At Hallmark Nameplate, we take pride in our company and the quality products that we produce. One of the reasons that we are so proud of the business we have created and grown into, is that Hallmark Nameplate is a local, veteran-owned business. Florida has the 3rd most veteran-owned companies out of all the states and we are proud to be a positive contributor to that number.
An article in Forbes states that entrepreneurship is a natural transition from military life, especially those emerging from the elite sectors. Leadership qualities such as integrity and motivation that are instilled in a soldier from day one lend well to the world of entrepreneurship and business. Taking those skills and applying them in the business world is a natural step for leaders and innovators who have served in the U.S. military and have a great enthusiasm for the work they do.
Veteran entrepreneurs, or “vetrepreneurs,” as we are sometimes called, are an important part of the American culture, economy, and pride. The American dream is to achieve success and prosperity through hard work, determination, and initiative. The best feeling that a business owner in America can have is have served the country and then continued on to create a successful company that they have a passion for, and that is certainly what we have done at Hallmark Nameplate.
What does it mean to be veteran-owned?
In order to be an official veteran-owned business, one must meet some very specific qualifications. At minimum, a veteran must maintain 51% ownership of the business and also be directly running day-to-day operations. There are important laws that have been passed by the United States federal government to help support, guide, and protect the interests of both veterans and small businesses.
According to the Small Business Administration, the Veterans Entrepreneurship and Small Business Development Act of 1999 was declared to improve and stimulate the national economy in general and the small-business segment thereof in particular by establishing a program to stimulate and supplement the flow of private equity capital and long-term loan funds which small-business concerns need for the sound financing of the business operations and for their growth, expansion, and modernization, and which are not available in adequate supply: Provided, however, that this policy shall be carried out in such manner as to insure the maximum participation of private financing sources.
What is the importance of veteran-owned businesses?
According to the U.S. Census Bureau’s Survey of Business Owners (SBO), there are about 2.45 million businesses in America with majority ownership by veterans, putting veteran-owned businesses at 9 percent of all American businesses. There are about 5.8 million people employed by veteran-owned businesses and research by the National Veteran Owned Business Association shows that 70 percent of Americans would prefer to do business with a veteran-owned business.
Those Americans who said that they would prefer to do business with a veteran-owned business probably answered for a wide variety of reasons. One of them could be that doing business with veterans means doing business with someone they know they can trust. American veterans are people who dedicated their entire lives and well-being to fight and support the great country that we live in. As citizens, we put our trust in the military every single day, so doing business with a military veteran is another way of knowing that you are doing business you can trust.
Many Americans enjoy doing business with veteran-owned companies because it is another way of showing support for the entire country. It is extremely important that veterans are able to not only make a smooth transition back into civilian life after deployment, but also to thrive and live a fully successful life doing something they love.
For many of us veterans, creating a business or company that we care deeply about is a way to utilize the skills and leadership that the military gave us and apply it towards a great passion that we have. Hallmark Nameplate is no exception. In fact, being a veteran-owned business has only made us a stronger company and allowed us to work with customers who share positive feelings about the country, the veterans, and the quality products that Hallmark Nameplate produces under U.S. military veterans every single day.
