The Friday Story ...

It's not hard to imagine.  It's a storyline that is seen weekly across the Main Streets of our nation.  I call it "The Friday Story."  Write the script, change the town, change the entrepreneur, change the season of year, change the race, change the gender, change all you will to make it fit your locale, but The Friday Story is true and its gut-wrenching and its painful to watch.  It's a story of struggle, of dedication, of courage and of perseverance.  It's the story of Main Street.

The Cases', owners of DressUp.

I know all too well the feel of The Friday Story.  I've had the pleasure of working for small businesses for a good portion of my high school and college life.  We had a florist in the family and I got the chance to learn a trade with my aunt Sarah and grandmother Lois in downtown Summerville, Georgia.  Floral business is hard work and can either be hectic or slow ... it seems there is no in-between.  For many small businesses, this concept of Feast or Famine can be daunting.  This is a premier character of The Friday Story.  Another adventure in small business came when I left for college.  Needing work to help pay the rent, I took up with a group of golden girls at Pittypat Junction Florist on South Lumpkin Street in Athens, Georgia.  Again, that trade skill paid off in a weekly check, but the theme of small business life continued.

Owning a small business and working for one are two very different things.  When my mother and two of her sisters decided to buy a restaurant in my hometown and offer up country cooking (which was delicious!), I saw even more of this Friday Story.  Having an understanding of its impact, particularly for those that work in downtowns, will become the basis of your professional success.  It will give you insight into the emotions, it will give you a glimpse of entrepreneurship, and most importantly it will reaffirm your dedication to the idea that moms and pops matter in the context of the place you are making.

The Friday Story is nothing more than this: small businesses work hard all week to make it and Friday is the day of decision for that business and its owner.   With each decision comes a cataclysmic crash of human resources, debt management, investment, and business growth.  Friday is payroll and account reconciliation day for most small businesses.  As an entrepreneur, this is the day that you decide if you can take home a paycheck for that week or not.  It also becomes the day that you decide the need for employees, the opportunity for business reinvestment and how to manage company debt. 

I love to tell people that the biggest difference between Downtown Development and Industrial Development is sustainability.  While it can be wonderful for a community to see a major industry land within its borders, often the job decisions related to that investment are not made locally.  Sometimes meetings in boardrooms in other states or countries will impact the livelihood of your neighbors and job cuts can come at tough times.  Downtown development is geared on Small Business Economic Development.  I have seen firsthand that entrepreneurs take the jobs of their employees to heart and to the wallet personally.  These employees are more than ID numbers in a system.  The businesses are run through the work of friends, family and neighbors.  In small business the employee matters.  There were many times that after the lunch shift on Friday (a biggie for small downtown restaurants) my Aunt would rush to the bank to make a deposit.  For a while, I thought it was to make sure that we didn't have too much cash on hand for the weekend.  While this might have been the case some weeks mostly it was because of something more too common for entrepreneurs.  She wanted to make sure there was enough cash in the account to cover payroll and expenses.  Checks were handwritten to employees every Friday, but never given out until after the close of the shift.  If it was a bad week for business, it didn't mean the employees felt the pain ... it meant the owners didn't take home any pay for themselves.  It meant that a vendor might have to wait an extra week for payment.  It meant that the terms of service with vendors might be jeopardized.  It meant more than just snap decisions. 

Friday's Story occurs everywhere.  Our small businesses work hard all week and are sometimes successful but sometimes fall further behind.  It would be easy to point them back to a business plan, advise them to personally invest more into the company or to liquidate some assets.  However, I can tell you that Friday is the day that you as a downtown professional will see the biggest swing in moods within your merchants.  The couple that is taking their staff out for a drink had a good week.  The owner of the shop down the street that sits in her car a few extra minutes after locking the door probably did not.  It's during these times that Main Street has to be aware of The Friday Story.  We have to celebrate the success of the week and encourage those that missed their mark.  We also need to be cognizant of the fact that many entrepreneurs may put on a good face, but struggle dearly to make it work.  Small business is a huge investment by entrepreneurs and their families.  I have seen failures result in foreclosed homes, bitterness, divorce, and even death.  We have to be able to read the face of the Friday Story and develop the personal approach to help entrepreneurs cope.  Here's a simple list of things to remember:

1.  Friday is not the day to ask for donations from businesses. In fact, it's not the day to bother most entrepreneurs.  They too are looking forward to the weekend, and this day is hectic enough.  Try communicating on a Tuesday instead.

2. Make sure local officials (particularly city council members, the city administrator, and other leadership) understand the dynamics of the downtown business community.  You can be a better help to entrepreneurs when those officials understand the downtown impact.  Know the number of employees, businesses, and property digest data for your downtown.

3. Never underestimate the power of a face to face visit.  You should see each business owner in your district at least once a quarter, but preferably on a monthly basis.

4. Make your business owners human.  It is easy to see the business when you see the person.   Try to get in their shoes.  Learn about their families, their hobbies, their dreams.  This will make you a better advocate for them.