Fastest Path to Cash

Posted on by Janice Benggio

Often, pre-venture business owners want to develop a business that they want to become a multi-million-dollar business prior to conducting any business planning. With no access to capital, other than debt financing, the venture could be years away from reaching break-even or profitability if the project ever gets started. Consider these points.

  • Instead of building a business that requires large fixed costs and infrastructure, try reevaluating how your company can develop cash flow more quickly.
  • Review your customers and think of business-to-business clients who could benefit from your product or service. Think of different avenues of sales.
  • Contemplate these examples. If you are selling a custom handmade item, instead of renting or purchasing brick-and-mortar, offer your products as an item that can be sold by other retailers, and market it as locally sourced and homemade by a veteran-owned business. Work out a consignment-based pricing model and an agreement that you will supply their store with your product exclusively.
  • Remain true to your central deliverable. If you sell barbeque sauce, do not pivot to a barbeque restaurant. Continue producing barbeque sauce, but find alternative methods of distribution. Then, multiply that idea.

By starting small and growing your business, you will build a sustainable company that will reach break-even, avoid debt financing, and start your cash flow more quickly when cash is needed most, in the early stages of operations.

Allowing a business to grow organically may seem reminiscent of farmers or ecological sustainability; it is both.

When a company identifies a customer base, has conducted adequate and appropriate testing to either prove or disprove the expectations of the market and then has evaluated how to improve the product, once those improvements are implemented, the company is ready to launch.

By evaluating and reevaluating a product, the business owner is able to meet the expectation of the market. While this is often done during the pre-launch phase, it can also be done while in business. The latter can help the business to accelerate cash flow and build trust among customers, whose opinions about the value of a product are essential.

The fastest path to cash is to start something, test it, improve it, replicate it. This only works if a market has been identified and proven.  A business can grow organically as it matures and pivots to meet customer satisfaction, while establishing a customer base and cash flow.

This process of nurturing a startup business allows for more managerial control of operations at every level which is good preparation for future growth. A company can grow organically by operating from cash flow before approaching a lender or investor. The proof is in the numbers; the company has identified and executed a concept, customers and sustained growth. Cash flow is the fastest path to cash.

Written by Brenton Peacock, Director VBOC Florida
June 11, 2020

The Florida Veterans Business Outreach Center is funded in part through a Cooperative Agreement with the US Small Business Administration. All opinions, conclusions and/or recommendations expressed herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the SBA.

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Florida VBOC Team’s COVID-19 Response

Posted on by Janice Benggio

 
The Florida VBOC staff consists five very talented people with very diversified skill sets working from our offices at Gulf Coast State College in Panama City, Florida. When the college closed down for more than two months in March 2020, the VBOC had to pivot, like businesses nationwide did. We immediately geared up to work from home and continued supporting veteran clients with their business start-ups and expansion plans. 

One of the greatest needs of VBOC clients was financing their businesses and making payroll for their staffs during the COVID-19 shutdown. Florida VBOC Business Analyst, Janice Benggio, utilized her IT/website skills to add a section to the VBOC website entitled COVID-19 Resources. She has updated on a real-time basis on government and non-government financial resources that greatly aided not only our clients but also anyone we interacted with that could benefit from the information. The other four VBOC team members Brent Peacock/Director, John Miller and Jamie Shepard/Business Analysts, and Savanna Davis/Administrative Assistant, assisted Janice in keeping the website content current and viable.

With virtual collaborative input from the team we were able to find, evaluate and purchase licenses for a virtual meeting tool, as well as cameras and headset/microphones to use for virtual Boots to Business training as Florida military installations remain closed.

The surprise for the team was that instead of a greatly reduced workload, a lot of people who were off work or struggling to keep their businesses open realized that we were a valuable resource and continued to seamless work at full capacity from home. We continued supporting our existing and new clients in an effective and professional manner and received many favorable comments for our support. The VBOC team met at least weekly for online teleconferences and met with the Office of Veterans Business Development remotely for the weekly national teleconferences.

We met the challenge of effectively working from home for an extended period with only a few hours’ notice, and on 1 June 2020 we transitioned back into office work with hardly a ripple.

Written by John Miller, Florida VBOC Consultant
June 8, 2020

The Florida Veterans Business Outreach Center is funded in part through a Cooperative Agreement with the US Small Business Administration. All opinions, conclusions and/or recommendations expressed herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the SBA.

Federal Government Contracting – What You Need to Know

Posted on by Janice Benggio

The federal government contracting system is very complicated and bureaucratic. Unfortunately, much of the training, including webinars, classroom sessions, and printed materials are expensive and presented at such a high level that individuals trying to get started in government contracting and even those trying to expand their businesses get discouraged easily.

With that in mind, we set out to produce a simple, easy-to-follow guide that begins with “Does the Government even need your product or service”? Our guide covers the entire government contracting process in a step by step, page by page manner. It dispels myths and misunderstanding about government contracting in general, explains the federal SAM registration process, thoroughly covers marketing and finding procurement opportunities at the federal agencies as well as prime contractors, provides the tools for success, and includes links to just about everything you need to get started and then some…at no cost to you and readily available online at our website, www.VBOC.org.

Our initial distribution of this guide to our newer clients has resulted in some very positive comments about its simplicity and ease of understanding the subject matter. It is ideal for transitioning military personnel planning to enter the government contracting arena, and for established veteran small businesses that need a greater understanding of how to market to the government and prime contractors, and where and how to get no-cost assistance from every government agency.

Please feel free to review the presentation and provide your feedback/comments. We are striving to provide the most comprehensive, current and easy-to use information available.

Written by John Miller, Florida VBOC Consultant

June 3, 2020

The Florida Veterans Business Outreach Center is funded in part through a Cooperative Agreement with the US Small Business Administration. All opinions, conclusions and/or recommendations expressed herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the SBA.