Success Story: Kick Ass Beef Jerky

"When life gives you lemons, make lemonade" is an attitude we can all admire.  Bill Rocke might not know a lot about lemonade, but when faced with adversity, he's been pretty good at turning 35 years of hobby beef jerky recipes into a business with early signs of success. 

Bill was a carpenter up until about 3 years ago when he sustained a back injury that left him bedridden for almost a year.  During recovery, he began toying with the idea of turning his beef jerky production hobby into a business.  The Colorado Vocational Rehabilitation program expressed interest in providing funding for some of Bill's equipment needs if he could provide a feasible business plan.  That's when Bill got involved with the Leading Edge program through the Grand Junction SBDC. 

Bill wrote a successful business plan, received a mix of funding that included equity investment, a grant from Colorado Vocational Rehabilitation, and a loan through the Loan Fund of Mesa County.  He formalized Jerky Bill's KickAss Gourmet Beef Jerky, LLC, and after completing the rigorous requirements to meet USDA certification, which includes daily inspections, he began working on his distribution channels.  Consumers and businesses alike are drawn to Jerky Bill's great packaging.  The company already has 8 retail locations selling products, including Loco convenience stores and Alida's Fruits.  He's also received a commitment from Albertson's and one of Colorado's largest food distributors.

Short-term plans for the company include hiring 3 to 6 people within the next 12 months, as well as adding an additional $15,000 dehydrator.  Visit www.jerkybills.com to learn more about this delectable Colorado product!

SBDC Veterans Small Business Conference

Register Now!

Join us for "Real" Contracting Opportunities, educational seminars, one-on-one  counseling, valuable networking opportunities, and exciting  keynote speakers!

Date: May 25th and May 26th 2011

Time: 7:30 am - 5:00 pm

Location: Double Tree Colorado Springs

 1775 East Cheyenne Mountain Blvd.

 Colorado Springs, CO 80906

Price: Early Registration - $55, Late Registration - $65

Highlights:

• Meet Contracting Specialists and Learn Expectations
• Multiple Training Sessions
• Different Tracks to Meet Your Needs
• Speakers With Valuable Information
• Breakfast and Lunch Included

Register now at www.ColoradoSBDC.org

Update on the VA Hospital project: VA Hospital Update 4-18-11

Women-owned small businesses can begin taking steps to participate in a new federal contracting program. The WOSB Federal Contract Program will provide greater access to federal contracting opportunities for WOSBs and economically-disadvantaged women-owned small businesses (EDWOSBs). The program allows contracting officers, for the first time, to set aside specific contracts for certified WOSBs and EDWOSBs and will help federal agencies achieve the existing statutory goal of five percent of federal contracting dollars being awarded to WOSBs.

The new Women-Owned Small Business (WOSB) Federal Contract Program will be fully implemented over the next few months, with the first contracts expected to be awarded by the fourth quarter of 2011. "Implementing the Women-Owned Small Business contracting rule has been a top priority for the Obama Administration and SBA," said Administrator Karen Mills.

For more information please visit:  www.sba.gov/wosb

Learn About E-Verify

Now is the ideal time to ensure that employers and employees understand the E-Verify and the federal employment eligibility verification processes.  E-Verify is a fast, free, and easy to use internet-based service run by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Social Security Administration that allows employers to verify the eligibility of their newly hired employees to legally work in the United States.

E-Verify takes the Form I-9 process one step further.  It compares information provided on a Form I-9 against information in government records. In most cases, E-Verify tells the employer in just seconds if an employee is eligible to work in the United States. E-Verify isn't a database, but simply a secure way for employers to check new employee's employment eligibility information against existing records in the Social Security Administration, DHS and the State Department.

E-Verify is currently used by nearly 260,000 employers at more than 880,000 worksites.  E-Verify is growing rapidly, with more than a 1,000 new businesses enrolling each week.  For most employers, using E-Verify is voluntary and limited to verifying new employees only. Since September 2009, E-Verify is mandatory for many federal contractors. 

To use E-Verify, watch product overviews, and view tutorials please visit: www.dhs.gov/E-Verify. 

Are Federal Taxes Hinduring Your Success? Take Action...

The National Small Business Association (NSBA) today released the 2011Small Business Taxation Survey. This survey provides detailed insight on how America's small-business community is being impacted by federal taxes. In short: complexity and inconsistency with the tax code are depleting small businesses of their time and money merely so they can handle the administration of federal taxes. 

"One in three small-business owners spends two full work weeks every year dealing with federal taxes, and the overwhelming majority (87 percent) are forced to pay an outside accountant or other tax return preparer," stated Larry Nannis, CPA, NSBA chair and shareholder at Levine, Katz, Nannis + Solomon, P.C."The federal tax code is a massive resource drain for small businesses." 

Payroll taxes were ranked the most burdensome taxes-both financially and administratively-for small businesses. Only 44 percent of small businesses report using an external payroll company, and even those that do report a significant amount of time dedicated to dealing with payroll taxes. 

Given the relatively high number of small businesses that handle payroll internally, it's no wonder that the majority (63 percent) said the new W2 reporting requirement, beginning in 2012 that will require employers to report health care spending, will have a negative impact on their business. 

Please click here to view the full survey.

Governor's Bottom-Up Economic Development Tour

Round three of the Governor's Bottom-Up Economic Development Tour is set to kick off starting next month:

May 2nd - May 9th: 14 regional statement - synthesis meetings

May 16th: Regional Statements posted for ten days of public review and submitted for final edits to Governor John Hickenlooper

June 1st: Bottom-Up Tour webinar announcing final regional statements and state blueprint working group

June 14th: Draft of Statewide Economic Development Blueprint posted for ten days of public review and submitted for final edits to Governor John Hickenlooper

June 30th: Final Statewide Economic Development Blueprint  is presented

Follow this link for the full update: Bottom-Up Update 4-18-11

Upcoming SBDC Events

Denver Metro

Wednesday May 4th

Focus On Business

Featuring Colorado's successful business owner of Snooze - An AM Eatery

Cost: $10

Johnson and Whales University

Jared S Polis Auditorium

1900 Olive Street

Denver, CO 80220

5:30 - 7:30 pm

Please register with the Denver Metro SBDC.

South Metro Denver:

Wednesday, April 27th

Marketing Fundamentals

Marketing that Works! Discover what's Right for your Business

Cost: $25

South Metro Denver Chamber Center

6840 South University Blvd.

Centennial, CO 80122

6:30 - 8:30 pm

Monday, April 25th

Lender's Panel

Learn and Ask Questions About Funding Your Small Business

Cost: $10