The Northwest Ohio Small Business Impact Program Showcase was held with Chris Eischen of Toledo Custom Apparel taking home the $10,000 first prize!
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The program was the conclusion of an intensive 12-week program hosted by Jumpstart. Mentors to program attendees were on hand from the Toledo Lucas County Library, the Small Business Development Center at the Toledo Regional Chamber of Commerce, the City of Toledo Economic Development Department, and the Economic and Community Development Institute (ECDI). 

The 12-week course allows entrepreneurs to build a structured business that is prepared to take on real world challenges. Attendees worked on developing in depth understanding of their business models, customer identification, value propositions, milestones and goal setting, and how to present their business financial position to potential investors. 

Chris plans to use his winnings to reinvest in his business. He plans to purchase additional equipment, expand into a larger space, and hire additional staff. Toledo Custom Apparel already does work with several national brands such as Eddie Bauer and Pac-Sun, but with an expanded staff behind him Chris can compete for additional large accounts which will continue to grow his business. Along with the grand prize, contests who finished second and third received $2,500 to use towards continued growth of their business. 

Congratulations to Chris and all of the competitors in the field. 

​The America’s Small Business Development Center (SBDC) network is filled with talented young professionals who significantly contribute to their SBDC mission and local communities.

To celebrate these achievements, America’s SBDC has launched the Top 40 Under 40 Young Professionals Award, a recognition of SBDC staff from across the national network who demonstrate innovation, leadership, and commitment to the SBDC mission. This year, they recognized 40 young professionals from 2020 to 2021 and their national conference in San Diego. Among those recognized was Jill Badger, Vice President, Small Business Services at the Toledo Regional Chamber of Commerce.
 
“We are thrilled for Jill to have received this honor from America's SBDC,” said Wendy Gramza, president and CEO of the Toledo Regional Chamber of Commerce. "Under her leadership for the past two years, Toledo's SBDC has helped record-breaking numbers of entrepreneurs and small business, many of which are women- and minority-owned, survive and thrive during one of the most challenging times to be a business owner." 

The Small Business Development Center (SBDC), at the Toledo Regional Chamber of Commerce, offers assistance to entrepreneurs in all stages of the business lifecycle. The SBDC provides free one-on-one counseling centered on the business planning process, including financing, market research, marketing strategies, and management and cash flow analysis. Chamber membership is not required to utilize these services. For more information about the SBDC at the Toledo Regional Chamber of Commerce please call 567.420.1238.

​The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) announced on Monday, May 2, that the Toledo Small Business Development Center at the Toledo Regional Chamber of Commerce has won its 2022 Great Lakes Regional Small Business Development Center (SBDC) Excellence and Innovation Award. Through this award, the SBA recognizes the year's most outstanding SBDC among the Great Lakes states of Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio and Wisconsin.

​The Ohio Export Internship Program gives businesses the help they need to expand sales to new markets.
 
The Ohio Export Internship Program matches businesses interested in growing exports with highly motivated college students who have taken export-focused coursework. The Ohio Department of Development offers participating small to medium-sized businesses a 50 percent reimbursement for the wages of the intern.

Here in the U.S., May is designated as World Trade Month, and while it’s important to recognize the impact global trade has on our daily lives all the time, it’s worth taking a moment now to consider just how much your life might be different if we didn’t have access to goods and services from outside our borders. According to worldtrademonth.com, U.S. exports totaled $2.5 trillion in 2018. Those dollars touch an estimated 11.5 million U.S. jobs and account for 13 percent of GDP. As you might imagine, without these goods and services, our lives – and our economy – would be dramatically different. To discuss the importance of having a defined export strategy for your business, we sat down with Steven R. Zirkel, owner of Blue Everest LLC, a strategic growth consulting, business advising and executive coaching firm.

On Feb. 26, as a student in the Export Success class of 2021, you'll join a team of business professionals in ready-to-export, new-to-export and longtime export businesses. Not only is this class built to help you grow your business by expanding into new international markets through classes on export law, cross-cultural communications and building an export plan, it's also designed to train your brightest and newest employees how to carry on your exporting efforts as they rise within your company. But the class isn't just unique in its variety of classmates; its expert mentors will help you get the most out of your export plans. Let's meet two of our newest mentors in the class of 2021.

By Amanda DePerro, Communications Manager

​It seems to have become a mantra in the last few months: times are tough. We are living in unprecedented and unpredictable times. And no matter how much we say it, it doesn’t make it less true – or perhaps less painful. But here in the Toledo Region and around the country, organizations are working together to support their communities and be the rising tide to lift all ships. One such organization is Huntington Bank, and its Lift Local Business Program, part of its five-year, $20 billion Community Plan.

By Sabrina D'Onofrio, CGBP, CBA

With Export Success' class of 2021 beginning in little over a month, it's about time for the excitement to set in. By registering for Export Success, not only are you joining a team of likeminded, intelligent business professionals, you're also working to grow your business into new international markets and expanding your product or service's reach. But you're not just growing your network of consumers in Export Success – you're building your network of people who you can call and lean on when you have questions or just need a mentor.

The Ohio Small Business Development Center District Three isn't here to run your business for you – we're here to guide you, to show you the options and resources available to you, and to share with you the best practices so you can be successful. 

At the Toledo Small Business Development Center (SBDC), we're all about people – and helping people achieve their dreams. Our clients own a variety of small businesses all over northwest Ohio, each with a unique set of successes and challenges. And our expert team of counselors is here to assist in any situation.