Head of Holland furniture company meets president in Oval Office

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Washington -- Holland small business owner Charles Reid got quite a surprise Tuesday when President Barack Obama invited him to the Oval Workplace to chat about his successful furnishings style business.

Reid, named by the U.S. Small company Administration as Michigan Small company Person of 2010, was at the White Home as component of National Small company Week.

Reid may be the president and owner of Charter Home Innovations, which styles, manufactures and installs furnishings for quick-service restaurants.

But prior to the president spoke to 53 honorees in the Rose Garden, he reached out to Reid and owners of two other smaller businesses for a private chat.

"It was beyond words to walk into the Oval Office," mentioned Reid, who was asked to stand with Obama during his remarks.

Reid said White Home aides telephoned to tell him the president had picked several of the honorees to come to the Oval Office.

The U.S. Small business Administration mentioned the company since 2004 "has achieved record-breaking sales with a 450 percent improve, growing revenue from $2 million to $9.5 million and making more than 130 new jobs."

On the Rose Garden ceremony, Obama praised the small business honorees, one from each with the 50 states, plus Puerto Rico, Guam and also the District of Columbia, calling small businesses "the driving force behind this recovery."

Obama urged Congress to pass additional measures to aid smaller businesses, noting that 2.4 million work at small businesses were lost in the recession.

"Government can't create jobs, but it can assist create the problems for small businesses to grow and also to thrive and to hire more workers," the president mentioned.

Afterward, Gov. Jennifer Granholm mentioned inside a teleconference with reporters a Michigan plan to help car providers gain entry to loans is going to be used like a nationwide design inside a small-business aid package unveiled by Obama.

Granholm, who attended the small-business event, said the federal expansion with the plan will enable numerous Michigan car providers who were shut out of the state's loan assistance plan to get entry to capital.

"A whole lot of providers not able to entry this program simply because we ran out of money" now is going to be capable to participate, Granholm said.

She mentioned Michigan was able to create $12 million in loans to 18 businesses under its program, which was focused on helping the providers diversify. The governor mentioned there had been requests from 54 businesses for $150 million that went unfilled. Under the program, the state assists buy down the loan danger for companies with collateral problems.

The president also announced a plan to provide $30 billion for small banks to increase small company access to loans.