[Hidden-tech] A best bet for virtual businesses

[Jean Graef]

As a long time member of the Hidden-Tech list and a resident of Massachusetts for 30 years, I thought my story might be of interest to others on this list.

I've always loved New England, but I decided to relocate my home-based business to east Tennessee this fall, partly for family reasons. This was feasible because my clients are global rather than local, and most of my contact with them is conducted electronically. The major benefits -- aside from being closer to family -- are 50% lower housing costs, no state income tax, and 2 extra months of warm weather. Still, I had some concerns:

*                     Would I feel comfortable going from a "blue" state to a "red" state?

*                     How hard would it be to find competent local technical help?

*                     How easy would it be to travel by plane to conferences and customer sites?

*                     Could I solve the logistics of working with my Massachusetts-based assistant?

*                     How easy would it be to replace professional relationships (legal, medical, financial, etc.)?

I've been living in Bristol, TN now for 2 months and am fully functional. Internet and cell phone connections are better, and my Greenfield-based assistant and I are working comfortably together. There were a few small glitches in the VPN connection, but we worked them out. I found a good local technical firm and just completed my first programming project with them -- on time and on budget. The downside is that you have to pay sales tax on programming services!

In Massachusetts, I was 10 miles south of the New Hampshire border -- close enough to make tax-free shopping trips. Here, although I live in Tennessee, I'm within walking distance of Virginia, so I have a similar deal -- substantially lower sales tax in Virginia. And there's a huge shopping mall in Virginia to draw all those shoppers. Alas, I can no longer buy a gallon of maple syrup for $45, but now I can get southern country ham.

It takes half an hour to get to the local airport instead of the hour it used to take me to drive to Bradley, but there are no direct connections to Washington, New York, or Boston. I have to go to Charlotte or Cincinatti first.

Culturally, the transition has been easier than I thought. I fit right in with other business and professional people, many of whom are transplants like me from the north or midwest. Southern hospitality is not a myth. People have gone out of their way to make me feel welcome. It helps that Bristol is one of three towns in the "Tri-Cities" area. Each has its own personality, but they are only about 25 miles apart. One is a university town with a good Indian restaurant and the equivalent of a Whole Foods store. Together, the Tri-Cities area has 500,000 people. There's a ballet, several symphonies, and a nationally known theater.

I don't usually post messages like this, but I have two motivations:

1. I have a sense that we are at a historic moment. I want to encourage economic development professionals and educators to pay more attention to the needs of virtual businesses. I'd like to see a Hidden-Tech chapter in East Tennessee and other places with similar potential, and I'd like to see those areas create programs that help people develop their intellectual capital.

2. I want to thank my real estate agent, Teresa Burkholder<http://www.tburkholder.com/>, for making the move so easy, for opening the door to both professional and social contacts, and for being a good friend.

Jean

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Jean Graef
The Montague Institute
www.montague.com
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