New business filings show the area's character
Despite pandemic, ‘Entrepreneurship is still alive andwell.’
Ohio entrepreneurs have not let the coronavirus pandemic and economic crisis stop them as they’ve registered a record number of new businesses this year.
Those fifilings already surpassed last year’s record, said Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose.
“What’s encouraging is that so many people are willing to take the chance on themselves and put themselves out there. It really shows the character ofMontgomery County, Ohio, and theUnited States as awhole,” said Erik Collins, Montgomery County director of community and economic development.
This year LaRose’s office received 145,157 fifilings for new businessesandnonprofifififififitsthrough October, up from 130,621 fifilings for all of2019.
Acounty-by-countybreakdown isn’t available because the bulk of new business fifilings are limited liability companies that do not have to reveal the name or location of the owners, said Maggie Sheehan, LaRose press secretary.
“Entrepreneurship is still alive and well inAmerica,” said Roger Geiger, Ohio executive director of the National Federation of Independent Businesses.
It might seem counterintuitive that people would start new
businesses in the midst of a pandemic that included a months- long shutdown
and social distancing recommendations. But those
interviewed said it makes sense that people would use this time to start something new, especially if they’ve been laid offff or quit to care for children.
“Crisis breeds opportunity. COVID-19 has forced certain people to reevaluate their life plans,” said Chris Kershner, president
and chief executive of the Dayton Area Chamber of Commerce. “We are seeing early retirements, entrepreneurs looking for newmodels and businesses redefifin
ing themselves. This leads to new risks, new opportunities and newbusinesses.”
New businesses changed plans
Among the new businesses that opened in Dayton this year were Connect E-Sports, ownedbyMaryand Bob Baldino, and Salt Block Biscuit Company, owned by Justin Mohler. “Defifinitely starting a busi
ness is a leap of faith, and if you didn’t believe in the businessmodelandwhatyou are doing, I don’t think you would everdoit,” MaryBaldino said. “I think it comes downtomodifyingandhanging on while you can during this timethatnooneplanned for. And planning how you can growyour business out of that and set yourself to grow post-pandemic.”
The shutdown in the spring delayed the opening of both companies and the owners adjusted their original business plans, changes theysaidtheylikelywill keep.
Connect E-Sports, located at 212Wayne Ave. inDayton’s OregonDistrict, isane-sports center where people can play games on a computer or Xbox station. It opened in early November.
“When Ohio was locked downinmid-March, wewere very close toopening. Butwe worked with our landlord to kind of halt construction,”
Mary Baldino said.
Limited hours, social distancing, andsafetyandclean
ing protocols are in place inside the business. Organized leagues and tourna
ments will begin in January in-person and online.
The pandemic led the Baldinos to addthe play-at-home option, so people can competewith other local gamers at the business or in their homes.
“Without that pandemic, we probably wouldn’t have considered the at- home
option,” Mary Baldino said. SaltBlockBiscuitCompany is a cafe/bakery/bodega that opened in September at 115 E. ThirdSt. inthe Fire Blocks District of Dayton. The economic shutdown stopped construction, and Mohler spent the summer reconfiguring his business plan to include selling groceries.
The company is “hitting our numbers,” he said, and he’s setting up an online ordering system for the gift-giving season. When life returns to normal, Mohler hopes to add night service, get a liquor license and be a part ofadowntownthatonce again bustles with activity.
“I had always wanted to have my own place since I
fifinished culinary school in 2001 and fifinally was able to accomplish that after being in the business for 20 years,” Mohler said. “Frommyexperience of being in the food industry, I feel I know how it works. I have a great team onmyside withmarketing. I don’t knowwhat the future
will bring, but I see it as positive and I do look forward to growing.”
Small businesses are economic engine
Entrepreneurs and small businesses are often called the lifeblood of the economy, and Geiger said it is a positive sign that people are still taking that chance and starting anew.
“One of the leading indicators of economic recovery is start- up small businesses,” Geiger said. “Am I willing to say this is an indicator of a signifificant recovery? No. But itwill happen.”
Onlyabouthalf of start-ups survive past fifive years, and Geiger said initial start-up cost is about $ 5,000 for the average new business in Ohio. But people keep on taking the chance.
“It’s different for every entrepreneur,” Collins said. “For some, it’s the satisfaction of building their own company from the ground up. For others, it might be freedom from working for someone else. Whatever the reason, oursmall businesses are central to our local economy, and we encourage anyone starting a newbusiness to contact us to help them.”
Collins said the high number of businessfifilings inOhio “echo what’s happening around the country.”
“People who have been laid offffmay feel like they can dosimilarworkontheirown. Some may have lost their W-2 job but remained with their companies as contractors, which would require them to fifile with the secretary of state,” Collins said. “The pandemic has also created increased demands for products and services that
didn’t exist before, ormaybe didn’t have themarket share that they nowhave because of the pandemic. There is an increased need for products like facemasks and shields, cleaning products and services that allow people to work from home.”
The pandemic created an opportunity for entrepreneurs to fifill those marketplace gaps, he said.
“Many people see the opportunities in a tough situation, and we’re glad to see so many people rising up,” Collins said.
Exploring new ways to make money is a necessity for people hurt economically during the pandemic, said Jeffrey E. Haymond, dean of the Cedarville University School of Business.
“But I suspect we’re also seeing that as more people are working from home,
there is an easier opportunity tomake a long-dreamed of ‘side hustle’ more possible,” Haymond said. “Many newbusinesses may not initially require more than the
founder’s labor, so it’s easier to get offff the ground when you don’t have to be around others.”
That kind of innovation sparked by the crisismakes Haymond believe there will be a strong “other side.”
“The Dayton area economy was created by entrepreneurs and innovators,” Kershner said. “This spirit has never left and we continue to have the best environment to support entrepreneurial growth.”