By Herbert Heaton
Professor of History, University of Minnesota
(Published January 1946)

How Much Room Is There for New Businesses?

• Will they all come back to life?
• Some will get trampled in the rush
• The sobering truth
• Business—all sizes and shapes

What Kinds of Businesses Have the Best Chances?

• The chance to be of service
• The extent of small businesses before the war
• Small cogs are important, too

Can Small Businesses Compete with the Big Ones?

• What chance for a little fellow?
• Typical Operation of a Retail Hardware Store in 1939
• The limits to largeness
• Likes and dislikes

Case Histories of Veterans Back in Business

• Bigness may cost too much
• Efficiency makes the difference
• Can little businesses get the benefits of bigness?
• The benefits of cooperation
• The high cost of competition

Do Small Businesses Suffer More in a Depression?

• Dangerous quicksands
• The national debtor habit

Does Self-Employment Work Like a Dream?

• The unattractive side
• Or do you want to be a wage earner after all?
• There is a niche and a need

Ask Yourself These Questions

To the Discussion Leader

• Discussion leader’s role
• What kind of discussion is best?
• Handbook for discussion leaders
• Questions on small business

For Further Reading