Spokesman Review
NIC unit helps Bullet Tools
The focus of the North
Idaho College
Idaho Small
Business Development
Center is to help small
businesses thrive and grow, which it has done for the Hayden-based
Bullet Tools.
The ISBDC helped the fledgling company create its first business plan and
obtain initial financing in 1998 when the company was launched from Dalen and
Mary Gunn’s home, where they produced a floor-covering tool. With friends and
family willing to work for free, Bullet Tools expanded to an emerging force in
the flooring market. The Gunns and co-owner Ben Toews focused on the business
full time.
After immediate success and several years of growth, the company began to
struggle in 2006. The products were selling, the revenue was growing and the 17
employees were working. But sales were 50 percent below budget and the
warehouse was totally full and needed to be expanded. To make matters worse,
the owners had maxed out the businesses line of credit and almost all of their
own personal resources.
“Bullet Tools was bleeding badly and a Band-Aid wouldn’t help,”
said Toews.
But NIC’s ISBDC did. Initial business coaching sessions revealed the vastly
different backgrounds and perspectives among the owners. To develop a business
strategy they could find common reference points, according to NIC ISBDC
Regional Director Bill Jhung, who suggested that the owners attend a 10-week
workshop on entrepreneurial leadership.
“The class offered more than information,” Toews said. “It offered
interaction with others that shared in the same challenges and concerns that we
were experiencing. The group of business people attending the class was
composed of owners and managers of companies representing a wide range of
industries of varying sizes and with a wide scope of experiences. The resulting
discussion along with the excellent instruction resulted in an amazing
chemistry for growth among individuals that were serious about growing their
companies in an organized, professional and profitable manner. ”
As a result of the ISBDC’s guidance and the entrepreneurial leadership
class, the owners of Bullet Tools shared a new outlook on the company’s future
and were able to focus on areas of the business that needed improvement. They
subsequently streamlined their operations and reduced inventory. By the end of
2007, Bullet Tools had generated a 30 percent increase in revenue and gained 30
percent excess warehouse capacity, all with 25 percent less staff.
The company’s goal is to reach $5 million in sales by 2010.
“Today, Bullet Tools is thriving,” Toews said, adding that leadership is
more unified and the company’s debt has been almost completely eliminated. “Its
direction is better defined and its future is once again bright.”
NIC’s ISBDC objective is to provide no-cost business coaching and low-cost
business training to help businesses thrive and grow in North
Idaho. Call 666-8009.