Watertown— In this tough economy, business around the United States have struggled to keep from laying off employees or hiring new ones. But one local small business owner prefers to keep things simple.
Huong H. Tran came to the United States from Vietnam with his parents when he was just 10 years old and the family went through the procedures to become U.S. citizens. Although hard working, his parents barely made enough to make ends meet. He recalls his family always struggling and although he attempted to go to college, but even with student loans, he was just unable to pay for tuition. Mr. Tran, who prefers to go by Andy- decided to learn a trade of some kind. He took a class and got certified as a nail technician and went to work for other local nail salons. But, Mr. Tran was not satisfied working for someone else.
He went to the bank with his house as collateral and got a small business loan to open up his own business. “Nails Lovida” has only been open for just 6 short months in Watertown, New York and while other small businesses are feeling the economic recession. Mr. Tran says, “We are doing very well. Our customers come back because we put love into our work.” Andy Tran and his girlfriend Kathy Duong became business partners and they agreed to keep things simple. “Nails Lovida” is a very small company with just two employees- Andy Tran and Kathy Duong. They work a minimum of 12 hours a day, 7 days a week. But, when Mr. Tran looks back he says being his own boss is worth all of the hard work. He also stated he was keeping up with the recent elections and will be voting for Romney because he says, “He is a business man and he is successful. That is what we need in this country.”
Small businesses like “Nails Lovida” find ways to perfect their craft and keep loyal customers returning. According to Global Trends, other larger Corporations such as Wal-mart exceeded the GDP’s of 174 countries in 2009, employing almost 2 million people. For more on global trends you can read “Corporate Clout: The influence of the world’s 100 economic entities.” It seems that some businesses small or large are weathering the storm of harsh economic times and finding ways to keep loyal customers returning.
