.W B lack H istory M onth ’ f February 2, 2005 c ^. PageA9 BusiNESSftpfloce Diverse Perspectives Business Business Loan Process Can Help You Even If You Don’t Get the Money by C arolyn C ampbell T he P ortland O bserver W hat’s the first think you think o f when you imagine applying for a business loan? Does your stomach tighten? Do you envision your banker as Scrooge, hunched over your ap plication scowling at your finan cial records? Or, if you’ re like one o f my clients, you might feel over w helm ed at the thought o f creat ing a dense docum ent that takes you months o f precious tim e and resources. Moe M outon, owner o f It’s About Hair, knows the chai lenges o f being an A frican-American business owner. He has seen first hand the inequities o f getting a business loan. One o f the ben efits o f Portland’s reputation as the city o f small businesses is that banks are now working to serve minority businesses by pro viding tools and resources to make the process simpler, shorter and more beneficial. They need you. In fact, A lbina Bank has inten tionally set out to assist business owners from north and northeast Portland. T h at's the good news. W hile it’s still true that a small percentage o f businesses get ap proved on their initial request, Mary Edm eades believes the pro cess o f applying for a loan can help business succeed and keep a business from getting in over their head. So, w hether you are looking for money or simply wanting to focus your direction, the follow ing questions can serve you well. The key, be honest. And, take the time to address the areas o f un- Ford Recalls Trucks, SU Vs (A P )— Ford Motor Co. isrecall- ing nearly 800,000 pickups and sport utility vehicles because the cruise control switch could short circuit certainty and capitalize on your areas o f strength. W hy does y o u r business ex ist? W hy here? Why now? W h o ’s y o u r cu sto m er? This is a key question. Get specific and really describe your core customer. Include testimonials from clients who love your work. Ask your clients if they’ll speak on your behalf. It’s a great way to let them know how important their busi ness is to you. How’syourcredit? Yourbanker is more interested in you than your business, especially if your busi ness is new. They need to trust that you will repay the money. How secu re is y o u r business? Once they know about you, they want you to dem onstrate that your business doesn’t depend solely on you. They need to know that others are invested as much as you are. W h a t a re you financials? Be clear, concise and honest How will you navigate the h ard tim es? W hat I love about this is that it pushes you to think ahead and put consider scenarios that we often want to avoid. In the meantime, call your bank, ask them what programs they of fer to help small businesses suc ceed. O r check out financial insti tutions like Umpqua Bank and Albina Bank in The Pearl. Each of these has a special focus for help ing com munity businesses. Carolyn Campbell is a busi ness coach and marketing con sultant fro m northeast Portland sp e cia lizin g in h elp in g sm a ll business make a difference. For more information visit www.the coresource.com . and cause a fire under the hood. The recall affects approximately 792,000 Ford F - 150 pickups. Ford Expeditions and Lincoln N aviga tors from the 2000 model year. Also a ffe c te d are 2001 F -S e rie s Supercrew trucks that were made at the same time. New Specialists at Providence Five Portland neurologists and a stroke patient coordinator have been added to the local Providence Health System to meet the extraor dinary challenge o f those affected with neurological conditions. Dr. M ark Yerby is the new medi cal director o f the Providence Epi lepsy C en ter at Providence St. Vincent M edical Center. Much of his practice is focused on the ef fects o f epilepsy on pregnancy and treatm ent o p tio n s for pregnant women with the disease. Dr. M ichael M ega is the new d ir e c to r of P r o v id e n c e ’s A lzheim er’s D isease and Demen- Dr. Mark Yerby tia P ro g ram and the C en ter on A ging at P ro v id en ce M ilw aukie H ospital. Jo in in g the n eu ro lo g y sta ff at P ro v id e n c e P o rtla n d M e d ica l C e n ter are Dr. Jo sh u a Johnson, Dr. M ax D uncan and Dr. D avid W ilkinson. Jenny Richardson has been ap pointed stroke patient coordinator for the Providence Stroke Center. She will be responsible for estab lishing standardized processes and protocols for how stroke patients are cared for at all three Providence hospitals within the Portland ser vice area. Jenny Richardson C A N N O N 'S Minority Ownership Promoted RJB EXPRESS M a rrio tt In te rn a to doubling the num tional is boosting its b e r o f p ro p e r tie s efforts related to minor owned by minorities ity ow nership o f the over the next five years. co m p an y ’s franchise P rio r to jo in in g h o te ls and lo d g in g Marriott, Jenkins held properties. management positions T he co m p an y re in finance and opera cently named Norman tions for M cD onald’s K. Jenkins to lead an Corp. He is president e n h a n c e d d iv e rs ity and c h ie f executive Norman K. Jenkins o w nership initiative. officer for the National The hotel chain said it is committed Association o f Black Accountants. Local Business Owner Helps TriMet Lillian Tsai o f north Portland has been ap pointed by the TriM et Board of Directors to its seven-mem ber Citizens Advisory Com mittee on the Budget. In 2002, Tsai founded TsaiComms, a m arket ing and communications com pany specializing in strategic m arketing, ethnic com m unications, cross-cultural intelligence and com munity outreach. Her business was named on the Portland Business Journal’s “2003 Top 25 Minority Owned Businesses” after its first year of operation. Ford will notify owners o f the recall and dealers will deactivate the cruise control switch for free. Once the company has an adequate supply o f replacement switches, it will send another letter notifying ow ners that they can get their switches replaced. (FORMERLY CHUCK HINTONS) Catering & Take-Out O ur S pecialty : R eal H ickory S moked B ar -B-Q • Sandw iches • Salads • C h ick en • P o rk R ibs • B eef R ibs Sunday M onday T uesday W ed-Thurs Fri. & Sat. CATERING ALL EVENTS HOURS: 11 am - 8 pm I la m - 9 pm closed lla m - 9 p m II am - 10pm Try our new healthy & vegetarian menu items * * * N ew L ocation * * * 5410 N.E. 3 3 rd 503-288-3836 Lillian Tsai JO B S The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is currently recruiting for wildland fire positions. Positions include: • temporary seasonal (mostly during the summer months), • permanent seasonal (6-9 months), and • permanent full-time Recruitment period opens from December 13, 2004 to January 14, 2005. »•Ä r it For more information and to apply on-line, visit the following websites: ' v Pbnti» fcv 4 - a .. ArtfWBWflg Be known ns one of 'America's Finest.' Become an FBI Special Agent. 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