America’s SBDC New Jersey Participates in Small Business Saturday Events
Regional Small Business Development Centers Visit Small Businesses, Promoting SBDC Services and Clients’ success as well as Shop Small
(Newark, NJ – November 26, 2019) – Small Business Saturday events started early this week. The New Jersey Small Business Development Centers network, known as America’s SBDC New Jersey, launched its activities early in the week, prior to the Thanksgiving holiday and throughout the week through Saturday, November 30th.
Small Business Saturday is an initiative started in the midst of the last national recession. On the Saturday after Thanksgiving, encouraging people to Shop Small helps bring more holiday shopping to small businesses, the backbone of the economy. America’s SBDC New Jersey is supporting this initiative by visiting its small business clients, sponsoring tours of other small businesses in local downtown business districts, and collaborating with local and regional business and economic development partners.
On Monday, November 25, the New Jersey Small Business Development Center at New Jersey City University (serving Hudson County) celebrated the ‘Shop Small’ initiative by visiting with and interviewing a growing client of the Center’s. Accomplished film producer, Khoa Le of KVibe Productions, engaged with the Center’s consultants/staff, livestreaming information about SBDC services and the benefits of the small business assistance program via Instagram Monday morning, November 25.
On Tuesday, November 26, the NJSBDC at Stockton University kicked off a rally at Stockton’s Kramer Hall Instructional Site in Hammonton, NJ for Small Business Saturday. Stockton University, the NJSBDC at Stockton and its small business clients as well as the Hammonton Chamber of Commerce are promoting the initiative. The Stockton SBDC provided information about its services for other businesses wishing to tap its services and assistance.
The New Jersey Small Business Development Center at Ramapo College of New Jersey is conducting a visit to three of its clients’ business sites in Bergen County on Saturday, November 30th, in connection with Small Business Saturday; they include HomeWatch Caregivers in Teaneck, NJ; Amaral Motors in Lyndhurst, NJ, and Slattery Car Service in Waldwick, NJ. The tour of local businesses will be promoted on social media.
The New Jersey Small Business Development Center at Rutgers-New Brunswick will be represented at Small Business Saturday activities in Metuchen, NJ on November 30th, to meet and greet its small business clients as well as additional small businesses in the town informing them of SBDC’s services. The Center is collaborating with the Metuchen Downtown Alliance and the local Metuchen Chamber of Commerce. The SBDC serving Middlesex County will stop by Café Song on Pearl Street for a drop-in breakfast, brief introductions and meetings with small business participants.
“Visiting our centers’ clients and finding out new aspects about their business operations are important barometers of our services’ impact on their development and growth,” said Brenda Hopper, NJSBDC network chief executive officer and state director. “Promoting our clients services and products in connection with Small Business Saturday is a great way of celebrating their success.”
The Small Business Saturday initiative was started a few years ago to bolster and market the products and services of small businesses and mom-and-pop shops, especially at the holiday season. The SBA and NJ Small Business Development Centers network promote visits to local small businesses and Main Street shops.
“Throughout the year our network’s experts help support and assist small businesses in all 21 counties,” said Deborah Smarth, NJSBDC network chief operating officer and associate state director. “This kind of outreach and promotion of small business products and services on Small Business Saturday is a great way of showing our appreciation for their presence in the marketplace and their contributions to the economy.”
About America’s SBDC New Jersey
The New Jersey Small Business Development Centers network provides comprehensive services and programs for small business in New Jersey, helping businesses expand their operations, manage their growth, or start new ventures. Expert staff and practicing business consultants help small business owners and entrepreneurs to develop business plans, find financing, accounting and financial analysis, identify new markets, initiate marketing strategies, find procurement and international trade opportunities, learn green sustainability practices, commercialize technology and develop an E-commerce presence. This non-profit network, a federal-state-educational partnership, leverages funding from the Small Business Administration (SBA), the N.J. Business Action Center (through New Jersey Legislature), educational institutions that host the 12 centers as well as other private sponsorships and additional grants. The NJSBDC Headquarters, located at the Rutgers Business School in Newark, NJ, oversees the statewide network, which is part of a national network of SBDCs. Up to 1,000 centers and satellite offices serve small businesses across the country, generating jobs and economic development. Visit www.njsbdc.com.
