’s largest producer
of electric motors for hybrid vehicles is based northeast of Indianapolis, in Pendleton.
The Anderson-based Flagship Enterprise Center is on a roll. In the last two months, the small-business incubator
and growth-stage accelerator signed up two new clients: software developers Soveryn Inc. and Coeus Technology.
In the recession, folks with former big-company careers
are increasingly taking jobs with small businesses. For some downsized executives, it’s about the desperate need for
a paycheck. Others, who felt impotent and pigeonholed in corporations, discover they prefer the challenge of entrepreneurship.
Cristi Melson started Purrs & Gurrs 2-1/2 years ago with an idea and some fliers she distributed door to door. She
didn’t have a formal business plan then and still doesn’t.
If nothing else, you have to admire the patience shown by ExactTarget and Aprimo, two of the area’s hottest tech companies,
as they await better conditions to launch their initial public offerings.
Industry groups in the life sciences, medical and information technology realms have helped lure companies to the region
and foster upstarts. Funding is almost always an issue, but it’s not the only barrier. Getting medical
devices to market often requires product design, development and marketing resources that aren’t
always apparent to upstarts.
Eighteen students from Indianapolis’ Haughville neighborhood sold their wares— ranging from caps and sunglasses
to purses
to home-baked cookies—as part of a summer business-education program
for low-income youth.
For a city feverishly growing its technology and life sciences sectors, it seemed a bit anticlimactic last January when
Purdue University dedicated its new technology center with only one tenant. But the lone tenant in the $12.8
million complex, FlamencoNets, a high-tech telecommunications firm, is about to get some company.
Federal stimulus funds and greenhouse-gas legislation have the potential to spark a green version of the Gold Rush. Many Indiana
firms are retooling to sell products or services that are or might soon be in demand.
The Hamilton County Alliance economic development group has spun off its Entrepreneurship Advancement Center, which serves
fast-growing startup businesses in Carmel, Fishers, Noblesville, Westfield and the rest of Hamilton County.
Many young women who have participated in the Governor Bob Orr Indiana Entrepreneurial Fellowship program have landed at high-flying local technology firms.
More emerging life science companies have found life in the form of federal
Small Business Innovation Research grants.
After working in retail management for four years, Rich and Jodi Scheve decided to take business into their own hands—and
their own garage. Passing on business plans for Subway and South Bend Chocolate Co. franchises, the couple
skirted heavy franchise fees and started Twisted Wick Candle Co.
For four decades, Jim Ashby worked as a manufacturing floor manager, first for General Motors Corp., then, after a buyout,
for an Ingersoll Rand subsidiary. He likes to relax and fish, but Ashby considers himself too energetic for retirement. He’s
now 67 years old. And a first-time entrepreneur.
Certified public accountant Dave Norris bought a 1976 Good Humor truck and started his family-owned U Want Ice Cream mobile
route in 2007, aiming to make a personal connection with people—along with
a little extra money.
