August 2, 2018 Page 7
Finance
Small Businesses And The Benefits Of Conscious Capitalism
(BPT) - What drives someone to take the
risk and start their own business?
In many cases, it’s the knowledge that
they can offer a great product or introduce
new solutions to old problems. Passion and
determination put entrepreneurs at the forefront
of innovation.
What’s remarkable about so many small and
medium-sized businesses today is that it’s not
just the bottom line they’re after. Businesses
are more focused than ever on socially and
environmentally conscious causes.
Take, for example, small business Bayou
with Love, who partnered with Dell to create
a jewelry line using recycled gold from
old computer motherboards. The jewelry
line is just one example of a small business
prioritizing doing good for the planet.
Cuvee Coffee practices direct trade, a model
that considers environmental, financial and
social sustainability as well as personal relationships.
It builds partnerships with farmers
who are good stewards of the land, pay fair
wages to their workers and are often leaders
in their communities. Cuvee then pays well
above market prices for their coffee and in
return, the company gets the very best coffee
and the farmers make substantial profits.
By using ethical and altruistic principles to
guide business practices, these entrepreneurs
practice what many call “conscious capitalism,”
and investors are taking notice.
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Investments from angel investors and venture
capitalists have helped these businesses
play their part in a national and global trend
toward social betterment in business.
Here are a few ways small businesses can
benefit from conscious capitalism.
According to Fundivo, angel investments
in altruistic businesses have been steadily
growing since 2002 and roughly four jobs are
created per investment. Moreover, a recent
study from The Forum for Sustainable and
Responsible Investing reported that under sustainable
and responsible investing guidelines,
a total of $8.72 trillion was made in 2016,
showing a 33 percent increase since 2014.
By helping businesses reach like-minded
changemakers, the tech industry has made
it easier for small businesses to maintain a
conscious mission statement along with a
profitable bottom line.
In particular, funding for socially-conscious
businesses has become more easily achievable
through crowdfunding campaigns on
Kickstarter and Indiegogo. Even Kickstarter
owners Yancey Strickler and Perry Chen
insisted that their crowdfunding platform
become a Benefit Corporation, ensuring they
remain focused on their mission to bring
creative projects to life rather than simply
increasing the size of their own profits.
These crowdsourcing platforms are an efficient
way for companies to find investors,
but also to network and get their message
out to a broader public. At the center of
many altruistic businesses is the robust use of
technology, which has allowed many highly
successful small businesses to support social
and environmental causes.
It’s not only that having dependable and
easy-to-use technology is critical for these
businesses, but many tech giants have
implemented programs to support conscious
capitalism in small businesses.
For instance, as one of the world’s leading
IT suppliers, Dell has been particularly
passionate about helping businesses with
an eye for social change and environmental
consciousness. Through its 2020 Legacy of
Good plan, which outlines its own sustainability
goals, it has helped small businesses
use technology in a way that drives progress
and social change.
Dependable and affordable technology is
essential to promoting social change, and
that’s why so many entrepreneurs and investors
are realizing that when paired with
technology, ethical business practices can do
a lot of good and turn a profit. •
Projects from front page
Inglewood had no other road closure notices
in effect this week.
Though Golden State is spending $4.7 million
on the new pipeline through Hawthorne
and Inglewood, the utility has dropped its
water rates for the next 12 months. The water
company attributed the 3.94 percent decrease
in water to local customers to tax savings from
the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, signed into law
in 2017 by President Trump. The tax code
overhaul lowered the corporate income tax
rate, which Golden State said allowed it pass
along the modest savings to its customers.
The company added that it was tracking the
tax law’s effects on its operating costs, and that
it could be issuing bill credits to customers
for the January-through-June billing periods if
savings prove to be significant for the utility.
The Act lowered the nation’s federal corporate
income tax rate from 35 percent to 21
percent, effective Jan. 1, 2018. As directed
by the CPUC, Golden State Water is tracking
the impact of the new corporate tax rate and
other changes in tax law, and will submit a
separate filing to credit customers for any
revenue surplus resulting from the reduced
tax expense during the period from Jan. 1
to June 30, 2018.“The new tax law reduces
our costs, and we are eager to pass along
those savings to our customers,” said Denise
Kruger, Senior Vice President of Regulated
Utilities for Golden State Water. •