by Nancy Parrish

During this fall, I have enjoyed the beauty of the season in our hometown area. As the leaves have taken on their vibrant hues of autumn and will soon begin to flutter away, making room for new leaves in the spring — or, “turning over a new leaf” as the saying goes — we have seen a few leaves turning at the Franklin Business Incubator as well. For those of you who don’t know what a business incubator is, by definition, it is: A program or organization designed to accelerate the growth and success of entrepreneurial companies through an array of business support resources and services that could include physical space, capital, coaching, common services, and networking connections. In reality, it can become much more than that as, more often than not, relationships are established that will last a lifetime. Such is the case with a couple of the businesses located within the Franklin Business Incubator.

We were so pleased to announce and celebrate the graduation of two successful businesses in recent weeks: Highground Services, owned by Jim Strozier, and Kaye Weaver, agent for Horace Mann Insurance Company. Both of these businesses have had a tremendous impact on the success of the Franklin Business Incubator and their graduations are providing opportunity and space for more success stories from the Incubator.

You may ask, what does it take to become a success story at the Franklin Business Incubator or anywhere, for that matter? First of all, it takes a marketable idea, a need for the product or service and a passion to deliver it. Many folks are able to accomplish this step of the journey without a great deal of effort. Next — and, perhaps a bit more challenging — is the step of putting that idea down on paper in the form of a business plan. If one has an idea and the passion to make it happen, an overall mission and the direction to achieve it are essential to the success of any business. It has been said that “failing to plan is planning to fail” and nowhere is this any truer than in the business world. A business plan provides the direction for the business owner to proceed and outlines goals and projected dates for accomplishing them. Most critical to this document is the financial statement that shows the cash flow of the business… what it will cost to run it on a daily basis and what income can be expected. The next phase of the journey is executing this plan and making sure that the proper support system and resources are in place to help ensure success. This is definitely where the Franklin Business Incubator, complete with its staff and available resources, is able to help nurture the entrepreneur during its stages from start-up to growth and development and ultimately graduation.

We are indeed pleased to announce these two success stories at the Franklin Business Incubator. They set such a wonderful example for others to follow. And, while they each have a very different size footprint on the local economy, they are both a very important part of the local business community, and we appreciate them. Support them! When you see them on the street, be sure to congratulate them! They will be gone from the FBI, but not forgotten. We look to hear great things from both of them as they continue to grow their businesses in Franklin! And… we want YOU to be next! Please give me a call at 562-1958 today and schedule your tour of our award-winning facility. Follow in the footsteps of these two successful entrepreneurs! Sign up for our newsletter, follow us on Facebook and join us on LinkedIn to stay connected to the Franklin Business Incubator.

NANCY PARRISH is the manager of the Franklin Business Incubator. She can be reached at nparrish@franklinsouthamptonva.com or at 562-1958 ext. 303.