Turning lessons learned on the football field into small business success

By Drew Bledsoe
Former NFL QB and Owner of Doubleback Winery

The average career span for NFL players is less than four years, making “retirement” and career changes at a young age inevitable, and leading many into the business world. I was lucky enough to beat the odds, playing 14 years in the NFL before retiring in 2007, when I was in my mid-30s. At that time, while my career on the football field ended, I had already begun a new one as the small business owner after buying a piece of vineyard land several years earlier in hopes of one day opening a winery.

My wife Maura and I have had a passion for wine for many years, so when planning for “retirement” became a reality in my early-30s, the wine business became a very attractive choice.

By Blake Christian
Blake Christian, CPA

It is clear that California businesses and individuals are faced with some of the highest marginal tax rates in the country – at 8.82% for most C Corporations and up to 10.3% for individuals making more than $1 million (note: an S Corporation owner can experience combined marginal rates of up to 11.8% for California purposes, when adding in the 1.5% California S Corporation level “toll tax”). These high taxes contribute to California’s relatively low rankings in “business friendly” surveys.

However, there is a silver lining for most Long Beach businesses and their equity owners (as well as certain lenders). Businesses can dramatically reduce their California income/franchise taxes by choosing to operate in the Long Beach Enterprise Zone (EZ), which comprises over 70% of the city and includes most of the commercial/ industrial sections of the city – including the port, Downtown Long Beach, The Airport, and most other sections of the city, except Belmont Shore/ 2nd Street.