Angie Adams poses at Calamansi Cafe on Thursday, Feb. 1, 2018 in Chattanooga, Tenn.More Info
About LAUNCHStarted: 2011Mission: Empowering underserved communities and individuals through entrepreneurshipGovernance: The nonprofit agency is governed by an 11-member boardStaff: Hal Bowling heads a 13-person staffFind out more: On the web at launchchattanooga.org/launchunited.
As a consultant, Hal Bowling saw up close and personal how the work environment for an average employee changed drastically during and after the Great Recession a decade ago reshaped the economy.
Employees don’t tend to stick around the same company for 30 years or more now, thanks in part to corporate downsizing. Now, opening a small business isn’t out of the realm of possibility.
“There has been a big shift,” says Bowling, executive director of LAUNCH Chattanooga. “It used to be really risky to start a business, and now I think it’s one of the safest things you can do because the corporate world has changed so much.”
Bowling started the nonprofit LAUNCH Chattanooga in 2011 to help give local entrepreneurs the tools they need to start their own businesses. After all, nearly 90 percent of the businesses in the United States consist of 20 employees or less, according to the the U.S. Small Business Administration.