| We are noticing an increase in the length of time it | | | | and will most likely lead to unnecessary laying off of |
| takes Large corporations to pay on their invoices to | | | | people who make up the largest percentage of |
| our team. Fortune 500s are tending to pay their | | | | American working people. Small businesses represent |
| vendors more slowly, which will hurt the already | | | | 2/3 of all American Workers. It think this problem will |
| strapped small businesses in America. These same | | | | get worse as CFO look for ways to keep cash as |
| small businesses employ 2/3 the population and do a | | | | long as possible, by stringing out their receivables. |
| great service in supplying the needs of corporations.At | | | | Phone companies, electric companies and other bills |
| the company I run, The Car Wash Guys, has retail and | | | | must be paid on time by the small businesses, |
| fleet customers. Retail pay cash, which tends to offset | | | | whereas theses companies are notorious for slow |
| the problems with the extended late payments from | | | | pay in tough economic times. It seems to be the little |
| fleet accounts. It appears that the corporations are | | | | guy who gets it in the shorts, such is life and an |
| conserving their cash to keep earning up until the next | | | | acceptable given, yet it also effects us as our |
| quarter, however this will hurt their long term efforts in | | | | customer base is decreasing.What about the labor and |
| that the small businesses who provided real time | | | | layoffs? As small businesses are unable to employ the |
| services and parts will not be able to meet the real | | | | lion share of the masses, there will be fewer with |
| time demand and therefore cause cost overruns for | | | | money to spend on those items sold by larger |
| the Manufacturing sectors. Therefore decreasing | | | | corporations.How does this occur and how are small |
| productivity and causing a problem with their efficiency | | | | businesses losing? Slow pay means slow payment of |
| efforts. Who will be hurt worst? Likely high tech non | | | | bills and adverse credit scores. Also the 60 days of |
| able to perform on time for their industries, and their | | | | cash flow in the bank will be used in the float. That |
| stockholders in decreased valuations of stocks, which | | | | float some small businesses can absorb, but some |
| do not hit their earnings guestimatation or quotas. Also | | | | small businesses will be beaten down and become |
| hurt will be the retail outlets who need items in the | | | | inefficient and cannot last that 60 days and neither can |
| store on time to meet consumer demand. The biggest | | | | most of the nearly 28 million small businesses in this |
| hurt in the long haul will be all of us in America due to | | | | country that pay their bills, buy products and services |
| increased small business failures of those operating on | | | | and feed the families of their workers.This is the most |
| a shoe string.Some of these weak small businesses | | | | serious problem facing the US economy and it is still |
| should be weeded out thru abnormal free market | | | | moving in the wrong direction as of first quarter 2001. |
| factors such as this slow pay and others who are just | | | | This is not good. Historically Car Washing tracks the |
| working to hit ROIs and pay off loans will be hurt. This | | | | new car sales markets, so our particular company |
| hurts interest rates because risk adverse banks stop | | | | should be fine. Also as any small business will tell you |
| lending to small businesses. It hurts SBA guaranteed | | | | they must be constantly adapting their methods of |
| loan programs and that affects all of us. It is serious | | | | operations to those forces, which might be a threat. |