Communities need entrepreneurs

It’s all too easy for people to read books and magazine articles featuring those billionaire business builders such as Elon Musk, Bill Gates or Oprah Winfrey and think that’s what successful entrepreneurship looks like. However, these business titans are far removed from our daily lives. Look at any research study on entrepreneurship and the findings tend to highlight the small businesses that are really the drivers of local economies and the engines of local job creation. What is rarely spoken about is the real contribution that entrepreneurs make to their local communities as a whole. Their businesses are intrinsically linked to those who live, work and are educated there. Statistics and media headlines do not adequately reflect this fact. During the current pandemic, it is entrepreneurs who are coming to the aid of their communities. Local fashion designers are making protective face masks; gin distilleries are creating hand sanitizers; and restaurants are creating meals for key workers. When communities need them, entrepreneurs step up to meet the challenge. The big name retail chains are not typically found in local communities, instead it is local small businesses that are the heartbeat of those communities. A great example is our Image of the Day featuring YOU Cookie Company, a great social enterprise that needs to be supported during this tough time.