>> funding for "NJ Biz Beat with Raven Santana" is provided by NJMEP, focused on productivity, performance and strategic development.

More on NJMEP.org.

♪ ♪ >> this is "NJ Biz Beat with Raven Santana."

Raven: hello, I am Raven Santana.

This week marks small business week, an annual event by the Small Business Administration celebrating entrepreneurs and highlighting support available to them.

In New Jersey there are more than 950,000 individual small businesses and they host nearly 2 million New Jersey workers.

The top small business sectors in New Jersey include professional and scientific services, transportation and warehousing, real estate, construction which we highlighted last week and retail.

New Jersey is filled with successful business owners and this week we wanted to lean on them for advice on starting and running a business in the garden city.

We start with the CEO and president of Woodberry Heights -based U.S. lumber and the 2024 small business person of the year appear you are New Jersey's small business person of the year and you were honored recently at the White House.

Congratulations.

What was that like?

Reporter: it is very -- guest: I am very -- it was very nice.

Raven: you are president and CEO of U.S. lumber.

A male dominated industry and you are one of few women entrepreneurs in the industry.

Tell me about your company.

Guest: I became the CEO in 1993 when my husband and I merged our companies.

We became minority and a women -- woman owned business.

We sell our lumber to the big construction companies like freedom tower, that is one of our projects.

Our lumber and plywood are in freedom tower.

We built a building in Philadelphia, the Philadelphia Eagles, the Golden Bridge.

Our lumber and plywood are in those projects.

Raven: I'm interested to know, how many employees did you start with and how many do you have now?

Guest: we started probably with 12.

But right now, we have eight since the pandemic and we are a small business -- family business also.

Raven: what did you want to continue to expand in the lumber industry?

it is so interesting and there ours so few women -- and there are so few women as I noted.

What made you want to expand in this industry?

Guest: I am a dreamer and I always dreamed of being a boss.

When my husband -- when I met my husband, he owned a lumber company.

And he gave me the opportunity.

So, when I start going to the office, the employees did not like me and did not want me there.

So my husband and I decided I would start my own lumber broker company.

So why buy lumber from him -- so I buy lumber from him and I solicit as being a minority and women owned business.

When he semiretired, he wants us to merge the companies.

The lumber broker and his company.

When he was semiretired.

And also, I really wanted to be successful in the lumber industry because I found out in the beginning and when I started that men don't like to build with women.

And I always get embarrassed especially, I went to a job site because I visit job sites.

And it is full of men.

I could not pronounce one of their last names.

They laughed at me.

So it hurts because they are laughing at me but I am crying inside but what I said to myself, why should I get upset?

can this man speak three languages?

ICAM.

-- I can.

That negativity I turned and a positive way and I say to myself, when I am soliciting a prospective customer, I will say -- when I call and you hear my voice you will say, that is her from U.S. lumber because you will never forget my voice because of my accent.

Raven: what other challenges did you experience it when getting your business up and running?

has specially when you think of financial and the whole process?

Guest: yes, in the beginning it is like getting a line of credit.

It is always going to be that my husband had to sign for it.

And then I established a rapport with the bank and then, I really start working hard.

I solicit.

I sent letters.

I went to the job sites cared and when I go out on the road, anything that I see if there is a trailer I will stop and introduce myself.

And I also applied for -- because when I am soliciting and Pennsylvania, they told me that if I was certified I could develop a business.

But, after I got certified, I went back and that is when they told me that -- it is for a construction company.

So what I did was I opened up a construction division in U.S. lumber and I teamed up with a graduate.

Since then, it has increased my sales.

Raven: Roland college recently launched the Institute for women in business studies.

Tell us about that Institute and how it will train and empower future entrepreneurs.

Guest: we aim to develop leadership skills, empowerment and provide professional growth for students through the mentorship speaker series and -- and working opportunities and professional development opportunities.

Because I was a teacher in the Philippines and I was teaching at high school.

And when I become a board of trustee of Roland University, I initiated an exchange program from universities in the Philippines to Roland University.

So I am calling the president of universities in the Philippines and introducing myself as a board of trustee of the Roland University.

I asked if I was able to bring a delegation from Roland University.

That is what we are doing.

We already have a professor from the University of the Philippines it came to Roland University for a PhD and then went back to the Philippines to share what they learned and what is their research.

With all my colleagues, they have an international collaboration for nursing.

Raven: as a rolling University alum, I could not be more proud.

You truly are an inspiration and role model for all women.

Thank you for joining me!

Guest: thank you for the opportunity.

I really appreciate it.

Raven: we heard from business owners over the years that a strong community brings a successful business.

He draws on the connection to his community for running his business.

Santiago got started by opening his first coffee shop out of a 1970's horse trailer but through strong community support he has since moved into two prime locations in Jersey City attracting rural -- loyal customers and new friends.

I sat down with Santiago to discuss his Small Business story.

Why did you decide to go into the coffee business?

Guest: the majority of my career was founded in studios and all of my off time I would find myself in coffee shops and I would observe the way things were done.

I had a desire -- I had a little notebook and I wrote down things I wanted to change.

