Author: NH Business Review Staff

NHBR About Town: Corflex and Kelly Ayotte

Ted Lorenzetti, marketing director of Manchester-based Corflex, leads U.S. Sen. Kelly Ayotte on a tour of the veteran-owned small business that sells and manufactures orthopedic medical products. Ayotte has cosponsored legislation to repeal the Medical Device Tax, which she said…

What do N.H. corporations pay in federal taxes?

Public corporations in the United States are supposed to pay taxes at a 35 percent rate. But effectively, on average -- and by any measure -- they don't, although it does seem that smaller public companies in New Hampshire pay…

Local retailers don plaid to counter Black Friday

This coming Black Friday, you can skip the mad 5 a.m. shopping dash, sleep away the turkey coma and hit up locally owned, independent retailers during regular business hours. Oh, and wear plaid.That's the message of some buy-local business networks…

Q&A with Marc Sedam, UNH Office of Research Partnerships

Marc Sedam, executive director at the Office of Research Partnerships and Commercialization at the University of New Hampshire, is the first to admit that picking commercial winners and losers is at best an imprecise art. He should know.When he managed…

What we learned from the genius of Steve Jobs

The great poet Ralph Waldo Emerson once said, "Nothing is more simple than greatness; indeed to be simple is to be great."Indeed, I was reminded of those words when I thought about the passing of Steve Jobs, yet I was…

Got enough Internet connections to the cloud?

A lot of people with their heads stuck in the cloud never thought about having more than one way to get there. The sad news is while most cloud service providers have an excellent up-time availability, your local Internet service…

Mobile immersion Phase II: function over form

With mobile-mindedness spreading like wildfire, new ways of doing things are being revealed every day and others are still waiting to be discovered. There are countless mobile applications for just about everything you can think of, but now that the…

Ten step to personal brand success

Are you known for the reasons you want to be known? Do people in your market perceive you and your organization according to your brand strategy? What percentage of your target market knows who you are? What percentage has never…

Mark Fernald’s tax ‘misinformation’

To the editor:It is ironic that an article entitled "Beware of misinformation on taxes" (Nov. 4-17 NHBR) actually engages in misinformation. Although the information presented in the article is accurate as far as I know, it purposefully leaves out some…

PSNH’s misplaced priorities left us in the dark

psnh11-18 nhbropinionrun with frenchPSNH's misplaced priorities left us in the darkThe time has come to shed some light on the utility's practicesBy Corey LewandoskiOne thing has clearly come to light in the midst of the recent snowstorm -- Public Service…

Conserving forests makes good business sense

As New Hampshire recalls our rare Halloween snowstorm, we all bemoan the damage caused by fallen trees and the difficulties encountered in the storm's aftermath. Now that the lights are back on, we can celebrate our good fortune to live…

Slots are wrong for so many reasons

I have been a restaurateur in New Hampshire for more than 25 years. Like many other small business owners, I work and live here because of three simple words: quality of life.New Hampshire is a great place to live and…

Death penalty doesn’t ‘protect’ anyone

You can call it a myth, a belief, an assumption, even a wish. But the notion that the death penalty "protects" people from homicide cannot be called a "fact" and should not be the basis for policy.Sadly, this non-fact appears…

N.H. retailers have hopes for Xmas

Nearly two-thirds of New Hampshire retailers expect that their 2011 holiday sales will be the same as or better than last year.That's according to the annual holiday survey conducted by the Retail Merchants Association of New Hampshire, which found that…

Corporate philanthropy: Giving, and getting back

"Growing Up Healthy" is a five-year, $5 million initiative of the Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Foundation to combat childhood obesity.Ask Karen Voci, executive director of the foundation, why it chose to focus resources on one issue, and she will tell…

N.H. exports bounced back in August

Shipments abroad by New Hampshire companies surged 15.5 percent in August, following a decrease of 1.3 percent in July. As a result, $388.4 million worth of goods left New Hampshire for international markets in August.In August of this year, exporters…

Processor: N.H. retailers gain from ‘swipe fee’ cap

New Hampshire merchants are already benefiting from recently enacted federal legislation that capped the amount big banks can charge merchants when their customers use debit cards, according to a national payments processor.Heartland Payment Systems -- the country's fifth-largest payments processor…

N.Y. bank to buy Hampshire First

Manchester-based Hampshire First Bank has agreed to be acquired by Norwich, N.Y.-based NBT Bancorp.The deal, valued at $45 million, is expected to close in the early second quarter, pending state and federal regulatory approval as well as approval by shareholders,…

AG issues warning on phony December event

The New Hampshire Attorney General's office has issued a warning about solicitations for a bogus event that its organizers claim is scheduled to be held at the Radisson Hotel in Manchester.Attorney General Michael Delaney said even though the expo is…

RGGI report: N.H. benefits, but not as much as others

New Hampshire gets fewer economic benefits than any of the 10 states participating in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, according to a report touting those benefits.But the report, released Tuesday, might have underestimated how much the Granite State gets out…

Gorham mill owner featured at state Manufacturing Summit

Lynn Tilton, CEO and principal of Patriarch Partners LLC -- the firm that brought the former Fraser Papers mill in Gorham back to life -- will speak on "How to Save American Manufacturing" at the ninth annual New Hampshire Advanced…

Presstek says ‘deep’ layoffs loom

Presstek Inc. will slash its workforce in an attempt to regain profitability after posting a third-quarter loss of more than $5.4 million, the company announced Monday.The printing equipment company, which employs 130 people in Hudson and 450 overall, would not…

Ezenia lists assets, debts in Chapter 11 filings

Ezenia, the Nashua software company that filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection at the end of September, is claiming assets of $2.5 million and debts of close to $900,000, according to subsequent filings.But on closer examination, the largest asset --…

