Byline: Carol Cain
May 2--MICHIGAN ORGANIZATION REACHES OUT TO OTHER STATES, CREATING OPPORTUNITIES: Taking a page from the 21,000 Michigan small businesses her organization represents, Jennifer Kluge adopted an entrepreneurial approach in creating a new division for the Michigan Business and Professional Association (MBPA).
An idea four years in the making, the National Association for Business Resources (NABR) was officially christened March 3. Kluge, 33, is serving as its president and overseeing its rollout to other states.
NABR provides SBs and entrepreneurs services, educational seminars and other discounts similar to the ones that MBPA offers Michigan businesses, but in other states. It's initially starting with Ohio, Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana and Minnesota, and will add other states down the road.
Another advantage of the new division is that it will give Michigan MBPA members the chance to network with companies in other states, Kluge adds.
It's the third SB association that Kluge and her father, Ed Deeb, will run from their office in Warren.
NABR evolved from the Michigan Food and Beverage Association, which Deeb started in 1987. He found other SBs beyond the food industry were also interested in the group, so he added the Michigan Business and Professional Association in 1996. Today, those two groups have grown to 21,000 members across the state employing 160,000 people.
The three trade groups have 24 employees in Warren.
The idea for the new division came after repeated calls from SBs in nearby states that heard about MBPA programs and services and wanted to be part of it.
'But because of our charter, you had to be a Michigan business for us to help,' Kluge explains. 'But we began to think, 'Well, we are already the largest trade association in Michigan: Why not expand into other states?' '
The idea seemed simple enough, but implementing it was a different matter.
It took four years and about $300,000 in legal costs and other fees to set up in the five states.
'We are taking what we are good at, and taking it to another market,' she says.
For example, MBPA will hold its '101 Best and Brightest Firms to Work For' event in Grand Rapids on Wednesday. The same event will be held in Chicago on June 10 for companies there, but will be administered by NABR.
Kluge says her goal is to have as many NABR members in other states cumulatively as they currently have in Michigan within five years.
An NABR membership costs $125 per year. The group also offers discounts on health insurance and training events, which cost extra.
'The beauty of this is we will be able to expose our Michigan members to other states,' Kluge says.
Kluge, who joined MBPA in 1999 as vice president, has learned about the needs and concerns of small businesses from her father. While the idea of working so closely with a parent may not be everyone's cup of tea, Kluge says it's been wonderful.
'I love working with my dad,' she adds.
Contact the National Association for Business Resources, the Michigan Business and Professional Association and Michigan Food and Beverage Association at 586-393-8800.
THE ENVELOPES, PLEASE:
The U.S. Small Business Administration handed out its 2005 Michigan Small Business awards last week during the first annual Michigan Celebrates Small Business awards dinner held in East Lansing.
More than 450 people attended the event, hosted by several groups. Besides the SBA, other supporters included the Small Business Association of Michigan, the Michigan Economic Development Corp., the Michigan Small Business & Technology Development Center and the Edward Lowe Foundation.
The SBA's 2005 winners:
--Small Business Persons of the Year: Michael and Rachel McCormack, chairman and CEO, president and CFO, respectively, MicroMax Inc., Canton.
--Michigan and Midwest Region Small Business Journalists of the Year: Jeff and Rich Sloan, cofounders, StartupNation LLC, Birmingham.
--Michigan and Midwest Region Financial Services Champion of the Year: Herbert (Ted) Doan, chairman, Herbert H. and Grace A. Dow Foundation, Midland.
--Michigan Family-Owned Small Business of the Year: Suk-Kyu Koh, president, Chrysan Industries Inc., Plymouth.
--Michigan Women in Business Champion of the Year: Rita VanderVen, executive director, Grand Rapids Opportunities for Women, Grand Rapids.
--Michigan Minority Small Business Champion of the Year: Enrique Carrillo, vice president of corporate public affairs, Comerica Inc., Detroit.
--Michigan Small Business Counselor of the Year: Vikram Mathur, associate Region 9 director, Michigan Small Business and Technology Development Center, Livonia.
Carol Cain hosts 'Michigan Matters' on WWJ-TV (Channel 62) 11 a.m. Sundays and WKBD-TV (Channel 50) 7:30 a.m. Saturdays. If you have information on your business, please mail it to Small Business, Detroit Free Press, 600 W. Fort St., Detroit 48226, fax it to 313-222-5992 or e-mail it to cain@freepress.com.
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