B2B is big

When we think of business, we tend to think of the companies we as consumers do business with—grocery stores, auto dealers, nurseries, hospitals, coffee shops, stationery stores, dentists, restaurants. We tend to forget about the many businesses that exist primarily to serve other businesses.

As the CN&R editorial staff realized when we sat down to brainstorm this issue of our monthly “local business” insert, such business-to-business (or B2B, as it’s often abbreviated) companies make up a significant sector of the economy.

Indeed, the CN&R is one of them. Our business is advertising, which we sell to companies that want to reach our readers. We see our advertising as an attractive element of the CN&R that complements its editorial offerings.

Think about all the companies that cater primarily to other businesses: pump and irrigation supply and design firms; agricultural-chemical companies; linen-supply firms; gravel companies; builders; engineers; truckers—the list goes on and on. And it’s worth noting that most of them are locally owned and operated, which means their earnings, in the form of money being circulated by their clients, are again circulated in the local economy, adding to its prosperity.

In this issue we profile two such companies. The first is PM Dusters, a crop-dusting outfit based in Durham that serves some 200 farming operations every year, seeding, fertilizing and spraying herbicides as needed. Not only is the work valuable to its clients, it’s an exciting way to make a living.

The other is Anderson & Associates Inc., a Chico employment agency that provides prospective employees to employers needing to hire someone, whether for a temporary or a permanent position. It’s a unique role, one that brings Anderson & Associates into contact with a wide range of businesses. It’s fair to say owner Joy Anderson Kimball knows as much as anyone does about the local business community.