Editor’s Note
This is Part I of a 2-part series on young entrepreneurs in Richland County.
MANSFIELD — The smell of cinnamon and hints of 50 different teas welcomes guests into 101 N. Main Street.
Indie rock or classic R&B plays on the speakers, and 3rd Cup Tea owner Braxton Daniels offers tips about which teas customers might like.
Some customers even ask him to surprise them, or offer suggestions to fellow visitors.
“People will lose themselves trying to figure all this out, so sometimes they just say give me anything,” Daniels said.
Daniels said he wants to offer a relaxing environment for his visitors to be able to take a break from their work day, read a book, or have a conversation with a friend.
He also said 3rd Cup Tea is a prime example of adjusting to what Mansfield residents have shown they want.
A young business owner at 26 years old, Daniels said he appreciates the importance of listening to young people and offering them opportunities to play a part in building a community culture.
“I’m still learning myself but if I could touch or help out a couple more people, I will,” he said.
Daniels worked at 3rd Cup Tea for about two years before buying the business in February. Growing up in Mansfield and working downtown, Daniels said he had time to get to know people in the community and start to grow a network he could call upon for help with his own business.
“I had time to work at the coffee shop for years and get to learn downtown,” he said. “I had time to run a business for almost a year and still continue to meet people. Someone coming in — they don’t have the time to learn all these faces and shake all these hands.”
Daniels has spent his whole life in Mansfield. He plans to continue running 3rd Cup Tea for a while, at least until his younger sister or another employee wants to take over the business.
“I’ll run it for a while, but I want to offer opportunities to young people too, because that’s what happened to me,” he said. “And if I had somebody teaching me at 16, I’d be in an even better position right now.”
Daniels said personal mentors and local leaders have helped him grow his business, but he wants to see more involvement and a clear, specific plan from Mansfield City Council on how to draw young business owners to the area and help their businesses grow.
He’s not the only one who feels this way.
Residents shared with Richland Source in the 2021 Citizens’ Agenda their wishes for the City of Mansfield to “move a little quicker” on young talent retention plans and try to be “more welcoming and responsive” to suggested improvements.
For example, Daniels said he would have found a “new business owners hotline” resource list helpful when he first bought 3rd Cup Tea. He said this could be a web page or pamphlet with information on how to get required licenses and permits, where to get commercial and liability insurance, and who in city leadership to ask about different issues.
Young business owners offer plenty of benefits to their communities — economic growth, new jobs and ideas, tax revenue, and a sense of local character. To keep and grow all of these benefits, however, Richland County needs to ask: What does it offer young business owners?
Are young people actually leaving Richland County?
According to the American Community Survey of the U.S. Census, the estimated population of young adults ages 20 to 34 living in Richland County hasn’t changed by more than 2% year over year since 2010. Those population age brackets are relatively consistent at 22,350 each year.
In 2020, the total population of Richland County was 121,043. Residents ages 20 to 34 made up about 18% of that total.
However, there are no numbers that currently exist to measure how many of those young adults are specifically business owners.
The Richland Area Chamber & Economic Development does not keep track of the ages of its members, but Director of Workforce Development Clint Knight said he is seeing business growth in the county.
“I wish I had more data on this, but I can see it every week with the ribbon cuttings — that shows a healthy business environment,” he said.
In 2022, the Chamber has hosted about 60 ribbon cuttings, mostly for new business owners and business expansions. Last year, Knight said the Chamber hosted 38 ribbon cuttings.
Knight said it’s ideal to have a mix of older, experienced entrepreneurs and young people with fresh ideas and a willingness to take risks.
“Richland County has an aging population, but when young people build businesses here, they attract like-minded people, and that’s often other young people,” Knight said.
While the overall young adult population by the numbers hasn’t changed much, multiple business leaders locally and statewide still argue Richland County’s best-educated and most talented young adults are moving to other areas.
In response, State Rep. Jon Cross (R-Kenton) introduced the Graduating and Retaining Ohio’s Workforce Act in December 2021 to draw young adults and college graduates to Ohio jobs.
Cross said in a press release the proposed scholarship and debt relief programs aim to “incentivize Ohio’s younger population to live, learn, work and prosper in Ohio vs. leaving the state after graduation.”
The bill has been reviewed by the Ohio House Rules and Reference Committee but hasn’t yet advanced to the House or Senate for a vote by state representatives.
State Rep. Marilyn John (R-Shelby) is a co-sponsor of the GROW Ohio Act. The former mayor of Shelby has seen young people struggle to build businesses and wants to help remove barriers.
After leading the Richland Community Development Group’s Long Range Planning Committee, she saw Richland County’s population stagnate for years and only slightly increase in 2020.
“Part of that population growth goal was being able to keep young people in the county — keep their gifts and talents,” John said. “I think we are heading in the right direction, but we need to be doing more to encourage and help young people open and expand businesses and stay in Richland County.”
John said at the legislative level, encouraging entrepreneurs means initiatives like Substitute House Bill 509, which aims to streamline the approach for professional license reviews and decrease barriers to entering a new career field.
House Bill 509 proposes to make temporary certifications more accessible for fields like social work, nursing and firefighting. John said she wants to pass this bill by the end of the year.
“We need more people in certificate programs, we need more people in the trade schools, getting college degrees — we need more of it all,” she said. “Whatever you want to do, you can do it in the state of Ohio.”
Braintree Business Development Center’s business adviser Bob Cohen said while the GROW Ohio Act’s efforts are admirable, he’s not sure it will convince young people to stay in Ohio.
If passed, it would offer exemptions of Ohio income tax for recent college graduates, who Cohen said usually don’t make enough money for that to be enticing on its own. Ohioans making between $26,051 and $46,100 pay less than $1,000 in state income tax annually and sometimes less than $400, according to the Ohio Department of Taxation.
Cohen said Richland County can be a great place to start a business, but it doesn’t have the same funds to support start-ups as metropolitan areas.
Cohen regularly attends International Business Innovation Association conferences for incubator training. He said he often hears business mentors in larger cities talk about $1 million grants to spend on one or two projects.
Braintree is a nonprofit business development incubator that receives funds from technology-based initiatives, though it has resources for people in any business sector.
“I’ve found there’s a big correlation between size and success,” Cohen said. “Sometimes I would look at the guy next to me from some small town in Alabama and say, that’s a decade of my budget on two projects.”
While Braintree doesn’t have the funds that metropolitan business incubators do, Cohen said some of Braintree’s most successful programs for young people are start-up pitch nights. Braintree hasn’t hosted Sundown Rundown since the COVID-19 pandemic began, but he said the competition appeals to college students and young adults who need start-up money.
Sundown Rundown audiences include investors, business owners and other community leaders. Participants are limited to five-minute pitches and may receive funds depending on investors’ interest.
“The success of that event was measured by the follow-up, which included investment, resources and media coverage,” Cohen said.
The Richland Area Chamber & Economic Development hosts a similar pitch competition, Richland Idea Audition, offering $5,000 in start-up money to the winner, and $3,500 split between second and third place.
Some Sundown Rundown participants become clients of Braintree. Cohen said Braintree has about 20 companies in its building at 201 E. 5th St. and about 20 “intense clients” operating outside the building. Cohen estimated about five of Braintree’s current residents and five of its current clients are ages 18 to 35.
He estimated Braintree partners offer $20,000 a year in pro-bono sessions with aspiring entrepreneurs.
TOMORROW: What else is Richland County currently doing to support and retain young business owners?
