-Brass Tacks opened for business with our take on why the market doesn't need another energy drink unless its magic.

-We reminisced about Velcro, trademarked this week in 1958, over this video.

-Brass Tacks also solicited your questions about anything as it relates to business planning for our weekly Q&A feature. Send 'em in!

-It was decided that Lindsay Lohan Can't Fix Your Cash Flow Problem.

See you Monday!

Anytime I hear people making predictions, my first reaction is to call their bluff. No one—neither the weather man nor LaToya Jackson—has any clue what's going to happen tomorrow, let alone next week or they'd be filthy, filthy rich.

That said, VentureBeat has an interesting round-up of what went down at the annual Top Ten Tech Trends debate this week in Silicon Valley, where a bunch of well-known VCs get together and try to guess what's going to be hot in business next year. The audience then votes whether they agree or disagree. Before checking out their newest predictions, bear in mind that last year Steve Jervetson posited that the first synthetic life form would be created—and 95% of the audience agreed with him. He ostensibly wasn't talking about Second Life.

This year's trends, below, are far less bold. In fact, some of them seem downright obvious. Others—your mobile phone as most important device—already seem to have happened (hello, iPhone). Any thoughts?

"Trend 1: Customer data stored by different service providers will be combined to create more intelligent services.

Trend 2: Biofuels made from non-food crops.

Trend 3: Water technology

Trend 4: The mobile device industry's migration to smart phones will produce great disruption for big industry players.

Trend 5: Booming market for healthy aging technologies

Trend 6: Four-fifths of the world population will carry mobile Internet devices within five to 10 years

Trend 7: Algorithms will be constructed to develop new industrial chemicals, new biofuels and eventually artificial intelligence

Trend 8: The mobile phone is your most important device.

Trend 9: There is going to be a venture capital shakeout.

Trend 10: Within five years everything that matters to you will be available on a device that fits on your belt or in your purse."

Le Coq Sportif, the iconic European sportswear line, announced that it was closing its North American offices and exiting from U.S. markets.

The Sharper Image, the go-to store for massage chairs and shower radios, got approval from bankrupty courts to sell its assets for $51.25 mill today. That's a lot of Ionic Breeze air purifiers.

GE announced today that it may sell its iconic appliances business. While they're not toast yet, sources say that the appliances division is bleeding cash and that a sale or deal is imminent.

Looking for venture capital funding? There's no question that you're in for an uphill battle. No surprise—VC funding is the creme de la creme of business investment. These guys know what they're doing, and they want a business that's going to make them big bucks. The problem, according to a Forbes columnist, is that VCs are only funding the flashiest, most exciting businesses—primarily in the tech industry. The result, he says, is that the model's screwed:

"Beneath all the glitter, venture-capital financing as practiced today in the U.S. is a broken model. Worse, thousands of companies that deserve funding aren't getting it."

The article goes on to say that there are few funding sources out there offering anything under $1 million, and even fewer opportunities still for businesses that don't have the sex appeal of potential tech blockbusters.

While the column makes a good point that it's unfortunate that VCs tend to ignore "perfectly viable" mid-sized businesses, it strikes me that he's misunderstanding the VC endgame. The point of venture capital funding isn't to invest in businesses that may only bring in mediocre returns. These guys only fund a handful of businesses each year because they're throwing big money at them, and because they want big returns. Sure VCs would have fewer failures if they invested in more typical mid-sized businesses, but then they wouldn't have the hugely profitable hits either. I don't think that this means that the VC model's broken—it's just how it works.

It's Friday! Normally, I'd post the results of our weekly survey, but since we didn't have one this week, I've poached one from Gallup. While the results aren't earth-shaking, or even surprising, they found that Americans still think the economy's in big trouble, with 86% of the people surveyed saying that the economy is getting worse.

However, I've heard talk in the blogosphere suggesting that small business owners and entrepreneurs have a different take on the economy—and that many actually see opportunity. As an entrepreneur, or someone who would like to start a small business, are you concerned about the direction of the economy? And do you think things are getting worse—or looking up? Let us know what you think.

