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North Carolina Tar Heel Small Business News - April 2018 National Small Business Week has served as our nation’s salute to small business owners. That’s more than 50 years of celebrating the individuals like you who create two out of every three net new jobs for Americans. SBA NORTH CAROLINA DISTRICT ANNOUNCES SMALL BUSINESS WEEK AWARD WINNERS Award: 2018 SBA North Carolina Small Business Person of the Year The SBA is proud to announce the 2018 North Carolina Small Business Person of the Year, Andrew Matroni. Andrew is CEO and owner of Queen City Catering (QCC) in Charlotte. QCC offers two main food services: gourmet full-service catering and delivery of "express" boxed meals. Andrew was selected as the 2018 North Carolina Small Business Person of the Year because his company has demonstrated staying power, growth, and philanthropy by supporting community-oriented activities. QCC received $1.7 million in funding through the SBA 504 loan program. The SBA loan enabled QCC to consolidate two separate leased spaces into one extensively renovated and upscale building with almost 10,000 sq. ft. In 2016 sales climbed to almost $3 million. The company has more than quadrupled its staff since 2014. The business currently employs about 130 full-time and part-time staff. Award: 2018 SBA North Carolina Exporter of the Year Flow Sciences, Inc. is the 2018 North Carolina Small Business Exporter of the Year. The company has grown to include 60 employees and exports products to 32 countries. The criteria for the award include: increased sales, profits and/or employment due to exporting; creative overseas marketing strategies; and the introduction of unique trading relationships, products or services. Flow Sciences’ annual revenues have increased to $8.4 million which is expected to grow under the leadership of the executive team nominated for this award. Export sales have steadily increased to more than 20 percent of annual revenues, contributing to the increase in full-time hires. The SBA-affiliated Small Business and Technology Development Center has been an integral part of Flow Sciences, Inc.’s success through its highly effective counseling and training programs for small business owners. Flow Sciences, Inc.'s executive team consists of Ray Ryan, President/CEO; Curtis Howard, Chief Operations Officer; James Wind, Chief Financial Officer; and Steve Janz, VP of International Sales and Strategic Business Development. Award: 2018 SBA North Carolina Women in Business Advocate of the Year Sharon Oxendine is the 2018 Women in Business Advocate for North Carolina. Sharon is currently the Director of the Western Women’s Business Center which serves 23 counties in the western part of the state. This award recognizes her for her achievements on behalf of women-owned small businesses. Sharon has over twenty five years of non-profit and fifteen years of CDFI experience. She has worked in the WNC area offering business training, lending, and support since 2002. She has served an estimated 1,800 entrepreneurs and helped start over 900 businesses in the WNC region. Sharon developed and offered one of the most diverse annual Women’s Business Conferences, hosting over 250 women entrepreneurs last year. Award: 2018 SBA North Carolina Veteran Business Advocate of the Year James Prosser, State of North Carolina Assistant Secretary for Veterans Affairs, is the 2018 North Carolina Veteran Business Advocate of the Year for his commitment to the advancement of veteran business ownership. The award recognizes Jim for his efforts to increase business and financial opportunities for veterans; efforts to strengthen the role of veteran business owners within the community; and other accomplishments demonstrating effectiveness in improving the environment for veterans in business. He has worked to increase business opportunities for veterans, and to foster awareness of barriers, challenges and successes of veteran-owned businesses. Award: 2018 SBA North Carolina Financial Services Advocate of the Year Jane Hatley, Western North Carolina Regional Director of Self-Help Credit Union in Asheville, NC, is the 2018 North Carolina Financial Services Advocate of the Year. The Financial Services Advocate award is presented annually to individuals who assist small businesses through advocacy efforts to increase the usefulness and availability of accounting or financial services. Jane has been providing extensive financial instruction and programs to encourage the flow of investment capital to small ventures. She often meets one-on-one with individual entrepreneurs to review their business plan, talk to them about