Crowdfunding gets big boost in Congress

A bill that would let entrepreneurs sell ownership stakes in their companies through crowdfunding websites and other online social networks has been overwhelmingly approved by the U.S. House.Earlier this month, members of the House voted 407-17 in favor of HR…

N.H. bankruptcy filings continue to drop

New Hampshire's bankruptcy crest, which began in the spring of 2009, has now subsided. Ever since May, the number of filings in 2011 has not just been lower than last year's, but below 2009 filings as well. And in October…

Bill seeks big hike in BPT equipment deduction

Larger businesses in New Hampshire could get a big break in their business profits tax bill if a measure passed by the Senate Ways and Means committee becomes law.Senate Bill 155 would allow businesses to increase their maximum annual deduction…

GT earnings slide in second quarter

GT Advanced Technology's second-quarter profits and revenue declined compared to last year at the same time, and the company has revised its guidance downward, but GT still has a $2.1 billion backlog of orders.The Merrimack-based maker of material and equipment…

Pennichuck sees earnings dip

Pennichuck Corp. reported comprehensive income of $2 million, or 51 cents a diluted share, for its third quarter, slightly less than the $2.2 million figure reported during the same quarter of last year, even though net income and revenue increased…

California firm fires back in GT suit

GT Advanced Technology is employing a "continued strategy of competition by litigation" in filing a "frivolous" and "completely false and baseless" lawsuit against Poly Plant Project Inc. last week, the Burbank, Calif., company said in a Monday morning press release."This…

PC Connection income gains

PC Connection posted net income of $9.4 million, or 35 cents a share, in its third quarter ending Sept. 30, up slightly from the $8.6 million posted during the same quarter last year.That brings profits at the Merrimack-based firm to…

Bahres, N.Y. firm own largest shares of new Maine casino

Robert and Gary Bahre, former owners of New Hampshire International Speedway and the Oxford Plains Speedway in Maine, and a New York real estate firm are the largest owners behind the casino under construction in Oxford, according to documents released…

The new service auditor standard and your business

On June 15, the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants' reporting standard known as SSAE 16 effectively replaced the SAS 70 standard for U.S. service organizations to test their internal controls.With SSAE 16, AICPA has developed a reporting standard intended…

10 economic trends that can drive career choice

A prominent topic in the career development field, and indeed in the popular culture, are the "hottest careers of the year." You know the headlines: "Hottest Careers of 2012," "Coolest Jobs for Today's College Grads" and "Present-Day Must-Have Careers."These make…

Taking the ‘Yes’ approach to avoiding layoffs

Q. As a small business owner, I can't offer the types of benefits large corporations can. Are there things I can do that don't cost a lot of money to retain employees?A. As a small business owner you actually have…

Are our kids learning how to succeed?

It's a beautiful morning and I'm headed to a meeting when -- oh no, a school bus!Well, I'm stuck. The bus stops every 50 yards or so for the little darlings. The lights start flashing and everything stops. The kids…

The importance of roads to New Hampshire

The imminent opening of the access road to the Manchester-Boston Regional Airport, to be known as Raymond Wieczorek Drive, as well as the Interstate 93 widening project and other infrastructure improvements, got me thinking about roads. So did a recent…

Why the U.S. needs biennial budgeting

The American people are waiting for leadership from Washington. They desperately want to see both parties work together to strengthen our economy and reduce our deficit for the good of the nation. But instead of debating these issues, Congress was…

State needs to rebuild its rainy day fund

Just a little over four years ago, New Hampshire found itself in an enviable financial situation. With $89 million in the rainy day fund to protect against future economic downturns, we had a chance to make a strong case for…

Beware of misinformation on taxes

It started with a simple statement from the president: "Middle-class families shouldn't pay higher taxes than millionaires and billionaires."The right wing exploded. The Union Leader said the president was being "disingenuous." Syndicated columnist Deroy Murdock called the president a liar.…

Ayotte takes aim at Internet tax bill

If U.S. Sen. Kelly Ayotte gets her way, New Hampshire retailers that sell their goods online to residents of other states won't have to collect and remit sales taxes back to those states.That's the gist of a new bipartisan resolution,…

Earnings reports pour in from N.H. firms

There has been a flurry of earnings reports over the last week from public companies based in New Hampshire or with substantial operations in the Granite State. Here is what some firms have reported.StandexStandex International Corp., Salem, reported a net…

GTAT expands suit over alleged IP theft

GT Advanced Technologies has widened its litigation against the Italian citizen who allegedly stole the Merrimack-based company's technology and the California company that allegedly benefited from the alleged intellectual property thievery.The maker of equipment and materials used to manufacture solar…

Q&A with Patent lawyer Bill Loginov

Legislation to change and update the nation's patent laws has been lost in the headlines about the economy. But patent attorney William Loginov of Concord has been keeping a close eye on the legislation, the Leahy-Smith America Invents Act, which…

Remembering Perkins Bass

New Hampshire recently lost two significant citizens, one well known and one less so, but both important.Former Congressman Perkins Bass of Peterborough died Oct. 25 at age 99. Bass, himself son of a Republican governor, Robert Bass, was born in…

2011 NHBR Business Excellence Awards winners

Thirteen businesspeople were honored Oct. 27 at the New Hampshire Business Review's ninth annual Business Excellence Awards, which recognize the efforts and achievements owners of companies with 100 employees or fewer. More than 300 people attended the event, which was…

U.S. visa program lures foreign investors to N.H.

They are hardly "huddled masses" and far from "poor" or "wretched refuse," but they are foreigners and they want to become U.S. citizens. And, under the federal EB-5 visa program, they not only don't have to wait in line, they…