What's a second-stage company, you ask? Well, based on research from the Cassopolis, Mich.-based Edward Lowe Foundation, a second-stage company is a small business that has about 10 to 100 employees, and $1 million to $50 million in revenue.
The Lowe Foundation's research - as we explain in print this week - indicates that second-stage businesses are creating jobs, not just in Michigan but across the U.S., and the foundation is suggesting something called "economic gardening" as an economic development stratgey for state and local governments. That means supporting existing companies, not trying to lure new businesses in from outside the state. As the foundation's research has shown, the "hunting" method of economic development doesn't tend to result in net job creation. Gardening, on the other hand, does.
To read the full, original article click on this link: Second stage businesses, economic gardening and the Michigan 50 Companies to Watch - Small Biz, Big City by Nancy Kaffer - Crain's Detroit Business
Author: Nancy Kaffer