I started to write down things and one day I said, you know what?

I was in Florida and talking to my wife and I said, I really want to do this.

I started to buy equipment and put things aside into storage.

I had an epiphany one day that I was ready to do something new.

And I decided to do it and I jumped into it with a step of faith.

Nobody showed me the past.

It was really hard in the beginning that I was able to accomplish it.

I wrote down a bunch of different things I wanted to accomplish and I went for it.

Raven: talk to us about hybrid coffee.

How did you get the name?

Guest: my mom loves to cook and to create things.

My dad is a hard-working construction individual which created who I am today.

I am a designer loves to create things.

Hybrid was a blend of different things.

The name came about was that I started in a 1970's horse trailer which was not 100% brick and more to her or a mobile venture, a hybrid of both.

That is how it all happened when I use to explain -- and now, in the current location, the business has morphed.

I went from trailer and coffee to pastries and food.

It is a hybrid of different things.

Hybrid is an extension of me and everything I stand for.

Raven: a lot of small business owners, that is the story.

It is not ever one-size-fits-all and it is never easy and we know a lot of that is based on passion and perseverance.

Tell us a little bit about what support --what does it look like?

you are a Latino.

You made a switch.

This was not handed down to you from your parents.

What did that support look like?

Guest: there was no one with an open book and no one gave me a phone call saying, this is how you do things.

A lot of it was the school of hard knocks.

I sat down with a lot of people that have been in the industry for a long time and asked questions.

I learned a piece of advice -- find somebody that knows a lot of stuff, ask questions, and stay quiet.

And that is what I would do.

In terms of support, I did not get much outside of asking questions.

A lot of my support I had to find.

Raven: let's talk about funding.

And financial support.

You speak about how it was kind of not there, nonexistent.

Guest: my business was 100% funded by the scraps I had after my payroll.

The issue really was accessibility.

No one showed me the way.

When I went to look for support and funding, it was hard to find.

Raven: why?

Guest: I think it is buried in a lot of places and there is not an outline that states how and when to get the funding.

I hear all the time there are grants.

I would reach out to people but would not get calls back.

I would send emails and not get much information.

It was hard to get access to funding.

I funded the entire thing myself.

I'm a local guy, regular guy.

I was able to do it.

Raven: you said you funded it yourself.

How much money are we talking about upfront?

Date family and friends help?

-- did family and friends help?

Guest: my family did not have access to funds.

And friends did not invest.

Two people came alongside me during my first brick and mortar that supported me for a total of about $22,000.

It was a beautiful opportunity which is my current location in downtown Jersey City.

When I first started I invested $40,000 in the 1970's horse trailer.

It was a lot of work.

And then, in the downtown location, when I opened that that was about $65,000 and I literally built the location with one other person that does construction.

Raven: you have since expanded and you are doing well.

Tell me about why the location, why Jersey City, has been such a great location for you, clearly NYU remain there.

Guest: the way I explain it to a lot of people is that Hoboken birthed me and Jersey City raised me.

I grow where I am planted.

Jersey City is close to my heart.

I love this city and the people in it.

When I look back at the number of people that support Jersey City, it is people that have been there for a long time.

New people are coming in all the time.

It is my desire to show the true culture of Jersey City.

Being someone that was pretty much raised here.

Raven: do you have plans to expand further?

Guest: my intention is to grow but remain small.

I am a community driven individual.

People that know me know that I care about my community.

Raven: great example, great story, the owner of hybrid coffee.

When you think Small Business you don't think about your kids schools but education is big business in New Jersey and around the country.

The Scandinavian school of Jersey City is a unique model.

It started with four kids and has grown to more than 200.

The founder and director, Maria, told me she needed a safe place for her young daughter to learn so she decided to take matters into her own hands.

I spoke to her about the difficult process of starting an education business and the advice she would get to those that want to follow in her footsteps.

Guest: I found a realtor and we toured some places and I thought it would be a tiny, one-room schoolhouse.

It started that way.

I started with four children.

This was a wild ride in Jersey City with a two-year-old who I carried in a carrier down to the building department.

Navigating that through zoning and all the different -- we had to have the licensing to start a school.

Just identifying what is it that you want with your program, what is the pedagogy, what is the curriculum, who are your teachers -- that would probably be my best advice to really think about why you are doing it.

Raven: one of the goals of small business week is to connect entrepreneurs, new and old to financial support and mentoring.

This week Morris County held a number of events to mark small business week and help small businesses in the county flourish.

I sat down with the president and CEO of the Morris County economic development alliance learn how his group empowers small businesses.

Tell me about the importance of small business week in Morris County.

Guest: first and foremost, thank you for having us on today and we could not be more excited to share with you about Morris County small business week.

It is part of national small business week.

One reason why we want to do the Morris County small business week is to highlight the municipalities that we have and the small businesses that make it up but also to highlight that small business is larger than we believe.

Most of us think that small business is micro business.

1-10 employees.

Small business and many ways can go up to 500 employees.

Something we referred to as a middle-market company.

