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Recent Press Releases (U.S. and international) for magazine issues and staff changes may be found below. Please note that for many issues there exists only a highlights sheet, while for others there may also be a full press release. The cover of FSB's current issue is pictured at right. Please contact the appropriate communications staff member with any questions.
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Highlights of the
May 2007 Issue of FSB: FORTUNE Small Business
The full stories are available at FSB.com.
COVER STORY: Old Dogs, New Tricks, by Alessandra Bianchi, Justin Martin, Julie Sloane, and Brandi Stewart, page 25 How smart entrepreneurs find innovation and profit in sleepy industries. Warren Buffett famously remarked that when brilliant management tackles an industry with terrible economics, it's usually the reputation of the industry that remains intact. His insight helps explain why hot markets always seem to attract the lion's share of interest from entrepreneurs and investors. Last year U.S. venture capitalists poured more than $25 billion into 3,416 early-stage companies, and most of that dough flowed to biotech, energy, software, and the like. Little or none, we'll wager, was invested in parking, local radio, minor-league sports, or beer. Yet the entrepreneurs profiled here have reaped outsized gains in precisely the sort of tired old-economy industries that Wall Street investors — and business magazines — tend to ignore.
Is it Time to Replace Yourself?, by Carlye Adler, page 70 Sooner or later, most founders will need to hire a CEO to take their place. Here are four who did it right — and one who blew it. An entrepreneur's decision to step down is a hard and humbling one. After all, who wants to face up to her limitations? But that day almost inevitably comes. Some business owners find themselves unable to drive their company to the next level. Others discover that they simply don't enjoy the complexities of running a larger company. Another factor: Boomer business owners are now reaching retirement age, and many are seeking a new CEO to lighten the workload or polish up the company for sale. Experts say company founders can be blinded by their passion and overly attached to their dream and are therefore more likely to stick with business plans they've created or products they've launched or people they've hired — long after the outside world can identify the need for change. FSB offers a few tips to finding the right replacement CEO:
Jet-Set Surgery, by Walecia Konrad, page 14 Some small employers are flying their workers to countries such as Singapore for high-quality, inexpensive medical procedures. Until recently, medical tourists were mostly individuals seeking low-priced cosmetic and elective surgery not covered by insurance. But more than one million Americans will travel overseas for procedures this year, and a rising proportion are getting insurers or employers to pay part of the cost. It's easy to see the appeal for a cash-strapped employer. Surgery overseas costs 30% to 80% less than it does in the U.S., thanks to lower fees for even top-quality doctors and hospitals. As FSB went to press, benefits providers, employers, and health-care executives were scheduled to meet in Las Vegas on April 30 at the industry's first trade show. Experts predict that the medical tourism industry will grow to $40 billion by 2010. There is, of course, a huge stumbling block to growth: convincing workers to fly 12 hours or more to have surgery.
Inflated Profits, by Julie Sloan, page 80 Giant balloons for parades and picket lines are crafted at a small (non-union) firm. Inflatable Images is one of the largest manufacturers of nonhelium inflatable advertising in the U.S. FSB visits two Brunswick, Ohio-based entrepreneurs who have sewn everything from a 50-foot Vince Lombardi Trophy used in Super Bowl pregame shows to the inflated cartoon characters that decorate floats in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York City. In union strongholds such as New York and Chicago, the company provides inflatable rats used on picket lines to protest non-union labor at a job site. Several companies have asked judges to ban the rats as a coercive (hence illegal) form of protest. The Sixth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati sided with the unions in 2005, ruling that the rats were a form of protected free speech. In more recent cases, labor judges have sidestepped the question of whether inflatable rats violate the National Labor Relations Act's ban on union behavior that could intimidate neutral companies from doing business with the target of a union campaign. Litigation continues.
A Tax Cut's Final Start, by Ian Mount, page 18 It seems that every body wants to give a tax credit to angel investors who pour startup capital into new small businesses. Twenty-one states already offer it, and a House bill including the credit for angels who invest as much as $500,000 annually has won fans on both sides of the aisle. But despite all the love it's garnered, the federal bill — reintroduced in January — is unlikely to pass anytime soon. Unfortunately a Congress hashing out contentious issues such as the Iraq war doesn't have much appetite for big bipartisan bills these days. Which means this may be another example of a great, universally loved idea that falls victim to partisan rancor.
Finally a 401(k) Plan Just for One, by Penelope Wang, page 65 The owners of the smallest businesses enjoy more flexibility than ever when it comes to saving for retirement. Here's why. The solo 401(k) has become more attractive since last year, when it began offering sole proprietors a flexible-funding feature, which allows them to choose whether to avoid taxes on current income or on withdrawals they will take later, in retirement. The solo 401(k), also known as the solo k, the individual 401(k), or uni-k, first came on the market in 2001. It works much the same as traditional 401(k) plans offered by large companies, as well as SEP IRAs designed for the self-employed. But unlike other retirement plans, a solo 401(k) is strictly for sole proprietors who have no employees (although your spouse may contribute if he or she earns income from your business). With this plan, you can choose whether to invest pretax or after-tax dollars. Entrepreneurs are catching on to the advantages — some 104,000 solo 401(k) plans have opened and collectively hold $5.4 billion, up from $3.1 billion in 76,000 accounts in 2005, according to Financial Research Corp. (frcnet.com), a financial industry research firm based in Boston.
PLUS OFF HOURS: Investing in the Women of Ghana A CEO finds fulfillment by helping tiny African businesses. BREAKING BIG: Ship Shape How a small shipbuilder won a big new contract with the U.S. Coast Guard. HOW I WORK: The 4-Hour Work Week Get more done with this business owner's time-management techniques. TECH EDGE: Cut the Cord FSB explores the wild world of online conference calling. YOU OWN WHAT? We Pimp Rides A California firm creates wild attractions for theme parks and resorts. OFF HOURS: Hunting With Falcons A West Coast academy teaches the ancient art of hunting with birds of prey.
FSB is available in digital format. To access this version go to: http://digital.fsb.com
For further information please contact: Phil DiIanni
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