We’ve previously discussed Michigan-based businesses, and particularly those headquartered in and around Detroit, that are succeeding thanks to determined, savvy entrepreneurs with solid business plans. Now comes good news about two more such businesses. They are among just 12 companies chosen from almost 35,000 small businesses throughout the country to receive $250,000 from Chase. According to the “Detroit Free Press,” the funds, which they can use any way they choose, were given as part of Chase’s Mission Main Streets Grants program that rewards promising “homegrown companies.”
The recipients, Detroit’s Edibles Rex and Birmingham’s The Robot Garage, are two very different types of businesses. Edibles Rex provides fresh meals to local children in kindergarten through high school, as well as in day care facilities. The Robot Garage caters to “robot and Lego enthusiasts,” both young and old. In addition to selling products for these amateur architects and engineers, it offers classes, events and “experiences.”
The winners were selected by a panel of judges who looked at their business plans. A key factor in the decision was “their likelihood of succeeding within a 2-year time frame.” In addition to the quarter of a million dollars, the business owners will have the opportunity to improve their marketing skills with help from a worldwide business giant. They will participate in a marketing workshop hosted by Google at its California headquarters.
Although these companies are still a long ways out from needing the kind of financial and legal resources that their benefactors Chase and Google require, businesses of all sizes can benefit from having legal representation. This might include help with contracts, incorporation, employment issues, liability, regulatory compliance or any of a myriad of issues that all business owners need to contend with at some point.
Source: WLNS.com, “Pair Of Mich. Businesses Getting $250,000 Grants” No author given, Jan. 21, 2014
