3c hapter - Index of
3c hapter - Index of
3c hapter - Index of
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50 Locavesting<br />
to keep in our lives. For me, it’s my favorite local wine shop,<br />
where a visit invariably involves a lively discussion <strong>of</strong> Italian food<br />
with Mathew, the owner, and the swapping <strong>of</strong> recipes before he<br />
points us to his latest fi nds. It’s a very different experience than,<br />
say, a trip to Trader Joe’s. As with Supreme Court Justice Potter<br />
Stewart’s famous defi nition <strong>of</strong> pornography, you know a locavestor<br />
business when you see it.<br />
It is a diverse group. According to the SBA, 29 percent <strong>of</strong> nonfarm<br />
small businesses are owned by women, and 21 percent are<br />
owned by minorities (there may be overlap in the groups). But<br />
what binds them is their independence, passion, and ambition.<br />
For some, that means rapid growth and perhaps someday joining<br />
the ranks <strong>of</strong> America’s top companies. Others have more measured<br />
growth goals and little interest in the “get big fast” track. In<br />
fact, only one out <strong>of</strong> fi ve entrepreneurs seeks “maximum growth,”<br />
according to an SBA study. The majority simply want to manage<br />
an enterprise that is a comfortable size and scale. 8 In an age <strong>of</strong><br />
corporate gigantism and pr<strong>of</strong>i t primacy, that is refreshing.<br />
“I think business school culture, and more recently Silicon<br />
Valley culture, places way too much value on the high growth<br />
potential venture,” says David Fisher, a small business consultant<br />
and former economic development <strong>of</strong>fi cial in Hawaii. “It’s like<br />
saying, don’t bother to take a walk in the park if you are not planning<br />
to go to the Olympics. I have helped a lot <strong>of</strong> people develop<br />
businesses that do under a half a million a year in revenue, yet<br />
have happy owners and workers and a happy community.”<br />
Locavestor entrepreneurs are <strong>of</strong>ten motivated by broader goals<br />
than simply extracting the most possible pr<strong>of</strong>i t. As Sagar Sheth<br />
explains, “When an entrepreneur says ‘my goal in life is to see one<br />
hundred people employed,’ that’s so much more valuable than a goal<br />
<strong>of</strong> seeing a million dollars in your pocket. There’s something to be<br />
very proud <strong>of</strong> in that.” In the three years since he and his partner<br />
started Moebius Technologies, they have not paid themselves a salary.<br />
“That’s what it takes, and we understand that,” says Sheth. “We know<br />
that if you’re going to build a beautiful business, a sustainable company<br />
that hires people and grows, you have to make sacrifi ces.<br />
And local? That, too, can be in the eye <strong>of</strong> the beholder. Local<br />
is a loose term that can be applied to a tight knit neighborhood, or