Governor’s Cup Winner launches business during tough economic times
Posted September 18, 2011
Katie Knapp brushed aside the nightmarish economy and put her faith in the American dream — and started her own business.
"I didn’t want to sit around at home wondering where my next job is coming from or wait for someone to make it happen for me," she said.
So in July, Knapp opened Bumblebee Blooms Flower Boutique in a 900-square-foot shop on Sierra Street in downtown Reno.
"I figured the economy won’t get a whole lot worse and has nowhere to go but up," she said. "I prepare for the worst and hope for the best."
Knapp, 41, admits she has the luxury of a spouse with a solid job to back her up, but she insists her stubbornness in the face of recession helps set her apart as an anomaly in the nation’s beleaguered small-business world.
Federal Bureau of Labor Statistics show 2.1 million fewer Americans were self-employed in August from the peak of 14.5 million in the pre-recession days of December 2006.