Also, please check in on Monday, when I'll post the question for next week's survey!

Here's an interesting business model, via Gizmodo: You set up a website and ask customers to pay $10. In return you send them something randomly selected from your inventory that includes new and used items ranging from kitchen knives to chocolates to designer jeans. And hey, shipping's free.

It's obviously not a traditional retail operation, but the SomethingStore has turned this idea into a slick little business. Recent "somethings" they've sent out, according to their site, include an hour glass, a RC Speed Card, a Norelco Shaver, and a Nautica Sweater. Don't get too excited though, the fun is tame; alcohol, weapons, wholesale currency, "prostitution services," and cable descramblers are among the items they don't ship.

Sure the idea is cute, but are these guys making any money? Seems like it. According to their website, they sold 1,000 somethings in the first month of operations. Considering that these guys probably get their inventory from a combination of Goodwill and the trash, and that overhead and costs are low, that's not a bad living.

It's been a tough two weeks for sportswear companies. European label Le Coq Sportif announced today that they're shuttering their North American offices, based in Portland, Oregon. Last week Nau, a sustainable clothing company, also closed its Portland doors, citing "risk-averse market conditions." Le Coq's announcement comes only three months after the company relaunched its apparel line here in the U.S.

The company's North American CEO Tim McCool (here comes the spin) says it's not that the brand is failing, it's just that its success has been so tremendous in Europe that they have to refocus efforts closer to home. Read: the U.S. dollar sucks and Americans aren't biting on a line that some retailers say is a too "European-looking." Beyond that, trying to revive a once-hip brand (Le Coq's heyday was in the '70s and '80s) is tricky even for more the most experience marketers. I don't recall seeing a single ad for Le Coq, and if consumers don't know about the product, they won't buy it.

This is the second time the venerable label has tried to re-enter the U.S. market.

If you've taken a stab at writing a business plan before, you've probably heard the old mantra that the management summary is one of the most important parts of the document. To a certain extent, that's true.

But here's where a lot of well-meaning entrepreneurs go wrong: they assume their management summary is the sole source of information a potential investor or lender uses (aside from their credit report) to vet them.

It's pretty much a given that if an investor is going to hand over a large sum of money to you, they're going to make sure you're not 1) a criminal 2) bankrupt or 3) out of your mind. They do this several ways. Some VCs actually hire PIs, according to an article(subscription required) on the Dow Jones wire yesterday. Even if you're not pitching a multi-million dollar venture capital firm, chances are that whoever's writing the check is going to snoop around. It may sounds obvious, but try Googling yourself to see what it says about you on the net. Also, clean up your MySpace or Facebook profiles or set them to private. It never ceases to amaze me how many smart people post NSFW content up on their Facebook page, and then leave it there for the whole world—including potential lenders, investors, and their parents—to see. I'm not saying that those pictures of you from last Fourth of July are going to nix your chances of getting investment, it's just that you should make sure you know what face you're putting forward. You can bet that if the information's out there, someone's going to find it. And investors and lenders are hip to the fact that people lie. According Margo Evashevski, PI to the VCs:

"There are three things you often find on people's resumes," she said. "Embellishing, omitting and complete fantasy."

Normally, we'd post our weekly Q&A feature this morning. But since this is Brass Tacks' week one, I'm soliciting them.

Have a question related to business planning? Send it in. Starting next week, we'll post our response to your questions.

Investors Unimpressed by Nissan Business Plan via BusinessWeek

Did you get a grant for your for-profit business? Know someone who did?

I don't either. The truth is, government grants are like ghosts—everyone's got a story about one, but no one can actually produce proof they exist. Despite the myriad of books and the how-to seminars, I can't name a single entrepreneur who got started with the help of Uncle Sam.

Am I wrong? Prove it. If you, or anyone you know, got a government grant for a for-profit business, tell Brass Tacks about it (the contact form is to the right). We'll dedicate a post to them and their business.