Column: Small business support

This time of year, we hear a lot about the importance of shopping local. And for good reason. 

As the holiday season approaches, we’re reminded that where we spend our money matters. A purchase from a locally owned business does more than put something under the Christmas tree. It helps support jobs, families and the businesses that give our communities much of their character.

Whether we’re supporting a neighborhood retailer, a favorite restaurant or a nonprofit doing important work, we’re investing in the place we call home. According to the American Independent Business Alliance, independent retailers return more than three times as much money to their local economies per dollar of sales as national chains. 

But there’s another side to that equation we don’t always think about. What does it take to create those local businesses in the first place? 

Behind most successful small businesses is someone who took a chance. Someone who had an idea, saw an opportunity or believed there was a better way to do something. But having a good idea is one thing. Turning it into a viable business is something else entirely. 

That’s where this month’s Insights takes us. 

Reporter Taylor Inman introduces us to people and resources at Flathead Valley Community College that help aspiring entrepreneurs get their footing while helping established businesses find their next chapter. 

At the Small Business Development Center, Rob Driscoll draws on decades of experience to help entrepreneurs navigate everything from business plans and financing to the challenges of growth. Just down the hall, the Wachholz Innovation and Entrepreneurship Center is building a network of mentors, experts and fellow entrepreneurs who can help one another succeed. 

Consider Paige and Eric Fitzgerald of Whitefish, whose frustration with spilled drinks on their paddleboards eventually led to Floatsup, a business whose products are now sold in stores across the country. 

Their journey has involved plenty of trial and error, considerable ingenuity and more than a few unfamiliar challenges. Guidance from the Small Business Development Center has helped them along the way. 

Their story illustrates something we sometimes overlook when talking about economic development. We tend to think in terms of recruiting employers, attracting investment and creating jobs. All important, certainly. But sometimes economic development is as simple as helping someone who already lives here figure out how to turn a good idea into a sustainable business. 

That’s an important part of the role FVCC plays in our regional economy. 

Supporting local doesn’t begin or end at the cash register. It’s something we build together year-round.