how/where they might get a loan, cash flow projections, explaining the loan process, etc. She is frequently called upon to offer technical assistance to small business owners, on an informal basis, since she enjoys doing this kind of work. SBA Franchise Directory Simplifies Processes to Access Capital SBA’s Franchise Directory streamlined the process for entrepreneurs looking to access capital. The SBA Franchise Directory is updated every other week to keep it current and has added 566 new brands since the new policy was announced, bringing the total eligible brands to 2,566. The eligibility status of the franchise brands on this list are checked and cleared by the SBA cutting the finance processing time and making it more efficient. Once franchisors have filed the proper paperwork, lenders can process loans without further review of the franchise documents. The vast majority of new brands are reviewed within 14-21 days. Potential franchises interested in being listed on the Directory should email copies of their Franchise Disclosure Document, the Franchise Agreement (or license or other type of agreement), and any other documents that the franchisor will require the franchisee to execute to franchise@sba.gov. There are no fees for franchises that want to be added to the Directory and it is accessible to everyone visiting SBA’s website (www.sba.gov). If you are a franchisor looking for SBA financial assistance and would like to be included in the SBA Directory, visit https://www.sba.gov/document/support--sba-franchise-directory. Two Amazing Upcoming Hubzone Events! Topic: HUBZone Workshop - Raleigh Presenter: Mariana Pardo, SBA HUBZone Program Director, Washington DC Location: NC Rural Center - Auditorium, 4021 Carya Drive, Raleigh, NC 27610 Date: Tuesday, April 17, 2018 Time: 12:00 PM - 4:00 PM EDT Meet and Learn from Mariana Pardo, Director of the SBA HUBZone Program about: How the HUBZone Program works; Benefits of the HUBZone Program and Eligibility for HUBZone certification. Also, hear from experts from the SBTDC Procurement Technical Assistance Center and Wake Tech Entrepreneurship Center who can assist with your North Carolina HUB or your Federal HUBZone applications. Event Contact: Patrick Rodriguez Phone: 919-532-5525 Email: Patrick.rodriguez@sba.gov Register Topic: HUBZone Workshop - Fayetteville Presenter: Mariana Pardo, SBA HUBZone Program Director, Washington DC Location: Fayetteville State University, College of Business & Economics (Room 140), 1200 Murchison Road, Fayetteville, NC 28301 Date: Wednesday, April 18, 2018 Time: 1:30 PM - 3:30 PM EDT Register Topic: Automotive EXPORT 101: Learn the Basics of Exporting Location: Greenville Technical College Center For Manufacturing Innovation, 575 Millennium Blvd, Greenville, SC Date: Friday, April 13, 2018 Time: 9:00 PM - 3:30 PM EDT Join the US Commercial Service on Wednesday, April 18th for an Export 101: Basics of Exporting for your automotive company. Industry experts will share their knowledge on everything from product classification, INCOTERMS, logistics and shipping, getting paid and compliance and legal considerations. Hear from the manager for BMWs trade compliance division on exporting best practices and developing a successful trade compliance program. In addition, there will be an afternoon session on top export markets for automotive parts, aftermarket, and vehicles. Presenters will include BMW, John S. James, Premier Logistics and Trading, NexGen Supply Chain Integrators, U.S. Department of Commerce, South Carolina Small Business Development Center, South Carolina Department of Commerce U.S. Export-Import Bank, the Small Business Administration, John S James Co., and others. Export101 is an introductory training which is a first step in a series of courses on exporting that are offered to South Carolina companies throughout the year to help your company begin or expand export activities and to gain skills that will assist you in growing your international sales. Space is limited! Register by April 13th: http://www.sctrade.org/register-automotive-export-101.html Event Contact: Shannon Christenbury, U.S. Commercial Service Phone: 864-250-8429 Email: shannon.christenbury@trade.gov Register SAVE THE DATE: SBIR Road Show and Proposal Training June 21st and 22nd - Durham, NC The 2018 SBIR Road Tour is coming to Durham on June 21-22 through a partnership between SBA, SBTDC, First Flight Venture Center and other partners. This is a rare chance to hear details about the Small Business Innovation Research and Small Business Technology Transfer programs directly from agency representatives and engage in one-on-one sessions with agency program managers