Typically you will find the Executive Director of Entrepreneurial Initiatives for the Greater Des Moines Partnership asking the questions at entrepreneur luncheons. But this time Mike Colwell will be the one on the hot seat. This will be a great luncheon discussion as Mike will be interviewed by Tej Dhawan (an accomplished entrepreneur and community
Franchise Law
Successful Franchises Continue to Evolve
I found this article from Entrepreneur Magazine interesting regarding several franchises that are now offering delivery (some franchise on this list and others do not). The most successful franchises are continually evolving and adapting their concepts to meet consumer demands.
What about your franchisor? Are they evolving and adapting?
Women-Owned Business Grants
I am often asked about business grants for women and minorities. In my experience these grants can be difficult to come by but they do exist. Here is an article from Entrepreneur discussing grants for women-owned businesses and also a link to the Targeted Small Business site with the Iowa Department of Economic Development.
Business Ownership Isn’t For Everyone
My social media news feed is full of articles and stories about business ownership. I am a business lawyer. I represent business people. So it benefits me if I promote business ownership and in general I try to do just that. However, I am here to tell you that despite the mountains of articles talking…
Looking to Buy a Franchise? Don’t Make These Mistakes
Inc.Magazine has a great article on the 5 Biggest Mistakes People Make When Buying a Franchise.
The one I want to touch on in this post is #4 – Not learning how to implement the franchise system. All too often, would be franchise owners think they are “buying their own business.” This is…
BIZ Luncheon Features Casey Niemann of AgriSync
If you are fresh off your spring break and looking for a great networking event I recommend attending the BIZ Luncheon this Wednesday, March 25th at the Ruan II Building, 601 Locust, Conference Room 101 in Downtown Des Moines. Casey will share the tale of his leap from the corporate world with Microsoft to the…
Business Owners: Don’t Neglect Succession Planning
All too often business owners neglect succession planning. In fact, according to a recent Inc Magazine article and Deloitte survey on the topic, 90 percent of business leaders recognize the success of their company depends on effective leadership succession but only 13 percent are confident about the succession plans they have made. And those are…
20 Franchise Trends from Industry News Source
Franchise Times has an interesting article on 20 to Watch: franchise trendsetters in 2015.
One of the more interesting items to me was No. 18 – So Sue Me. Apparently one enterprising insurance executive has set up a suite of insurance products specifically designed for franchisors and franchisees to limit their risk against lawsuits.…
Iowa Specialty Business Court Off to Good Start
Back in January of 2013 I shared that the Iowa Supreme Court began a new specialty court for business cases. According to a recent article from the Des Moines Business Record it sounds as though the court is off to a good start. (Unfortunately the article is only available in the member’s section of…
My Own (Informal) National Start a Business Day
I don’t know why or what’s in the water but November 17th must have been my own little national start a business day as I helped people form and start four businesses today. It is days like today that certainly keep you energized as a business lawyer and it is fun to see the excitement…