2021 SMALL BUSINESS GUIDE
CONTENTS BUSINESS REPORT’S
SMALL BUSINESS GUIDE
2021
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They opened a business during COVID-19
Looking at four entrepreneurs and what each learned by embracing the added risk of launching their dream during the pandemic. RONTRELL BETHLEY: Trell Portable Buildings BRITTNEY PINO: Brittney Pino & Associates PATRICK WONG: BORU Ramen ELMA CARTER: Owner, Pop’N Lash Extensions
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Getting down to business
74 74 76
Business incentives
Everything you need to know about starting a company in Louisiana.
Special programs for small business An entrepreneurial ecosystem
From our sponsor THE EAST BATON ROUGE PARISH LIBRARY is committed to strengthening business, promoting workforce development and supporting entrepreneurship throughout the parish. We continue to enhance our technology services, databases and online resources to meet your needs. COVID-19 forced many businesses to rethink service delivery and training, so we have greatly increased the depth and breadth of the premium business resources offered freely via our website, ebrpl.com/ DigitalLibrary—all you need is your library card. We’re conveniently open seven days a week at our 14 libraries, too. The Digital Library provides access to thousands of free employment training courses, educational assistance programs and business related databases, as well as free online movies, eBooks, magazines, music, foreign language lessons, hobby courses, news, archives and more. We’re especially pleased to present the Library’s SMALL BUSINESS SERVICE to local 62
business owners and entrepreneurs. This service includes free programs, resources and tools to help your business grow, and offers free one-on-one consultations with our business librarians. Contact them at smallbusiness@ ebrpl.com. Business librarians can guide you in the use of Gale Business: Entrepreneurship and Gale Business: Plan Builder, a stepby-step online planning tool for starting, managing and optimizing a business or nonprofit. The program’s intuitive dashboard walks users through five areas to develop a business plan focused on long-term success: Entrepreneur Profile; Business Ideation; BreakEven Analysis; Business Plans; and Financial Projections. This is just one of a number of business tools and skills development resources available FREE through EBRPL’s Digital Library, including Lynda.com, Udemy, Mergent Intellect, ReferenceUSA (now Data Axle Reference
Solutions), LexisNexis, Small Business Reference Center and Sage Business Researcher. To view all library business resources, visit ebrpl.com/Business. The Library continues to upgrade its physical infrastructure with the completion of major renovations for the Greenwell Springs Road and Jones Creek Regional branches. Each branch is modern, high-tech and energy efficient, and will serve as a center for robust community and government activities and meetings, planning, learning and discovery. Design is underway for the new South Branch in Rouzan. These construction projects are fully funded on the pay-as-you-go plan with no bonds or indebtedness, thanks to public support for the Library’s 10-year dedicated property tax. The support you give YOUR LIBRARY makes this all possible. Spencer Watts Library Director
BUSINESS REPORT, May 2021 | BusinessReport.com
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