When you look at what the Small Business Administration looks at as Small Business, for most of us in New Jersey, 90% plus of the businesses are small businesses.

And in many ways, they are all small businesses.

Raven: I love how you clarified that.

We know that small businesses are the backbone to a lot of our communities.

Tell us about some events that will be going on -- what are some events that will be going on during Small Business week?

I saw a number of events including grants and funding for small business, getting to know Google analytics training.

Guest: when I first came back up here in 2022, the County did a Morris County small business grant program we had which was 15,000 other grants and the County got over $10 million.

We had Dr. and Ramirez go out to hundreds of businesses and talk with them about getting a grant.

At the same time, we did our Main Street is no survey and we learned that businesses needed three things, assistance with marketing, access to capital and hiring.

In 2023, we worked really hard through our ecosystem led by the Chamber of Commerce and our chair on a couple different issues the chamber wanted to work on which was community, growth and navigation.

We placed new programs and now in 2024 you see things like our Grant workshop giving access to funding, Google analytics in terms of giving access to marketing as well as a complementary business directory and the relaunch of connect Morris which offers a complementary job posting where you can post interest in volunteer opportunities and job opportunities.

We have a workforce program for employers that kicks off on Friday at the Morris County school of technology where we talk about recruitment techniques as well.

Everything we learned in 2022 we build the capacity for in 2023 and 2024 was the ideal time for us to bring us -- to bring this to market.

We always want to support businesses.

Raven: how does the Morris County economic development alliance support small businesses in the county all year round?

you touched on that a bit but let's elaborate more.

Guest: I really appreciate you bringing that up.

The event to us is a demonstration of the service capability and not the service itself.

You look at the alliance and our relationship with the chamber, we are unaffiliated 501(c)(3).

Awareness, acquisition and engagement working with the Corporation which we comanage is a division of the Morris County Chamber of Commerce.

We do support year-round and are looking at programs like starting move up Morris.

We are fostering this community.

We look at programs like connect Morris, it is understanding that most of these companies really struggle with talent.

They are competing against larger organizations and talent is such a key endeavor for us.

Connect tomorrow's program is designed to connect with candidates.

When we acquired the tourism Bureau, we acquired a marketing organization.

It is used to marketing to consumers.

The alliance has connect to Morris which markets to job seekers.

The economic development Corporation is used to working with businesses through the chamber and outreach efforts.

When we look at those programs, it is about getting the right ecosystem asset aligned to help drive us forward.

On the tour is on front, we do a good job of a major event strategy.

We market events that brand our community and bring people to our small businesses and we have sponsored numerous community events and programs and we are lucky enough to have a show with us to show off some of the wonderful programs we have at the national level here.

We talked about the reasons why people want to be here.

Raven: we know that small businesses are critical to New Jersey's economy.

What else needs to be done to make sure small businesses in New Jersey continue to thrive?

Guest: one thing we have to look at is that every business is different.

The more inclusive approach we take in how we do things and listen and understand, the better job we can do.

I have to say that Melanie did a wonderful job.

We've on our website and in the first week we had 100 hits.

This is the way to do business right.

Like what Kelly Fossett does.

I work with her on the -- program to bring innovation grants in.

They have been wonderful.

Helping to get the ecosystems aligned.

We understand that micro businesses, small businesses and large corporate businesses all play an important part in our community and many of them with philanthropic efforts help us thrive.

It is an understanding that these businesses -- then when we look at that from straight employment.

Looking at it from a holistic perspective can help us understand how we can get that exponential impact where two plus two equals eight and not four.

Raven: tailoring the resources, not a one size fits all.

Thank you for joining me.

Before we leave you, here's a look at the top business headlines of the week.

The Attorney General ask a judge to dismiss an anti-smoking lawsuit filed last month I a grassroots group of casino workers who say they are sick from the secondhand smoke they breathe while on the job here the group wants the court to overturn New Jersey's indoor smoking law.

In a letter to the judge, they defended the current law saying it does not deny any group of people equal protection and it does not infringe on a constitutional right for safety.

A total smoking ban would be catastrophic to Atlantic city and put thousands of jobs at risk.

The Hudson town project is expected to be a bigger boon to the economy than originally thought.

In a report released now estimates that the plan will create 95,000 jobs, 20,000 more than the previous forecast in 2017.

The report also finds that work will generate a massive 19.6 billion dollars in economic activity.

The plan is to build two new rail tunnels and rehabilitate the existing ones.

This work will transform New Jersey's economy.

>> it is tremendous news for our region.

The project is underway and we are already starting to see the economic benefits and return on investment.

A robust and reliable transportation system is essential to the economic health of the region.

All of that flow of capital and strong economic bond really rests on a well-functioning transportation system and this program is the key to that.

Raven: that doesn't it for us this week.

Remember to subscribe to our YouTube channel to get word on when we will post new episodes.

Thank you for watching this year and have a great summer.

>> funding for "NJ Biz Beat with Raven Santana" provided BRI NJMEP, a partner to New Jersey's manufacturing industry focused on productivity, performance and strategic development.

More on NJMEP.org.

♪ ♪