By Jason Gibbs
Las Cruces Sun-News, N.M.
WWR Article Summary (tl;dr) A new TV show is in the works called “Save It or Sell It.” The program is currently looking for businesses that need professional experts to come in and help the owners figure out if they want to sell or reinvest in their business.
LAS CRUCES
Selling a business that you and your family have built over the years is rarely an easy decision.
Noble Savages, a New York-based production company, is hoping that local business owners will let America’s television audiences sit in as they make that choice.
The show, “Save It or Sell It” is seeking Las Cruces business owners who are considering whether to sell their business or try to save it. Bianca Ortiz, a casting producer with the company, said they are looking for businesses that need professional experts to come in and help the owners figure out if they want to sell or reinvest in their business.
They are particularly interested in automobile repair shops, building contractors, plumbers, landscaping services and other small businesses that could benefit from the expert advice.
If selected, business owners will receive free advice, strategy and renovation services from the business experts and will be included in the program, with shooting set to begin in June.
“We want to find ways to add value and help them avoid costly mistakes, in the process saving them thousands of dollars now while helping them make a lot more in the future,” Ortiz said.
Executive Producer Vin Potestivo said the production company had focused on New Mexico for the “variety of cultures and its small-business community made up largely of hand-skilled entrepreneurs, scientists, ranchers, foodies, artists and other business types we don’t see when focusing on costal businesses.”
Interested business owners can apply online at http://vpe.tv/mybiz/ or by calling the casting team at 212-204-2559.
“This is probably one of the most important business transactions or deals of a small business owner’s life,” Potestivo added.
“And we want to find ways to add value and help them avoid costly mistakes in the process saving them thousands of dollars now while helping them make a lot more in the future.”
This kind of exposure can be beneficial, depending on the type of business, said David Wilson of Wilson & Binkley Advertising & Marketing in Las Cruces. In July 2014, Meson de Mesilla was featured on Gordon Ramsay’s “Hotel Hell” which included many minor renovations, most of which were later removed.
“In the case of ‘Hotel Hell’ it generated a lot of traffic to their website and interest in the property,” Wilson said. “At the end of the day … it’s the quality of the product. The publicity can be huge for somebody like Meson. They changed the whole image. It depends on whether you don’t have to take all the advice the people give you in a show like that.”
Another plus of the potential for filming in Las Cruces is the financial boon. A decade ago, film projects in New Mexico typically used 80 percent out-of-state crew. Now that figure has decreased and local workers comprise 80 percent of the crew on many projects, Wilson noted. There is also increased spending at hotels and restaurants and more long-term projects often require office space that is leased locally.
It also provides an opportunity for aspiring filmmakers, crews and actors in Las Cruces to hone their craft. As the state’s film industry continues to grow, it’s an important opportunity for local film schools such as New Mexico State University’s Creative Media Institute to tie into the projects and for graduates to develop skills and contacts in the television and film industry, Wilson said.
“We are starting to turn the corner in growing the industry in the state,” Wilson said. “It’s one place kids are landing in the industry.”
