“Crowd Funding” New Workshop in Business Center Series

Maui County Business Resource Center is located at the Maui Mall. File photo.

By Sonia Isotov

Every month, local business experts bring a wealth of knowledge and experience to free workshops held at the Maui County Business Resource Center. Topics vary by month but usually focus on starting, financing, and growing a small business.

Workshops are held at the center located in the Maui Mall in Kahului, and are presented between 12 p.m. and 1 p.m., except for the special evening Quickbooks class. All workshops are free, unless otherwise specified below.

Richard Kehoe, MBA, CPA is a long-time SCORE counselor, and the lead SCORE representative on Maui. Numerous business owners have received his free business counseling and QuickBooks workshop at the Center. Courtesy photo.

The center, a division of the County of Maui Office of Economic Development, also has free business counseling with business executives in the US Small Business Administration’s Service Corp of Retired Executives (SCORE) counselor program. SCORE is a federal program and the Maui Chapter is lead by long-time SCORE counselor and local certified public accountant, Richard Kehoe.

Here’s the December schedule of business education workshops:

“Building a Successful Small Business in the Shortest Time Possible” by Mike Kern – Wednesday, December 14

Ever wonder how successful companies got that way so fast?  Instructor, Mike Kern, will provide tips on how you can be a successful small business owner too.  Mike specializes in helping companies to obtain working capital, manage cash flow and build cash reserves for business growth. If you would like to discuss financial strategies specifically for your business, Mike is also available every Tuesday afternoon at the Maui County Business Resource Center from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.

David Fisher, Maui Venture Consulting, LLC. Courtesy photo.

“Introduction to Crowd Funding” by David B. Fisher – Friday, December 16

Learn how to test your ideas and raise early funding from your personal networks using tools like Kickstarter, Indiegogo, and Profounder. The US Congress is in the process of expanding crowd funding beyond donations to small loans and ownership shares. It is essential to develop your networks prior to doing a campaign, so start now. David B. Fisher, principal consultant with Maui Venture Consulting, ran the Maui Small Business Development Center for 19 years and was honored in 2006 as the US Small Business Administration’s “Financial Services Champion for the State of Hawaii.”

“Appreciate Marketing: 10 Ways to Keep Your Clients Coming Back” by Dr. Robert Santry – Thursday, December 22

Appreciative marketing involves saying thank you to your clients for their business and keeping your clients happy. The ultimate goal is to make sure that they keep coming back for more products and services. Reach out and touch someone in appreciation assure better customer loyalty. The instructor, Dr. Robert Santry, serves as CEO and Master Coach-Consultant-Trainer of Life & Success Adventures.  He enjoys helping people discover passion and purpose, and in turn using that to turn it into a profit-making business.

SPECIAL EVENING WORKSHOP

“QuickBooks for Small Business” by Richard Kehoe, CPA
$45 per session, includes hands-on computer training for beginners.
Thursday, December 29 from 5 p.m. – 8 p.m.

Learn to set up your company’s QuickBooks in a small class setting with personalized tutoring. This class is for new users and will teach you how to record sales, receive payments, prepare invoices and balance your checkbook. Get customized answers and schedule a follow-up appointment at no cost to discuss solutions. Sponsored by SCORE (and presented by Richard Kehoe, CPA and lead SCORE counselor).

For more information or to reserve a seat, call the Maui County Resource Center at (808) 873-8247. All workshops are subject to change or cancellation