ROANOKE, Va. (WFXR) — For some, a new year means new business opportunities, and for the owners, it also means new risks in an economy that is not exactly stable.
According to the U.S. Small Business Administration’s Office of Advocacy, small businesses accounted for more than 28,000 openings from 2020 to 2021, but also more than 23,000 closings in Virginia. A more recent report shows small businesses accounted for 32,318 openings from 2021 to 2022 and 25,336 closings.
Nancy Hubbard the Dean of the Business College at the University of Lynchburg says businesses fail each year due to the financial pressures it takes to initially start a business and succeed.
“People don’t realize how much money they need to start a new business. It’s really the cause of probably 80% of small business closures,” said Hubbard.
Markus Ballengee is the owner of Surreala Coffee, a new coffee shop that will be located at 2901 Franklin Road Southwest. He plans to open soon but says the road hasn’t always been easy.
“I had a set time when I thought I could open, I was like ‘oh a month, two months I’ll be open no problem.’ And here we are eight months since I started and bought the truck but the idea has been running for years,” said Ballengee.
He and Hubbard say some of the biggest challenges of being a business owner are the various responsibilities like marking and finance and making sure you are set up with permits.
“After state, you have county and city and wherever it may be. And Roanoke has specific permits that there’s not a handbook that tells you ‘Hey for this business, you need to have this permit and this permit and this licensure, so it’s really trial and error,” Ballengee explained.
Dean Hubbard says research before leaping to start a business is important, as well as exploring the different markets your product will appeal to.
“People don’t do enough market research before they start selling their product. It may be that customers really want a certain feature in the product and you could add that, but you don’t know that until you talk to them,” shared Hubbard.
Ballengee also stated that research was important in helping him learn about the finances, permits, and the additional manual work needed to get his business up and running.
“Even if you do have the perfect setup — it’s extremely hard to create an idea and make it come to fruition when it comes to finances,” said Ballengee. “Google was my friend throughout this process, so I looked at some other coffee shops across the country, what negatives they had to give, what insight they had to give.”
Despite the difficulties, he says if you have a passion to start a business and put in the work and time to make it happen, it’s possible. He says with that research, his savings, and help from those close to him — he made it to where he is today.
“I’m super excited. It’s been 6,7, 8 months of work to get this truck ready, this business going. I couldn’t be more excited than to do it at the beginning of the year — bringing in 2024 with a new business,” Ballengee shared.
His shop, which will include an outside lot, should be entered on Franklin Road and exited on Roberts Road SW. Ballengee said he wanted to create a space where people could come and hang out. He’ll be adding chairs and picnic tables for the summer months. Once opened, Surreala Coffee will operate from Monday through Saturday from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. and on Sunday from 6 a.m. to 1 p.m.
If you’re looking to start a new business, Hubbard says Virginia has a program, through the Small Business Center, called ICAP with opportunities for mentorship and grants.
The dean, who works in Lynchburg, says the city also has opportunities to see its small business owner succeed. Hubbard said the Lynchburg Regional Business Alliance has small business development resources with free mentoring for local businesses.