to gather feedback on your project ideas. The SBIR Road Tour is a national outreach effort to convey the non-dilutive technology funding opportunity provided through SBIR/STTR. June 21st will include an SBIR/STTR proposal preparation training session and networking reception and June 22nd will offer reverse pitches from most federal agencies and offer an opportunity to meet one-on-one with SBIR program managers. Registration open soon. SBA Government Contracting Assistance Topic: Federal Government Certification seminar/webinar Did you know the U.S. Government buys $500 billion dollars of goods and service each year? Learn how SBA can help you learn about the federal procurement process and access the federal marketplace. Date: Tuesday, April 10, 2018 Time: 9:00 AM - 11:00 PM EDT Attend a monthly webinar to learn about the following small business certifications: Woman-Owned Small Business, Small Disadvantaged Business, Veteran and Service Disabled Veteran Program, 8(a) Business Development Program, and HUBZone Empowerment Contracting Program. Dial in: 888-858-2144 Meeting Access Code: 6906107# Log on: https://connect16.uc.att.com/sba/meet/?ExEventID=86906107 For details: Event Contact: Erin Connell Phone: 704-344-6590 Email: NC@sba.gov Topic: 2018 SBA Contracting Webinar Series The SBA North Carolina District Office hosts a monthly workshop series on government contracting topics. For more information contact Erin Connell at 704-344-6590. May 22 Mentor Protégé for 8(a) July 24 Marketing to the Federal Government September 25 Other Contracting Vehicles When: Fourth Tuesday of the Every Other Month 10:00 am – 11:00 am Dial in: 888-858-2144 Log on: https://connect16.uc.att.com/sba/meet/?ExEventID=8696107 Meeting Access Code: 6906107# Topic: Federal Government Certifications During this monthly webinar, Federal certifications to be discussed are: Woman-Owned Small Business, Small Disadvantaged Business, Veteran and Service Disabled Veteran Program, 8(a) Business Development Program, and HUBZone Empowerment Contracting Program. For more information contact Erin Connell at 704-344-6590. When: Second Tuesday of the Month 9:00 am – 11:00 am Dial in: 888-858-2144 Log on: https://connect16.uc.att.com/sba/meet/?ExEventID=8696107 Meeting Access Code: 6906107# Small Business Events The above workshops and seminars are just a few of the event in North Carolina. For additional events, visit the SBA Event Calendar at www.sba.gov/offices/district/nc/charlottenc. SBA North Carolina Lending Activity See North Carolina's lending activity from October 1, 2017 - March 31, 2018! Click here for SBA North Carolina Lender Ranking Follow us on Twitter! @SBA_NC SBA North Carolina District Office 6302 Fairview Road, Suite 300 Charlotte, NC 28210 Phone: (704) 344-6563 http://www.sba.gov/nc Follow us @ SBA_NC Raleigh/Northeastern NC Office - Raleigh Patrick.Rodriguez@sba.gov Phone: (919) 532-5525 Wilmington/Southeastern NC Office - Wilmington Don.Spry@sba.gov Phone: (910) 398-0746 Subscriber Services Unsubscribe | Manage your account
North Carolina Tar Heel Small Business News - April 2018
National Small Business Week has served as our nation’s salute to small business owners. That’s more than 50 years of celebrating the individuals like you who create two out of every three net new jobs for Americans.
Award: 2018 SBA North Carolina Small Business Person of the Year
The SBA is proud to announce the 2018 North Carolina Small Business Person of the Year, Andrew Matroni. Andrew is CEO and owner of Queen City Catering (QCC) in Charlotte. QCC offers two main food services: gourmet full-service catering and delivery of "express" boxed meals.
Andrew was selected as the 2018 North Carolina Small Business Person of the Year because his company has demonstrated staying power, growth, and philanthropy by supporting community-oriented activities.
QCC received $1.7 million in funding through the SBA 504 loan program. The SBA loan enabled QCC to consolidate two separate leased spaces into one extensively renovated and upscale building with almost 10,000 sq. ft. In 2016 sales climbed to almost $3 million. The company has more than quadrupled its staff since 2014. The business currently employs about 130 full-time and part-time staff.
Award: 2018 SBA North Carolina Exporter of the Year
Flow Sciences, Inc. is the 2018 North Carolina Small Business Exporter of the Year. The company has grown to include 60 employees and exports products to 32 countries.
The criteria for the award include: increased sales, profits and/or employment due to exporting; creative overseas marketing strategies; and the introduction of unique trading relationships, products or services.
