Update on How Some Firms, Programs Progressed in 1985
ON THE WHOLE, 1985 has been kind to small business. Sales and profits grew. Costs rose only moderately. Interest rates were manageable. Small-business specialist William C. Dunkelberg, economist for the National Federation of Independent Business, the nation's largest small-business association, says, "Overall I think it was a very good year."</br></br>But many small-business owners are uneasy about 1986. A year ago, NFIB's quarterly survey of 8,000 of its more than 500,000 members found 58% expecting business conditions to improve in the next 12 months. That dropped to 19% in the latest poll. Mr. Dunkelberg, a professor at Purdue University, says, "There has been a substantial loss in confidence."</br></br>One reason is the economy's four-year string of strong performance. "A lot of people don't think it can continue," he says. Also, owners are worried about the growing federal deficit, the nation's continuing foreign-trade deficits, problems in the banking industry and the prolonged slump in agriculture. "Next year," the economist says, "doesn't look that exciting."</br></br>---</br></br>TALLGRASS TECHNOLOGIES CORP. will remember 1985 as the year the bubble burst. The Lenexa, Kan., computer-accessory company was experiencing incredible growth when it was mentioned here a year ago. Sales had taken off from $1 million in 1982 and were expected to total $60 million for the year ended last June 30.