The national unemployment rate has been above 7% since 2008, and the unemployment rate for Post-9/11 Veterans has been above 10% for most of this year. The president has made a vow to help Veterans find work. The government has implemented programs, such as the Vow to Hire Heroes Act, which helps Veterans find employment, while rewarding the companies that hire them. But while hundreds of companies have pledged to hire more Veterans, many former military prefer to go into business for themselves.

Men and women who have served in the Armed Forces have several key attributes which make them ideal candidates for business ownership. Veterans know how to work hard, but more importantly, they know how to delegate tasks. Veteran Entrepreneurs won’t try to shoulder the load alone, but instead will use their military leadership experience to train their employees to run the business as they themselves would run it.

One of the most important attributes that Veteran-Entrepreneurs possess is often over-looked and seldom mentioned. But the fact is, that no matter what a Veteran’s rank was when they separated from the military, they spent a career taking orders, and now want to call their own shots as civilians. This desire to be independent, combined with the confidence gained by a meritorious military career, make Veterans ideal aspirants to be successful business owners.

A growing trend in the community of Veteran Entrepreneurship is the utilization of opportunities found in franchise companies. Many franchise companies offer Veterans discounts on buy-in and start-up fees. Here are a few of the many notable companies that offer special franchise opportunities for military Veterans:

Little Caesars offers qualified Honorably Discharged Veterans $5,000 off the franchise fee, and $5,000 in credit for equipment. They also offer qualified Disabled Veterans up to $68,000 in benefits, including a waived franchising fee, and up to $10,000 credit for equipment and additional financing.

The UPS Store offers qualified Veterans and spouses of active duty service members $10,000 off the franchising fee, and up to 50% off the application fee.

7-Eleven offers qualified Veterans up to $35,000 off on franchises, and up to 65% in financing.

AAMco offers Veterans who purchase a franchise an $8,000 credit, and direct SBA loans.

Veteran Entrepreneurs are not limited to franchising with existing companies. This is just one of many ways that Veterans can go into business for themselves. There are many programs and benefits available for Veterans who are interested in starting their own business, or buying into a franchise company. The first place that potential Veteran Entrepreneurs should look is the VA’s Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization.

Week of Events from November 4 to 11 To Reach Out To Veteran Entrepreneurs and Business Owners

WASHINGTON – Today, the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) announced the kickoff of Veterans Small Business Week, an initiative on the part of SBA to reach out to veteran entrepreneurs and small business owners.  Veterans Small Business Week will be held from November 4 to 11 and is part of SBA’s work throughout the year to make sure our nation’s veterans have the tools and capital they need to start or grow a business.

“Our nation owes a debt of gratitude to the brave men and women who have served our country,” said Acting SBA Administrator Jeanne Hulit.  “SBA’s Veterans Small Business Week is so exciting because it really shines a light on what makes our nation strong.  Veterans are highly-skilled and highly-trained leaders in their communities; it makes sense that after serving their country they would want to bring these skills back home and start businesses.  Our job at the SBA is to make sure veterans know what tools and programs are out there to help them achieve their dreams.”

During Veterans Small Business Week, SBA staff all across the country will be working with partner organizations on educational efforts, mentoring, and trainings for veterans.  SBA provides veterans access to business counseling and training, capital and business development opportunities through government contracts. In FY 2013, SBA supported $1.86 billion in loans for 3,094 veteran-owned small businesses.  And since 2009, the dollar amount of SBA lending support to veteran-owned firms has nearly doubled.

According to the U.S. Census, veterans are a significant part of the small business community.  Nearly one in 10 small businesses is veteran-owned, and our nation’s 2.4 million veteran-owned small businesses employ almost 6 million people and generate more than $1 trillion in receipts.  In the private sector, veterans are 45 percent more likely than those with no active-duty military experience to be self-employed.

SBA currently engages veterans through its 68 local SBA district offices, 15 Veterans Business Outreach Centers nationwide, its partnership with 63 Small Business Development Centers (SBDCs) with over 900 outreach locations, and 12,000 SCORE volunteers. Each year SBA helps more than 200,000 veterans, service-disabled veterans and reservists.  To learn more about additional opportunities for veterans available through the SBA, please visit the website at www.sba.gov/veterans.

Making sure that small business owners can easily access the capital they need to start and grow their business is priority one for the Small Business Administration (SBA). Some 260, 000 small businesses and entrepreneurs have benefitted from $126 billion in lending since 2009.

