Small Business Is Big Business

Today's Washington Post reports on Minnieland, a locally-based chain of daycare centers that now employees 1330 people, "three times the Prince William workforce of AOL and Eli Lilly combined."

"Indeed, as a surge of new residents pushes the region's boundaries to Stafford County in the southwest and Frederick County in the north, scores of companies have sprung up, piggybacking off the residential and economic boom. New developments may bear the names of big builders, but companies like Minnieland have benefited from the activity, serving households with child care, landscaping and tax preparation.

"Although government spending remains a foundation of the local economy, eight of 10 new jobs in the region are created at companies with fewer than 500 employees, from smaller government contractors themselves to day spas, builders and bookstores, according to Stephen Fuller, a professor of public policy at George Mason University.

"In the Washington area, small businesses make up the overwhelming majority -- 97 percent -- of all businesses and employ half of the workforce, according to the Small Business Administration."

This is not an unusual situation. Not only do they provide a good portion of the jobs, but they typically require no incentives to open and expand. So why do small businesses get so little attention?

  

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