FastUpFront Small Business Blog

All predictions indicate that the economic recovery from the 2007-2009 US recession in will remain sluggish well into the next year. (No crystals balls needed.) According to the latest quarterly AP Economy Survey, economists are not very optimistic when it comes to the economic rebound. As opposed to earlier predictions, now they typically use words [...]

As the unemployment rate continues to hover around 9.5%, leaving consumer income depleted, many industries have been suffering. But not every industry has been hit hard by the recession. The truth is that for numerous companies business is booming as a direct result of the high unemployment rate. What are these industries, and why are they flourishing? [...]

As the economy continues to shed jobs, many have turned to or are considering starting their own businesses. There are numerous benefits to being self-employed- especially in recessionary times such as these. One just needs to know how and when to take advantage of them. The following is a rundown of some good reasons why [...]

According to recent research, retail sales have fallen over the last month even as the back-to-school shopping season gets into high gear, and industry forecasters claim that this does not bode well for the upcoming holiday season either.   (Image Credit) So the looming question for retailers big and small continues to be how to [...]

A few weeks ago, I posted this article offering a few tips on how small business owners can grow their businesses during the recession. As I noted in the post, even in this dismal economy some businesses are thriving. But for the majority of smaller businesses the focus has become just trying to hunker down [...]

There is a lot of difficult news out there these days. With all the talk about pension cuts, pay freezes, layoffs, bankruptcies, and government bailouts, the fact that some industries are not only surviving the recession, but thriving in it, may seem hard to believe. But the truth is that in the midst of all [...]

Yes, there are small businesses out there that are considering growth opportunities even as our current recession keeps a tight hold on our economy. But for those small businesses that are in this situation, any steps that they take to expand operations should be carefully implemented. Here are a few tips on how to responsibly [...]

There are several attractive incentives to investing in a franchise business. By buying into a franchise opportunity, you can take advantage of a proven business model and an established brand recognition, not to mention all the training and support that many of the major franchisers have to offer. But with the economy in a recession, [...]

In the midst of all the outrage surrounding AIG’s infamous bailout bonus packages, a surprising detail has emerged. The so-called “retention” bonuses were paid to 52 people who have packed up and left the company. Though one could perhaps argue that the people who left technically could afford to leave, and anyway they weren’t doing [...]

In several of my previous posts, I mentioned that hard economic times are known to be the harbinger of innovation and business opportunity. So I thought I would give you a few examples of some famous companies that got their start in the harshest of economic conditions: General Electric (GE). GE got its start in [...]