Quick Tips: How to Recession-Proof Your Business

From smSmallBiz

AFTER A TWO-DAY global stock selloff, Gina Stern is one of many small-business owners concerned about what a seemingly all-too-probable recession could do to her company's sales.

Stern, founder of an airport-based spa chain with locations in Newark, N.J., and Orlando, Fla., frets that a recession may mean fewer customers will come through the airports and book services at d_Parture Spas. A recession "would affect us negatively because there would be less travel," she says.

Since business may soon be tougher, it's critical for entrepreneurs to take steps to up-end any damage that could happen as a result of a recession.

Gus Faucher, director of macroeconomics at Moody's Economy.com, says in the near term "the probability that the U.S. will go into recession or is already in one is greater than 50%." To forestall such a rout, the Federal Reserve today slashed its key interest rate by three-quarters of a percentage point to 3.5%. Additionally, President Bush today revealed that he isn't ruling out increasing the size of his proposed economic stimulus package.

That package — now worth around $150 billion — may include rebates of as much as $800 for individual taxpayers and $1,600 for married couples. Plus, about $50 billion is reportedly earmarked for business spending.

However, says Faucher, if energy prices