Small Business Week
Small businesses are flourishing in South Florida, many of them got their start in the buildings of Yomtob Properties. Ben Yomtob supports small business growth in the region and offers some of the most luxurious office space in the area.
CBS 12 recently aired a segment and Blog Post on Small Business Week; here it is rebroadcast.
Small business owners and entrepreneurs are being recognized this week for the big role they play in communities across the country, including here in South Florida and along the Treasure Coast.
It’s all part of National Small Business Week.
Anyone who owns a business or has attempted to start one knows how difficult and overwhelming it can be; for the owners of the Lighthouse Diner in Jupiter it all started when they inherited the restaurant after their father passed away.
Ryan Perez, one of the three brothers who now own the diner, told us he was just about to open a restaurant in New York when it happened. He made the trip to Jupiter under the assumption the brothers would just fix the diner up and lease 
it to other owners but soon his plans changed.
“I saw this place and within about a week to ten days, I fell completely in love with it,” he said. “I got my brother on the first plane and we started working.”
Fast forward seven years, they say the diner has become somewhat of a local landmark, one they hope continues to grow.
Perez says the diner, which has a great view of the Jupiter lighthouse, has been around for decades and that part of being a good business owner means staying consistent.
“We are family-owned, home-cooking, affordable for everybody. This has been here since the 1950’s and this has been a landmark here so the thing I was scared about was, I did not want to ruin this name here. I wanted to keep this name going.”
While it is their goal to stay true to what customers know and love, Perez says they’ve also been forced to change with the times. That means learning to take full advantage of social media from a business standpoint.
“I had to learn to do all of that,” he said. “We do all the Instagram, Facebook; we try to get on all the formats.”
Whatever your business may be, Perez said most importantly it’s about being present and having a strong team of support.
“Hands on; be here everyday. If you are an absentee owner, it is hard to get the place off the floor. You have to rely on yourself and your staff.”
Aside from the expected networking benefits that come with joining a local chamber of commerce, there are also free workshops and mentoring opportunities available.
For example, Joseph Catrambone, the CEO at the Stuart Martin County Chamber of Commerce told us they have volunteers who will sit down with aspiring entrepreneurs to offer free consulting and guidance when it comes to drafting a business plan as well as offer workshops on customer service and how to utilize technology.
At the Greater Delray Beach Chamber of Commerce, they offer the1909 Business Accelerator which is a startup boot camp that helps train you to start a business. The group meets one night per week for eight weeks. The program also includes personalized mentorships and concludes with “pitch night,” giving entrepreneurs a chance to pitch their business in front of local investors.
The City of Delray Beach’s Office of Economic Development has also declared May as “We Love Small Biz Month.”
There are a lot of free workshops throughout the month that you can take advantage of. Click here for the full list of events.
Source:
Small Business Week
For Luxurious Office Space in Palm Beach County; contact Ben Yomtob Properties
Yomtob Properties
5300 West Atlantic Avenue
Delray Beach, FL 33496
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Phone: 561-542-8222
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A recent news report by Verizon Business shows that entrepreneurs looking to start a small business in a small city have some of the best options for locations right here in South Florida.