Entrepreneurs and small businesses have consistently proven to be drivers of jobs and innovation, and are often the major contributors to most local economies. Reaching their third highest year of lending in FY 2013 (more than $29 billion), the SBA has contributed to the strength and resiliency of America’s 28 million small businesses. As they continue to recover, they are driving the economy forward.

It’s no coincidence that many small business owners and entrepreneurs have served in the military. Data from the SBA shows that Veterans own about 2.4 million businesses, or 9 percent of all U.S. businesses, employing 5.8 million workers.

Small businesses help stimulate economic growth by providing employment opportunities. Additionally, entrepreneurs and small businesses tend to attract talent who invent new products or implement new solutions for existing ideas. Many small businesses also possess the ability to respond and adapt quickly to changing economic climates. This is due, in part, to the fact that small businesses are often very customer-oriented. Local customers will remain loyal to their favorite small businesses, especially those that are “Veteran Owned”, in the midst of an economic crisis. This loyalty means that small businesses are often able to stay afloat during tough times, which can further strengthen local economies.

The Small Loan Advantage (SLA) program, first launched in February, 2011, and revamped in June, 2012 produced dramatic results by providing loans under $350,000 to small businesses and entrepreneurs in underserved communities.

Streamlining the loan process helped the success of the CAPlines program. This program provides working capital lines of credit designed to help small businesses with their short-term working capital needs.

So far this year, the SBA has supported more than 7,700,504 loans, providing small businesses with long-term, fixed-rate financing to acquire real estate and major fixed assets, for a total of more than $11.7 billion.

For more information about these and other SBA programs, visit the SBA website at www.sba.gov, or contact your local SBA field office.

Tuesday, October 22nd           6:00 to 9:00 p.m.
Topic: How to Start or Grow a Small Business
Presented by the Seacoast Chapter of SCORE
Location: Portsmouth, NH                            For information and to register: Click here

Thursday, October 24th           9:00 – 11:30 a.m.
Topic: Subcontractor Training for Contracting with the Government
Presented by NH Procurement Technical Assstance Program (NH PTAP)
Location: White Mountain C.C. Berlin          For information and to register: Click here  

Thursday, October 24th          1:00 to 3:00 p.m.
Topic: Let’s Talk About Sales: Building Your Sales Force
Presented by the Center for Women’s Business Advancement at SNHU
Location: Manchester, NH                          For information and to register: Click here

Thursday, October 24th         5:30 to 8:30 p.m.
Topic: Financial Reports Using QuickBooks
Presented by the Merrimack Valley Chapter of SCORE
Location: Rivier University, Nashua, NH   For information and to register: Click here

Tuesday, November 5th            2:30 p.m.  to 4:00 p.m.
Topic: Veteran Small Business Roundtable
Presented by SBA Partners and SBA District Staff
Location: Manchester (NH)
For info or register contact Miguel Moralez at miguel.moralez@sba.gov or 603-225-1601

Wednesday, November 6th        9:30 a.m. to Noon
Topic: Government Contracting for Women
Presented by the Center for Women’s Business Advancement at SNHU
Location: Salem, NH                              For Information and to register: Click here

Wednesday, November 6th        6:00 to 9:00 p.m.
Topic: Small Business Finances: What You Need to Know
Presented by the Seacoast Chapter of SCORE
Location: Portsmouth, NH                            For information and to register: Click here

Thursday, November 7th         5:30 to 8:30 p.m.
Topic: Tax Workshop for Small Business
Presented by the Merrimack Valley Chapter of SCORE
Location: Bedford, NH                          For Information and to register: Click here

Thursday, November 7th          6:30 to 8:00 p.m.
Topic: The Affordable Care ACT for Small Business: Its Decision Time
Presented at the Hooksett Public Library
Location: Hooksett, NH                         For Information and to register: Click here

Tuesday, November 12th        9:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m.
Topic: Keys to Hypertherm’s Safety Program
Presented by OSHA and the NH Small Business Development Center
Location: Manchester, NH                  For information and to register: Click here

Tuesday, November 12th        6:00 to 9:00 p.m.
Topic: Using the Internet to Start or Grow Your Small Business
Presented by the Seacoast Chapter of SCORE
Location: Portsmouth, NH                            For information and to register: Click here

Thursday, November 14th  5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.
Topic: How to Start Your Own Business
Presented by the Merrimack Valley Chapter of SCORE
Location: Concord, NH                              For information and to register: Click Here