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Tech Coast Angels Orange County Fast Pitch May 25th, 2010

May 3rd, 2010

The 10th Annual Tech Coast Angels Fast Pitch Competition in Orange County is a “must attend” event for all entrepreneurs who are looking to jump-start their entrepreneurial dreams, and for investors seeking to hear about the latest in innovation in Southern California.

Each of the 12 carefully selected competitors will give a 90-second pitch to a panel of distinguished judges. The judges will then quiz them for an additional 2 minutes. The four winners — for Best of the Best, Best Presentation, Best Investment Opportunity, and the Audience Pick — will be automatically invited to make presentations at Tech Coast Angels deal-review screening sessions.

The event begins with a walk-around gourmet buffet dinner where the entrepreneurs who are going to pitch will have individual table displays for you to meet and greet. Tech Coast Angels members and other guests will be there to visit with you.

Here at Ethos 360 we’ve had many of our clients pitch the Tech Coast Angels and the experience has been overwhelmingly positive. If you’re in the area take advantage of this wonderful opportunity. Learn more here- www.pitchtheangels.com

10th Annual OC Fast Pitch Competition @ UC Irvine
May 25, 2010
5:30pm – 9:15pm

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Introducing Ethos Cleantech- The Revolution Has Begun

April 22nd, 2010

2010 has been an incredible year for Ethos 360. We’ve been fortunate to have experienced double digit growth every month along with cementing our position as the leader in business planning and small business consulting. The credit for the success rests squarely on the shoulders of our amazingly talented staff, their devotion to perfection and the good fortune to work with the greatest clients. It’s been a whirlwind year so far and we’ve decided to expand our brand by creating the first business plan company devoted solely to cleantech.

Let’s define “cleantech”. Cleantech (or clean technology) can be used to describe any product, service, or process that

  • Provides superior performance, productivity, or efficiency
  • At lower costs
  • While greatly reducing or eliminating energy consumption, waste, or pollution

In addition to business plan writing, Ethos Cleantech will provide start-up and existing cleantech businesses with tax incentive procurement and primary market research. More details will be coming soon.

Please visit Ethos 360’s cleantech practice at www.ethoscleantech.com to learn more, and watch the website and our offerings evolve. Once again we are taking the leadership role in being at the forefront of entrepreneurialism along with embracing the hottest industry segments in their infancies.

This is the tip of the iceberg and this iceberg is pretty big.

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Ethos 360 Success Story- Jackie Green and Sweet Cheeks Bakery

April 6th, 2010

We work with a wide variety of clients at Ethos 360. Venture backed tech firms come to us, companies going public come to us, multi-million dollar alternate energy conglomerates come to us, national franchises come to us. These high level projects are great and the complexity stimulates our talented business planning team but what really excites us are the entrepreneurs with a dream. Turning something they love and feel deeply passionate about into a profitable business.

A perfect example is Jackie Green, owner of Sweet Cheeks Bakery (www.scbakery.com) located in Holly Springs, North Carolina. The economic downturn took Jackie’s job but sparked her dreams. She saw an opportunity. Jackie knew there was a demand for her delicious baked goods made with love and using her family’s secret recipes. To make this work she needed help. She went out and got it.

Entrepreneurs have great, often free, resources for starting a small business. Jackie attended classes for the Small Business Administration at Wake Tech Community College, utilized the expertise found at SCORE and the Women’s Business Center of North Carolina along with retaining Ethos 360 to write a custom business plan. She got herself educated, put in the time and sought the advice of experts.

While getting the tools and help she needed she never stopped executing her business strategy. The local papers wrote articles about her, she approached stores to carry her goods and soon Whole Foods came calling. Whole Foods asked her to do an in-store demo. The demo was Monday, April 5th. She sold out. (pictures below)

Jackie Green is achieving her dream through hard work, dedication and the passion that comes from doing something that you love. We ordered her famous pecan pie and, let me tell you, it’s incredible.

What does the future hold for Jackie Green and Sweet Cheeks? Exclusive line of baked goods at Whole Foods? A national chain of Sweet Cheeks Bakeries? Worldwide domination?  No matter what the future holds in store, we’re betting on Jackie because she doesn’t make excuses she gets the job done. Jackie Green is a true entrepreneur!

