Business owners in every industry are struggling to keep costs in line with their declining sales.

By Emily Maltby, CNNMoney.com staff writer May 11, 2009: 1:32 PM ET

FARMINGDALE, N.Y. (CNNMoney.com) — Behind every statistic about whopping job losses and the shrinking economy are thousands of small businesses battling the everyday realities of trying to survive with less staff and fewer customers. Three weeks ago, a group of entrepreneurs from peer advisory group The Alternative Board (TAB) gathered to discuss their view from the frontline of the recession.

“I’ve managed to cut so much already, but I wonder, what’s left to cut?” asked Ken Villani, president of Cottage Pharmacy and Surgical in Woodbury, NY.

“People aren’t buying breakfast on the way in to work,” said Owen Mester, whose Maspeth, N.Y., bakery makes and distributes yogurt muffins that get sold throughout the New York metropolitan area. “My competitors - I don’t know how - are offering a month of free delivery. I’m not sure how to counter that. At some point, we still have to still run the business.”

Five of the six business owners at the meeting saw their sales fall last year, with the declines ranging from 8% to 40%. Most expect this year to be equally grim: Only one owner thought his sales for 2009 would be higher than last year.

To adjust to the new economic realities, business owners are shaving their staffing down to the bone. Businesses with fewer than 50 staffers have collectively shed 1.4 million jobs in the past six months, according to estimates by payroll processor ADP.

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Mike Peter
President & CEO
Campus Advantage

Journal Profile: Mike Peter - CEO, Campus Advantage Inc.

Austin Business Journal - by Kate Harrington

Mike is the founder of Campus Advantage and serves as its President and CEO. He is responsible for all strategic planning and financial operations.  Mike is responsible for initiating new and maintaining existing relationships with colleges, universities, private owners, and allied business partners.   He responds to, and customizes programs for schools and private owners looking for student housing management and consulting expertise.

Mike began his career in student housing in the mid-1980’s rising from Resident Assistant to Resident Director and, quickly, to Manager for Allen & O’Hara in Wisconsin and California. Michael then served in the U.S. Peace Corps in the West Indies before returning to earn a Law Degree at top ranked University of Minnesota. He returned to student housing full-time in 1997 as the Director of On-Campus Business Development for American Campus Communities.

Mike was a National Communications Coordinator (NCC) for the National Association of College and University Residence Halls (NACURH), and is an active professional member of ACUHO-I, National Multi Housing Council (NMHC) and the National Association of College Auxiliary Services (NACAS).  Mike has a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Wisconsin and a Doctor of Jurisprudence from the University of Minnesota.  He currently serves as Vice Chair for the Board of Directors of the National Peace Corps Association.  Mike is also the Co-Chair for the National Apartment Association Student Housing Committee.

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Melynda Caudle
President
Cooper Consulting Company

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Three years ago Melynda Caudle bought Cooper Consutling Company. For fifteen years Cooper has delivered outstanding results in custom software development, software engineering, and staff augmentation in central Texas - focused primarly on the public sector. Caudle, who was an employee of the firm for four years prior to the purchase, has spun up three new practice areas for the company and opened a branch in Romania.  The new areas for development include engagements in the private sector, product development, and a structured project management offering.  The company has also moved into its own building to have space to grow.  Caudle’s spare time is taken up with several board positions, two wonderful grown kids and a grandson, along with being a jazz singer and a Reiki Master.  

TAB Austin has been a source and resource for Caudle.  She has benefited from the wise counsel of her TAB facilitator as well as from the other members of her TAB board.  They have experienced many of the challenges she finds in the day-to-day running of the business and in managing her staff and her time and have provided insight not to be found via other venues. 

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