ECONOMY - Is it making you downsize staff?

[Alan @ TanToday]

You turn on the news and all you hear is dire stories about how we are about to go downhill really quick. Read the papers and its all gloom and doom. Online, much of the same.

Is it effecting how you run your business?

Does it make you super nervous where you second guess all your decisions or do you keep going like you have been?

Any plans to let go some staff to lose the expense?

How is it effecting you and your business on a personal and business level?

[Beach Bum]

No cuts yet. Business seems normal, so far. Although we have had several EFT cancelations & freezes in the last week. More than expected.

[Kathe]

I think we have been established long enough that I'm not really worried about it affecting us too much. We don't have any debt attached to the business so it's basically just operating expenses.

I have already downsized my staff to work just the few hours a week that I'm not here.

The big thing for me is the quantity of taxes we are hit with. Small business owners need a break on that. If the minimum wage goes up any more, which means even higher payroll taxes, we will have to consider selling the salon. We'll see.

Right now I'm completely optimistic. We are up over 58% this year. Southeastern Michigan is leading the country in defaulted mortgages and unemployment and we're still up so that causes me to just smile and keep doing what we are doing.

[InternationalTan]

^^ good for you Kathy.

I think those in the this ecomony that are ok (not overloaded with debt, not overextended in their homes, steady jobs) will continue to be ok. Those that are struggling, well its only going to get worse. If your established, as a business , you should be ok. Taxes are a major issue I AGREE. If Obama gets elected I think we will see ALOT more business closing down due to the taxes he is going to hit us with. Small businesses are a huge part of the economy that is often overlooked sadly.

[Kathe]

^^^ Agree totally. I was telling my husband last night after watching the speech that we are in a pretty good place. Business paid off, we've been in our home for 14 years and bought it for an undervalued price when the market was stable, little debt. We're probably in a better place than most.

Taxes are the absolute worst though. I want to move really bad just to get out from under the $6k/year property taxes. Like you said, if we get a president who wants to raise minimum wage to $9.50 or more, which Obama has already stated, we are out of here so fast. I don't know how small businesses wills survive that. Because it's not just the $9.50, it's all of the payroll taxes on top of that. Can you imagine paying out $18 per hour or more for a salon employee?? Crazy.

[SteveMiller]

Taxes are a major issue I AGREE. If Obama gets elected I think we will see ALOT more business closing down due to the taxes he is going to hit us with.

Obama’s Comprehensive Tax Policy Plan for America will:

• Cut taxes for 95 percent of workers and their families with a tax cut of $500 for workers or $1,000 for working couples.
• Provide generous tax cuts for low- and middle-income seniors, homeowners, the uninsured, and families sending a child to college or looking to save and accumulate wealth.
• Eliminate capital gains taxes for small businesses, cut corporate taxes for firms that invest and create jobs in the United States, and provide tax credits to reduce the cost of healthcare and to reward investments in innovation.
• Dramatically simplify taxes by consolidating existing tax credits, eliminating the need for millions of senior citizens to file tax forms, and enabling as many as 40 million middle-class Americans to do their own taxes in less than five minutes without an accountant.

Barack Obama and Joe Biden: The Change We Need | Taxes

[sunsally]

Awww, SteveMiller now you're just trying to confuse people with facts!! Much better to get people thinking it is going to cost them $18/hr to hire a tanning salon attendant.

Once again - a rare tanning thread - turned political . Is it Nov 4 yet?

No, there has been no "downsizing of staff". Short of closing, it is already lean - as it always is in during the Fall. Economy makes no difference to this.

[raiseprices]

Just last night, Nobama was saying that he now knows that he cannot do the things that he has been promising. Face it, he is an empty suit with nothing but big fantasyland ideas that, when thought out, are not applicable in reality. Face it, a white man with that resume would not be where he is, even if could smooze the lemmings with his teleprompter nuances. Have a nice day.

[Kathe]

Sunsally, Obama has already stated that should he be elected that one of his goals is to raise minimum wage to $9.50 per hour. Add the payroll taxes on top of that, including the state taxes and you are pretty darn close to $18 per hour. I would hope that someone in finance would know better how things work.

Anyone who believes that their taxes are really going to be cut by someone who has benefitted millions of dollars from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (in fact the #2 earner) is, in my opinion, seeing in him what you want to see, not the real facts. We are essentially paying for Obama's campaign for president by bailing out these failing companies because a large chunch of it went to him and his cronies. The facts are out there in the congressional record of all places if you just care to look.

[phattmatt]

In this tanniing industry with turnover rates high there is no such thing as down sizing staff in the off season.

We have down sized the hours we are open.

I didn't think that would ever happen in my 15 years of tanning

[JeffK]

As an owner of a salon that is run 100% by staff, the $18-hour-Obama-worker is a very scary notion, indeed.

However, try as I may to get from a $9.50 wage to $18 post taxes, I cannot make the correlation despite the fact my calculator appears to be in working order.

Can you please specfically detail how a $9.50/hour wage translates to $18/hour out-of-pocket for us owners should Obama become President? Thank you.

[Kathe]

Add up all of your federal and state taxes. Might depend on what you are paying for state.

