Join Utah Independent Business Coalition

We’re Building a Stronger, Independent Business Community in Utah

Utah Independent Business Coalition (formerly Vest Pocket) is a collaborative association of Utah’s local, small businesses. These “independently-owned” enterprises include the small stores, cafes, manufacturing, and professional services businesses that are at the heart of our community. These businesses lend a unique flavor and a “sense of place” to our neighborhoods.

That’s why Utah Independent Business Coalition (UIBC) is committed to building a stronger independent business community in Utah. We’re achieving this goal by providing advocacy, education, mentoring, and social connections for small business owners.

What Our Members Love About Utah Independent Business Coalition

“I love being informed about what is happening politically and legislatively in direct relation to my business. Having an organization that is giving this perspective focus and working on change is what I have been looking for. Add in the mentoring in the round tables and the network of like-minded businesses and it’s everything I need!”

– Rebecca Yates, owner of Ark Insurance Solutions

UIBC Small Business Advocacy

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Utah small businesses comprise 99.3% of the state’s businesses and employ almost half (46.3%) of the private workforce in Utah. Yet, it’s often the large corporations that garner the incentives and preferential treatment to do business in Utah.

Utah Independent Business Coalition has been advocating on behalf of local, small businesses since our founding (as Vest Pocket) in 1998. For more than two decades, we’ve engaged in proactive advocacy by helping small business owners build positive relationships with other local businesses, government, and community leaders. Our mission also includes informing business owners about emerging issues and policies being considered at the local, state, and federal level that will impact their businesses.

You can help shape our ongoing Small Business advocacy efforts. Become a member of UIBC today!

What The UIBC Advocacy Committee Has Been Working On…

COVID-19 SUPPORT

UIBC-COVID-19 Forum During 2020, UIBC hosted a series on online business forums for Utah business owners to help address problems and issues related to COVID-19.

Guest speakers included U.S. Rep. Ben McAdams and Utah Rep. Robert M. Spendlove. Most important, these collaborative events served as an open forum for our members to discuss challenges and brainstorm strategies to work together to weather the pandemic.

To see recaps of each event, click here.

COVID-19 PROCLAMATION

LEGISLATIVE BRIEFS

Hosting annual small business advocacy planning meetings (January) and annual legislative recap briefings (March/April) for small business owners.

The most recent event was our 2019 Legislative Session Wrap-Up Breakfast which was held this past April. Guest speakers included Utah Senate President J. Stuart Adams, Representative Robert Spendlove, member of Tax Restructuring and Equalization Task Force, and Dave Davis, President & Chief Legal Officer of the Utah Retail Merchants Association.

TANGIBLE PERSONAL PROPERTY TAX

Continued advocacy for the reform of the Tangible Personal Property (TPP) tax. Utah levies an annual property tax on business supplies and equipment in addition to the one-time sales tax on these items. TPP tax forces business owners who buy equipment, machinery, or furniture to do an inventory of every item, each year so it can be taxed at different rates depending on the purchase date. This tax has a very high compliance cost, resulting in Utah business owners wasting many hours on micro-managing forms and invasive audits.

UIBC board members have testified on the issue before the Utah House and Senate Revenue and Taxation Committee and continue to lobby the legislature each year for a reform or abolishment of the tax.

VOTER GUIDE

In July of 2019, we published the Local Business Voter Guide. A first of its kind in Utah, the guide empowers small business owners to compare the positions of candidates for Salt Lake City and Millcreek City races on issues specifically affecting locally-owned businesses.

The questions in this guide were submitted by local business owners that are members of UIBC and our partner organizations. The questions in this guide were sent, in questionnaire form, to all candidates in the races for Salt Lake City Mayor, Salt Lake City Council, and Millcreek Mayor.

Click here to download the guide

UIBC Mentor Round Table Program

What if you could have an outside board of business experts to provide you monthly advice and support for your organization? Now you can. Utah Independent Business Coalition’s Mentor Round Table (MRT) program brings independent business owners and managers together into support groups. These groups of 8 to 10 people meet together once a month to discuss their organizations in a structured, confidential, and safe environment.

Who Qualifies?

Members of Utah Independent Business Coalition who are business owners or managers of a locally-owned, independent business in the state of Utah are eligible to apply for the Mentor Round Table program. If accepted in the program, a yearly MRT fee applies.