Jackie Green, owner of Sweet Cheeks Bakery, at her display in Whole Foods

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How To Get A Personal Loan For A Business Start-Up

March 31st, 2010

When you have that great idea for a new business, and have the plans worked out, all you need now is the financing and you can get started. Finding financing, however, especially for a new business, can be difficult because lenders have seen many businesses come and go, and may be more than a little reluctant. Another way to get the financing you need, though, would be to get a personal loan. A personal loan can be rather easily obtained and you can get them in large or small sizes.

Personal loans can be obtained for a value of more than $200,000. Of course, they will not lend this much to just anyone, but if you have a good credit rating and a regular strong income, then you could get a lot of money for your business start-up. Lenders, however, may want to see a track record of repayment, and you may need to start with a smaller loan from them and work your way up to a larger loan.

These loans come in both secured and unsecured loans. Secured loans means you need to put a house or a car onto the loan as security. For a new business, though, you may want to think this through very carefully because, if you cannot pay the lender – you may lose the house, too. A secured loan will give you better options and terms than an unsecured loan.

Unsecured personal loans do not require that you place anything as collateral for it. Because the lender is at a greater risk, though, you need to be aware that they charge more. That means you will pay a higher interest rate, get a smaller amount, and have less time to pay it back.

Personal loans are based on your credit report. This means it could really help you if you get a copy of your credit report before applying for a personal loan and verify that there are not any mistakes in reporting on it. Mistakes are common, and it can effect the terms of your loan – especially if there are some negative things involved.

Although a personal loan is one way that you could get money for your new business start-up there are also other ways available that you may want to look into. One of these could be a home equity loan that will give you the lowest interest rate, but again, your home is tied up into the transaction. Be careful. Other ways include special business start up loans, which will require a thorough business plan and a lot of financial details. If you want something quick, though, a personal loan without any security will be the fastest way to go.

Getting any loan means that you should shop around first, and then sign after you are sure it is a good deal. By using the Internet, you can easily get several online quotes for your personal loan in a very short time. Take the time to compare things like interest rates, length of time that you have to repay the loan, and how much money you can get. You will want to consider the overall costs, too, in the event you get any other kind of loan.

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Seeking A Grant? The Business Plan Is A Prerequisite.

March 26th, 2010

So you want to look into getting grant funding to start you new business do you? Well the first thing you will need is a business plan.

After you have done some research on your new business idea, you will have a better idea of the specifics of the business. Next it is worthwhile to try to articulate all those great ideas on paper, in the form of a business plan.

At this stage it is not a bad idea to carry around a small pad of paper and something to write with everywhere you go, or your favorite high-tech gadget that can record your thoughts. Your ideas will be percolating in your brain even when you are working on other things, and you never know when you will get a good idea, so be ready for it.

A business plan can help you get funding for your business, will explain how you will market your new service or product, and much more. Even before that, however, it can show the new business idea for what it is, in all its glory and warts. Then you can decide if you still want to proceed with it, make some changes to it so that success is more likely, or perhaps try again with another business idea. This paper step can save you a lot of time and frustration when you actually have to go out and provide the new service or begin to manufacture the new product for the first time.

The United States Small Business Administration has a branch called the Office of Small Business Development Centers. These centers can be found in each state, and they offer free or low-cost help with all aspects of starting a new small business, including help with writing a business plan.

A business plan needs to show your methods for running the business. For example, who will be involved in running and working in the business and what expertise they bring to the endeavor. It will show how you plan to sell your product or service, what the product is exactly and what all the steps are that are necessary to manufacture it. Or, in some cases, what specific service will you offer in full detail, and money particulars focusing on what it will cost to bring the product or service to the buying public. Basically, what it will bring in terms of revenue.

Banks and charitable organizations will want to look at your business plan and see if it is a sound investment. A business plan will also offer the entrepreneur peace of mind, because you will have gone through every aspect of the business, and you know how it will work, how much you can make from it, and how much it will cost to start and continue operating. After the business plan is written, you will have a pretty clear idea if your business has a good chance of succeeding or if it won’t work.

I know it seems like a lot of work, but trust me you will be glad you put in the extra effort in the end!

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