Flow Sciences’ annual revenues have increased to $8.4 million which is expected to grow under the leadership of the executive team nominated for this award. Export sales have steadily increased to more than 20 percent of annual revenues, contributing to the increase in full-time hires.
The SBA-affiliated Small Business and Technology Development Center has been an integral part of Flow Sciences, Inc.’s success through its highly effective counseling and training programs for small business owners.
Flow Sciences, Inc.'s executive team consists of Ray Ryan, President/CEO; Curtis Howard, Chief Operations Officer; James Wind, Chief Financial Officer; and Steve Janz, VP of International Sales and Strategic Business Development.
Award: 2018 SBA North Carolina Women in Business Advocate of the Year
Sharon Oxendine is the 2018 Women in Business Advocate for North Carolina. Sharon is currently the Director of the Western Women’s Business Center which serves 23 counties in the western part of the state. This award recognizes her for her achievements on behalf of women-owned small businesses.
Sharon has over twenty five years of non-profit and fifteen years of CDFI experience. She has worked in the WNC area offering business training, lending, and support since 2002. She has served an estimated 1,800 entrepreneurs and helped start over 900 businesses in the WNC region. Sharon developed and offered one of the most diverse annual Women’s Business Conferences, hosting over 250 women entrepreneurs last year.
Award: 2018 SBA North Carolina Veteran Business Advocate of the Year
James Prosser, State of North Carolina Assistant Secretary for Veterans Affairs, is the 2018 North Carolina Veteran Business Advocate of the Year for his commitment to the advancement of veteran business ownership.
The award recognizes Jim for his efforts to increase business and financial opportunities for veterans; efforts to strengthen the role of veteran business owners within the community; and other accomplishments demonstrating effectiveness in improving the environment for veterans in business. He has worked to increase business opportunities for veterans, and to foster awareness of barriers, challenges and successes of veteran-owned businesses.
Award: 2018 SBA North Carolina Financial Services Advocate of the Year
Jane Hatley, Western North Carolina Regional Director of Self-Help Credit Union in Asheville, NC, is the 2018 North Carolina Financial Services Advocate of the Year.
The Financial Services Advocate award is presented annually to individuals who assist small businesses through advocacy efforts to increase the usefulness and availability of accounting or financial services.
Jane has been providing extensive financial instruction and programs to encourage the flow of investment capital to small ventures. She often meets one-on-one with individual entrepreneurs to review their business plan, talk to them about how/where they might get a loan, cash flow projections, explaining the loan process, etc. She is frequently called upon to offer technical assistance to small business owners, on an informal basis, since she enjoys doing this kind of work.
SBA’s Franchise Directory streamlined the process for entrepreneurs looking to access capital. The SBA Franchise Directory is updated every other week to keep it current and has added 566 new brands since the new policy was announced, bringing the total eligible brands to 2,566.
The eligibility status of the franchise brands on this list are checked and cleared by the SBA cutting the finance processing time and making it more efficient. Once franchisors have filed the proper paperwork, lenders can process loans without further review of the franchise documents. The vast majority of new brands are reviewed within 14-21 days.
Potential franchises interested in being listed on the Directory should email copies of their Franchise Disclosure Document, the Franchise Agreement (or license or other type of agreement), and any other documents that the franchisor will require the franchisee to execute to franchise@sba.gov.
There are no fees for franchises that want to be added to the Directory and it is accessible to everyone visiting SBA’s website (www.sba.gov).
If you are a franchisor looking for SBA financial assistance and would like to be included in the SBA Directory, visit https://www.sba.gov/document/support--sba-franchise-directory.
Meet and Learn from Mariana Pardo, Director of the SBA HUBZone Program about: How the HUBZone Program works; Benefits of the HUBZone Program and Eligibility for HUBZone certification.
Also, hear from experts from the SBTDC Procurement Technical Assistance Center and Wake Tech Entrepreneurship Center who can assist with your North Carolina HUB or your Federal HUBZone applications.
