The area lost 532 small businesses, or 33 per 100,000 during the period studied. And, in some sense, "losses have settled in there," Stein said, adding "I wouldn't write it off completely."
Keith Stokes, the executive director of the Rhode Island Economic Development Corporation, isn't writing it off at all. The area is home or near to a number of growing large businesses -- from Toray Plastics to Fidelity Investments to Raytheon Integrated Defense Systems. These giants rely on small businesses as vendors, he said. Being part of a growing supply chain can be as important to entrepreneurial success as having access to capital.
Recently, toy and game company Hasbro announced it plans to expand its Providence operation and invest $24 million in the state's economy. That move will add hundreds of high-paying (averaging upwards of $80,000) jobs to the area, providing residents with more disposable income to fuel an urban renewal. "Many small businesses that are service and retail oriented, they're going to prosper," Stokes said. "We're already seeing it."
A low loan failure rate is a vote of confidence both for the franchise business model -- or concept -- and for the people involved. The following franchises all had relatively low loan failure rates.