Let's say I'm off by a $1 or so. I'm just saying that for me personally my business can't afford to pay even $13 or $14 an hour for a salon employee. It's either I work all of the hours, I sell or I close.

On top of that is the fact that I won't be able to pay anyone over minimum wage. I like to be $1 or so higher than the minimum. Won't be able to do that then.

[JeffK]

Originally Posted by Kathe

Add up all of your federal and state taxes. Might depend on what you are paying for state.

Well let's work with your state, Michigan, and then I can substitute Ohio figures.. you're right that an $18/hour worker will radically alter the viability of many businesses..

Please provide your breakdown of figures you came up with before posting. Thank you for this important work.

[movieking]

About 20% on top of the hourly rate covers all of our share of taxes.

[Kathe]

Jeff my initial post on this topic was positive. I would like to keep it that way.

When taking into consideration pay for an employee I take into consideration all costs including tanning, benefits, actual hourly wage, taxes, etc. What you might pay is going to be different from mine. My point is that paying $9.50 base wage is not the total picture. You have to add on everything else to get the right picture. Whether that is $10 or $20 or $30 is not the point, the piont is that the $9.50 is just the starting point.

[InternationalTan]

the silver lining of obama and bidens tax package is increasing taxes on small businesses, sounds pretty but in reality is not. Where is he going to get all this money for all these social programs if he dosent increase taxes for SOMEONE? that someone means us-small business.

The economy isnt going to influence me to downsize my staff, if anything I will just work more hours and cut back expenses

[SteveMiller]

Originally Posted by Kathe

Anyone who believes that their taxes are really going to be cut by someone who has benefitted millions of dollars from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (in fact the #2 earner) is, in my opinion, seeing in him what you want to see, not the real facts. We are essentially paying for Obama's campaign for president by bailing out these failing companies because a large chunch of it went to him and his cronies. The facts are out there in the congressional record of all places if you just care to look.

Top Recipients of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac
Campaign Contributions, 1989-2008


NameOfficeParty/StateTotal1. Dodd, Christopher JSD-CT$133,900
2. Kerry, JohnSD-MA$111,000
3. Obama, BarackSD-IL$105,849
4. Clinton, HillarySD-NY$75,550
5. Kanjorski, Paul EHD-PA$65,500
6. Bennett, Robert FSR-UT$61,499
7. Johnson, TimSD-SD$61,000
8. Conrad, KentSD-ND$58,991
9. Davis, TomHR-VA$55,499
10. Bond, Christopher S 'Kit'SR-MO$55,400
11. Bachus, SpencerHR-AL$55,300
12. Shelby, Richard CSR-AL$55,000
13. Emanuel, RahmHD-IL$51,750
14. Reed, JackSD-RI$50,750
15. Carper, TomSD-DE$44,389
16. Frank, BarneyHD-MA$40,100
17. Maloney, Carolyn BHD-NY$38,750
18. Bean, MelissaHD-IL$37,249
19. Blunt, RoyHR-MO$36,500
20. Pryce, DeborahHR-OH$34,750
21. Miller, GaryHR-CA$33,000
22. Pelosi, NancyHD-CA$32,750
23. Reynolds, TomHR-NY$32,700
24. Hoyer, Steny HHD-MD$30,500
25. Hooley, DarleneHD-OR$28,750


But look were the real money went.

McCain's image as reformer takes a hit - Los Angeles Times

[Alan @ TanToday]

PLEASE - No more politics in this thread.

I created this topic with no intention of how politics plays into it.

[Luongo=Cup]

This is the problem with your two party system. Most people are Republicans or Democrats for life which allows your government to be completely unaccountable.

There is no punishment if a government messes up because Democrats are going to vote Democrat and Republicans of course Republican.

Looking at the state of your country one would think that the Republicans don't have a snowballs chance in hell of winning in November, but the polls show otherwise which is absolutely mind boggling.

Surely even a Republican can see that his/her party needs a 4 year time out to think about how bad they have been for the past 8 years. Once the "time out" is over and the Republicans get their crap together then you look at sending Obama packing.


We Canucks are hoping the U.S. sorts it's problems out because our lives are a lot better when our neighbour to the south is doing well. Good luck.

[baskinthesuntanning]

Originally Posted by Alan @ TanToday

Is it effecting how you run your business?

Does it make you super nervous where you second guess all your decisions or do you keep going like you have been?

Any plans to let go some staff to lose the expense?

How is it effecting you and your business on a personal and business level?

The economy hasn't effected how we run our business too much yet. Over here in the NW, we haven't been hit as bad as some across the nation. I worry about it, but in turn it just makes me work harder in establishing new programs, advertisements, and new ways to get continue to get people to come back through our door.

We actually haven't cut back on staff members; however, we have better arranged their hours to try and save a little.

On a personal level, for myself and our business, we have been cutting back our expenditures that are not needed. Decreased advertising in the areas that are not returning as much as others. We were planning on opening a few more stores this fall; however, we decided to wait til next year to see how things turn out. On a real personal level, I am also getting into the home building industry, and I don't even think I have to mention how that is going!