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Shirley McLendon has spent the past 14 years visiting state and federal transportation departments, the DeSoto County GIS Department, and various planning and clerks offices to compile updated maps of DeSoto County for her Hernando home-based business, Mi-Da Maps.
Her diligence was rewarded in June when the U.S. Small Business Administration Mississippi named McLendon the state's Home-based Business Champion of the year.
"I was really surprised; I've never won anything before," McLendon said. "I was very humbled.
"It's nice to receive some recognition because running a home-based business can be very difficult and, at times like this, rewarding."
McLendon was nominated by Lynn Sykes, a business counselor with the University of Mississippi Small Business Development Center.
"Number one, she has an awesome product, and number two, she understands business," Sykes said. "And she's such a great lady."
If you have to find an address in DeSoto County, Sykes said there is no better reference than one of McLendon's maps.
"I was talking with a girl who works for the Post Office, and she mentioned how the Post Office uses her maps because they couldn't find anything else that lists new subdivisions."
McLendon said she and two other ladies started Desoto Maps in 1995. Eventually, her partners moved on and she expanded Mi-Da Maps to include maps of Benton, Marshall, Tate and Tunica counties.
"Running a home-based business is not for everybody," McLendon said. "I might be home doing something else, but I'm still thinking about my business. What you've got to get done is constantly on your mind.
"But if I can't sleep at night, I can always get up and work right there in my pajamas. Overall, the good outweighs the bad."
McLendon has always been good at sales. She used to make a good living selling encyclopedias, but the rise of the Internet killed the business.
And with the advent of GPS systems, it would seem technology might be trying to overtake McLendon again, but she's not worried.
"I've had several people with GPS say 'I needed your map book,'" McLendon said. "A GPS won't help you if it doesn't have updated information."
-- Mark Crum: (662) 996-1421
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