SBA programs need
better exposure in isles,
companies say

A Hawaii entrepreneur says
agency backing helped his business
grow to provide 110 jobs

By Rob Perez
Star-Bulletin

When a 1985 hamstring injury forced Kent Untermann to end a tryout with the Dallas Cowboys, the former University of Hawaii tight end needed a job.

He returned to the islands, became a salesmen for an elevator company and sold picture frames part-time at the swap meet.

Untermann no longer works for the elevator company. His Pictures Plus has 110 workers, an Aiea factory, eight retail outlets and expects to reach roughly $12 million in sales this year.

Untermann says a Small Business Administration-backed loan for $100,000 gave his business a critical financial boost when it was struggling to get off the ground. "If we hadn't had that cash infusion at the beginning, we wouldn't be where we are today," Untermann said.

The 1985 UH graduate shared his success story yesterday at a video conference between small business leaders in Honolulu and Aida Alvarez, administrator of the Small Business Administration, in Washington, D.C.

Rep. Neil Abercrombie, who sponsored the conference, also participated from Washington.

One of the main themes to emerge from the conference was that the SBA programs need better exposure in Hawaii.

Financial or other assistance may be available to Hawaii's small businesses, but many owners either don't know about the services or believe the bureaucracy is too cumbersome, time-consuming or intimidating to deal with, the advocates said.

They also spoke of the need for business mentors, especially those versed in the languages and cultures of people who could most benefit. "A lot of women business owners need mentors. It's very lonely out there," said Marivic Dar of the Hawaii Coalition of Women Business Owners.

Several business owners said Hawaii companies, many struggling because of the state's poor economy, have trouble meeting bonding requirements to qualify for federal contracts.

They also said small businesses often believe they are shut out from competing for contracts because federal agencies increasingly are bundling those contracts, effectively making the jobs too big for a small business.

Alvarez and Abercrombie promised to follow up on all the concerns raised yesterday.

But despite the need for more exposure of SBA programs, Alvarez noted that the word is getting out in Hawaii.

Over the past seven months, she said, about 50 SBA loans averaging $10,000 each have been issued in Hawaii. In other U.S. markets, the agency averages about 12 loans in a full year, Alvarez said.