Event Contact: Patrick Rodriguez Phone: 919-532-5525 Email: Patrick.rodriguez@sba.gov
Location: Greenville Technical College Center For Manufacturing Innovation, 575 Millennium Blvd, Greenville, SC Date: Friday, April 13, 2018 Time: 9:00 PM - 3:30 PM EDT
Join the US Commercial Service on Wednesday, April 18th for an Export 101: Basics of Exporting for your automotive company. Industry experts will share their knowledge on everything from product classification, INCOTERMS, logistics and shipping, getting paid and compliance and legal considerations. Hear from the manager for BMWs trade compliance division on exporting best practices and developing a successful trade compliance program. In addition, there will be an afternoon session on top export markets for automotive parts, aftermarket, and vehicles.
Presenters will include BMW, John S. James, Premier Logistics and Trading, NexGen Supply Chain Integrators, U.S. Department of Commerce, South Carolina Small Business Development Center, South Carolina Department of Commerce U.S. Export-Import Bank, the Small Business Administration, John S James Co., and others.
Export101 is an introductory training which is a first step in a series of courses on exporting that are offered to South Carolina companies throughout the year to help your company begin or expand export activities and to gain skills that will assist you in growing your international sales.
Register by April 13th: http://www.sctrade.org/register-automotive-export-101.html
Event Contact: Shannon Christenbury, U.S. Commercial Service Phone: 864-250-8429 Email: shannon.christenbury@trade.gov
June 21st and 22nd - Durham, NC
The 2018 SBIR Road Tour is coming to Durham on June 21-22 through a partnership between SBA, SBTDC, First Flight Venture Center and other partners. This is a rare chance to hear details about the Small Business Innovation Research and Small Business Technology Transfer programs directly from agency representatives and engage in one-on-one sessions with agency program managers to gather feedback on your project ideas. The SBIR Road Tour is a national outreach effort to convey the non-dilutive technology funding opportunity provided through SBIR/STTR.
June 21st will include an SBIR/STTR proposal preparation training session and networking reception and June 22nd will offer reverse pitches from most federal agencies and offer an opportunity to meet one-on-one with SBIR program managers. Registration open soon.
Did you know the U.S. Government buys $500 billion dollars of goods and service each year? Learn how SBA can help you learn about the federal procurement process and access the federal marketplace. Date: Tuesday, April 10, 2018 Time: 9:00 AM - 11:00 PM EDT
Attend a monthly webinar to learn about the following small business certifications: Woman-Owned Small Business, Small Disadvantaged Business, Veteran and Service Disabled Veteran Program, 8(a) Business Development Program, and HUBZone Empowerment Contracting Program.
Dial in: 888-858-2144 Meeting Access Code: 6906107# Log on: https://connect16.uc.att.com/sba/meet/?ExEventID=86906107
For details:
Event Contact: Erin Connell Phone: 704-344-6590 Email: NC@sba.gov
The SBA North Carolina District Office hosts a monthly workshop series on government contracting topics. For more information contact Erin Connell at 704-344-6590.
When: Fourth Tuesday of the Every Other Month 10:00 am – 11:00 am Dial in: 888-858-2144 Log on: https://connect16.uc.att.com/sba/meet/?ExEventID=8696107 Meeting Access Code: 6906107#
During this monthly webinar, Federal certifications to be discussed are: Woman-Owned Small Business, Small Disadvantaged Business, Veteran and Service Disabled Veteran Program, 8(a) Business Development Program, and HUBZone Empowerment Contracting Program. For more information contact Erin Connell at 704-344-6590.
When: Second Tuesday of the Month 9:00 am – 11:00 am Dial in: 888-858-2144 Log on: https://connect16.uc.att.com/sba/meet/?ExEventID=8696107 Meeting Access Code: 6906107#
Small Business Events
The above workshops and seminars are just a few of the event in North Carolina. For additional events, visit the SBA Event Calendar at www.sba.gov/offices/district/nc/charlottenc.
See North Carolina's lending activity from October 1, 2017 - March 31, 2018!
6302 Fairview Road, Suite 300 Charlotte, NC 28210 Phone: (704) 344-6563 http://www.sba.gov/nc Follow us @ SBA_NC
Patrick.Rodriguez@sba.gov Phone: (919) 532-5525
Don.Spry@sba.gov Phone: (910) 398-0746
Subscriber Services Unsubscribe | Manage your account