Business Generation

PROVIDENCE – Greenlee, a Rockford, Ill.-based subsidiary of Textron Inc., said it acquired a 51 percent stake in Shanghai Endura Tools Company Ltd. on March 30.

Shanghai-based Endura, established in 2004, is a hand tools provider for home centers, construction, industrial manufacturing and automotive channels, and employs about 140 people.

“The alliance also provides us with an opportunity to expand our presence in the Chinese tool market substantially, where we expect to increase sales significantly by leveraging Endura’s existing network and distribution structure of over 1,100 distributors,” said Scott Hall, president of the Textron Industrial Segment and Greenlee. The company did not disclose the financial terms of the agreement.

Zacks Equity Research noted that Textron’s across-the-board presence in commercial, manufacturing and industrial products, as well as financing operations, “protects it from specific business risk. The company

Read more…

TAUNTON, Mass. – The annual Taunton job fair has been canceled for the first time in 30 years due to a lack of interested employers, the Taunton Gazette reported.

The fair was scheduled for April 6 but only 10 of the tables were reserved by the deadline; the Taunton Employment Task Force said it needed 20-25 employers to run a “quality” job fair.

“Unfortunately, we just didn’t get employers out this year,” said Richard Shafer, chairman of the Taunton Employment Task Force, to the newspaper. “This is the first year it’s ever happened to us.”

The task force wouldn’t have been able to generate enough revenue in order to adequately advertise the job fair, he said while noting that the cancellation reflects the state of the economy in some ways.

In January,

Read more…

Whether you are operating a retail, industrial assembly, manufacturing, or office business, you have a need for workers to be there during your regular operating hours. In some businesses, like a restaurant or clothing boutique, part time workers are the norm. However, even in an office setting part time workers can be a great asset to your company.

Benefits of Part-Time Staff

Here are a few benefits to hiring part timers:

• You Get a Bigger Employee ‘Pool’ When it comes to people calling in sick or quitting, your larger pool of workers gives you the opportunity to keep the positions filled and working during tight spots.

• You Help Fill Jobs The US economy can use a few less unemployed workers. Hir

Read more…

As consumers’ spending habits have changed over the past few years, accepting credit cards has become a necessity for almost every small business out there. For today’s merchants, it makes sense to accept credit card transactions. But, that type of payment isn’t always affordable and isn’t usually the best way to keep payment processing costs as low as possible. We’re here to help you find ways to get the absolute lowest rates in the industry. And that means your small businesses will be able to keep more of every hard-earned dollar. We have compiled some tips and suggestions to help keep your payment processes smooth, keep the customer happy and fuss free, and keep the most of your profits.
Pin Pad Function: Hypercom P1300
If you’re the type of organization that either traditionally doesn’t accept plastic payment, or just hasn’t quite been able to cross the bridge yet, the pin pad is the perfect entryway for you. Accepting mostl

Read more…

PROVIDENCE – Rhode Island earned a C- for its transparency related to government spending, according to a second annual report by the U.S. Public Interest Research Group released last week.

“The good news is that since last year’s report, state governments across the country have become far more transparent about where the money goes,” said Phineas Baxandall, senior analyst for tax and budget policy at US PIRG, “But Rhode Island still has a long way to go.”

The report – Following the Money 2011: “How the States Rank on Providing Online Access to Government Spending Data” – ranks Rhode Island’s transparency website, www.ri.gov/opengovernment/, as “emerging” but not a “leader” due to serious deficiencies.

The states that were most open about their spending included: Kentucky, Texas, Indiana, Arizona, Louisiana, Massachusetts, North Carolina, Ohio and Oregon. On the other hand, those

Read more…

Many entrepreneurs start their small business because they are specialists and experts in a certain service industry. From efficiency consultants to wedding coordinators and software programmers, these are all specialty service niches that require an entrepreneur to share his or her expertise with a client.

Unfortunately, oftentimes entrepreneurs get short-changed when it comes to payment. It may be that more hours were necessary to finish a project, but at a set price, the service provider gets less money per hour. Or a freelancer completes a valuable service, only to have a client fail to pay.

What can you do to ensure that you get what you are owed for your services? Here are three important tips:

1. Make Clients Sign A Contract for Each Job

   A contract is a legal and binding agreement between two or more parties.

Read more…