Consultant works for equity

Consultant Rob Harvey (Crown Achievement) helps your biz for a piece o' th' pie, he told Philip Nannie of NCP.

Linx leadership

Cardell Orrin's Linx Consulting in Memphis helps guide small businesses toward strategic success, the CA reports.

Memphis EDGE?

One Commercial Appeal writer applauds local leaders' Economic Development Growth Engine (EDGE), while another decries government interference in enterprise.

Cloud around Amazon?

No word yet regarding whether or not Amazon's announced twin distribution facilities in the Chattanooga area are imperiled by the efforts of some Tennessee retailers to resist Amazon being accorded freedom from collecting sales tax. The TFP reports.

Business 'maniacs' needed, says Riddell

As ever, Chattanooga Times Free Press Columnist John Riddell has an interesting take on the need for 'maniacs' in these times: Maniacs who'll cust their operating costs to the bone, and cut prices drastically to stay in business. Piece is here.

Biz brokers struggle to sell small businesses

Business brokers in the Nashville area reported small-business sales down 13 percent year-over-year in 2009, with an even sharper slump in fourth quarter. NBJ has it (sub).

Blasingame on business basics in bad times

Small-biz advocate Jim Blasingame offers these oldies-but-bear-repeating-goodies on things to watch for in your business, during bad times.

Fiddlecakes owners serious about taste

Natasha Ross (far left), 27, co-owner of the new "Euro"-styled Fiddlecakes Bakery on 8th Avenue South knows she's assertive. Now, she's taken her drive and her insistence on doing business with baked-in goodness a step farther. Having left her marketing and jane-of-all-trades role at Universal Robotics earlier this year, Ross and co-owner Lindsay Beckner, also 27, are dishing-up lunch, cakes, coffee, all with a dash of wi-fi, six days a week. Originally from Stockton, Calif., Ross holds an MBA from Vanderbilt's Owen GSM, and a bachelor's from Scripps University at Claremont. She has also held her own in marketing, sales and management jobs within a pharma businesses, with a music publisher and others. Beckner (on the right above), a finance and wealth-management professional who previously worked with Woodmont Investment Counsel, Wachovia, London-based HSBC and other institutions, told VNC during the luncheon rush today that things are going well, with both women up to their tastebuds in eat-in, takeout, and catering, with gluten-free and Vegan recipes. We will be away from our desk for the next hour.

Branding Q

A Memphis columnist reminds us small businesses, as well as big can benefit from strong branding that reflects consistent consumer experience. The CA has it.

TN solar shakeout

Nashville Public Radio reports some fledgling solar businesses are already folding.

Airstream, Kayak biz breezy

A Hamilton County resident found so much interest in his restored Airstream classic trailer, he started the motoring icon for others, and found himself in a new business. The TFP tells the story. In The Tennessean, meanwhile, Bonna Johnson tells the story of Jackson Kayak, in Sparta.

SEC seeks capital-formation ideas

The Securites and Exchange Commission announced yesterday it's looking for ideas on creating fresh caches of capital for small businesses. Related key topic: the definition of "accredited investor" for private and limited offerings. Your ideas will be considered in shaping the SEC's Nov. 19th conference on the same topic. For details on submitting your ideas, please click here.