Supporting small businesses in the Mat-Su: Small Business Association stops by for a visit

WASILLA — Spencer Richardson spent part of his afternoon Tuesday with a group of people specializing in small businesses.

Richardson, owner of Distinctive Ride in Wasilla, talked shop with representatives from the Small Business Association, Small Business Development Center and Evergreen Business Capital.

As they spoke with Richardson, asking him various questions about Distinctive Ride eight years after the launch, the small business specialists flowered Richardson with compliments on the continuous growth of his business, which specializes in custom car and truck accessories.

“The way we advertise, customers know our name,” Richardson said.

Julie Nolen, South Regional Director for the Small Business Development Center, was impressed.

“These guys didn’t need a whole lot of assistance,” Nolen said.

Nolen was part of the group that visited various small businesses across the Mat-Su to continue their efforts to support small businesses in rural communities. Stops included Bright Minds Learning Center, Grizzly Grounds Espresso and Distinctive Ride.

Nolen made stops at the trio of Valley businesses alongside SBA Regional Administrator Jeremy Field; Nancy Porzio, the district director of the Alaska office for the US SBA; and Evergreen Business Capital Vice President and Loan Officer Barbara Gill.

“This is a wonderful business. You should be very proud,” Porzio said of Distinctive Ride.

Distinctive Rides is distinctively not an auto repair shop, rather, it’s a place to customize cars, trucks and even motorcycles. The mechanics there busily soup up rides, catering to the customer’s vision from custom paint jobs and bumping audio systems to bed linings and an array of automotive accessories.

“When I started Distinctive Ride, I knew I wanted to be different from other shops. I had a long list of things I didn’t want my business to represent, but only one thing I expected from my team here at Distinctive Ride; I wanted us to be the best at what we do, while providing exquisite customer service and building a reputation of trust and respect within the community. Eight years later, those expectations are still held to this day,” Richardson said on his company website.

Richardson admitted that their website “wasn’t as active as it should be” but he is very active on Facebook. This was met well since a majority of businesses are looking to Facebook for actively engaging the community on an increasingly popular platform.

“You do a great job on Facebook,” Nolen said.

Another distinctive way Richardson promotes his business while supporting his customers is the company’s “courtesy car,” a loaner vehicle that customers can use while their car is in the shop. The bright green car is nearly impossible to miss on the road or in a parking lot, so it’s advertising meets customer service.

“That’s a good idea!” the assorted reps all said, almost in unison.

Nolen recounted an anecdote about getting a remote start, praising the shop. In 2010, Distinctive Rides began providing full services for lighting, remote starts, and car audio systems.

“This is the only place I considered going,” Nolen said.

Richardson said his next step starts by trying to save up finances, feeling the squeeze from constant expansion and upgrades to their facility, like adding cameras and fencing.

“This is wildly expensive,” Richardson said.

Evergreen Business Capital loaned money to support Distinctive Ride and Richardson’s vision. Gill noted that Richardson’s fixed, low-down rates were a “huge advantage” that were lower than market value.

“Growth eats up a lot of cash,” Gill said.

The stop at Distinctive Ride was part of Field’s first visit to Alaska since he was appointed Regional Administrator in January 2018. Fields said counseling was the most fun part of the job, talking to the people at their workplace, asking questions and sharing time tested advice.

“You’re helping people be successful with their business,” Fields said. “It’s a cool thing.”

The SBA is a federal that provides support to entrepreneurs and small businesses, from financial assistance to professional counseling. The SBA operates in 10 regions across the U.S., including Alaska, Idaho, Oregon and Washington in the Pacific Northwest.

“The SBA makes the American dream of business ownership a reality,” Melanie M. Norton, SBA Regional Communications Director for the Pacific Northwest Region said in an email. “During these meetings he will be listening for ways the SBA can advocate for and better support local business.”

According to Norton, for the remainder of the week Fields will meet with: SBA staff, local resource, community and government partners, small businesses in Wasilla and Anchorage, and Alaska Native Corporation leadership.

Norton named some of the topics that will be discussed: Powering Alaska’s rural small businesses, impact of recent tax cuts and expansion of association health plans, workforce development, and reducing regulations.

Norton said that since SBA Administrator Linda McMahon visited Alaska a year ago, the local SBA team has worked on delivering the following services to Alaska small businesses in addition to the SBA’s core programs, “Actively recruiting hosts to bring a Women’s Business Center to Alaska, Doubled the contracting staff in the SBA Alaska District Office to meet market needs ($3.8 billion in federal government contracts went to small businesses in Alaska during FY 2017 – that’s more than Washington, Oregon and Idaho combined. Source: www.usaspending.gov), Partnered with Amazon to bring e-commerce training to small businesses in Anchorage in Nov. 2017, and the first city to host this joint training.”

For more information about the SBA, particularly here in Alaska, contact Nancy Porzio at 907-271-4844 or at nancy.porzio@sba.gov. Contact Frontiersman reporter Jacob Mann at Jacob.mann@frontiersman.com.