Congresswoman in Laconia to announce grant to provide help to small businesses

LACONIA — The Vintage Cafe on Main Street was the venue when the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Development yesterday officially awarded $175,000 in Rural Business Enterprise Grants to seven organizations across the state, including the Belknap Economic Development Council (BEDC).

U.S. Representative Carol Shea-Porter, described by Ted Brady, state director of the USDA, as "one of our agency's greatest supporters," said that "these grants are a boost. That's what this is all about — a boost."

The BEDC was awarded $20,234, which executive director Justin Slattery said will sustain its partnership with the New Hampshire Small Business Development Center (SBDC) to provide counseling and assistance to small and emergent businesses in the region. Almost a year ago a similar grant from the USDA enabled the BEDC to arrange with the SBDC to secure the presence of a business counselor in Laconia.

The grant," Slattery said, "has allowed the BEDC to build a great partnership with the Small Business Development Center in Belknap County. We look forward to continuing to collaborate in the coming year to assist local businesses just like the Vintage Cafe."

The Vintage Cafe, owned and operated by Richard Dargy and his daughter Nicole, is one of more than 100 clients in Belknap County and Grafton County served by Sally Holder, the business counselor.

Richard Dargy recalled the challenges he faced in starting the business, adding "that's when I met Sally." He said that she not only provided advice "but even gave me homework." From Sally, he said, he learned two valuable lessons — "measure twice and cut once" and "if you're going to make mistakes, make them on paper."

With Holder's helping hand, Nicole Dargy said that the business turned a profit in its first year, during which sales grew more than 40 percent. She indicated that shortly the product line will be expanded to included specialty coffees and a line of "take and bake" products. "We're very happy," she remarked.

Holder expressed nothing but enthusiasm for her work. She said that she helps individual entrepreneurs and small businesses address all sorts of financial, marketing and operational issues to ensure profitability and growth. "I have clients in every kind of business you can think of," she said. She observed that "staying focused" posed the stiffest test for most small businesses, noting that growth raises issues that distract from the fundamentals of the enterprise.

Shea-Porter stressed that New Hampshire is a state of small communities that draw their health and prosperity from locally owned and operated businesses. "They are our treasures," she said. Professing her support for the USDA and its programs, she reminded everyone to "recognize the contributions of public employees who support their communities" then remarked "I'm just here to celebrate with everybody."

Brady noted that since 1994 the USDA has awarded $1.4 million to the BEDC, which he estimated has generated or preserved 750 jobs in Belknap County.

CAPTION: U.S. Representative Carol Shea-Porter (center) was joined by, from left, Nicole Dargy, Brad Taylor and Richard Dargy of the Vintage Cafe, and from right, Ted Brady, state director of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Rural Development, and Justin Slattery, executive director of the Belknap Economic Development Council as the USDA awarded the BEDC a Rural Business Enterprise Grant. (Laconia Daily Sun photo/Michael Kitch)