Small Business Development in Austin

By Ann Friou

Many of us in AWC Austin count ourselves among the entrepreneurs that speaker Suzi Sosa discussed at the AWC luncheon Oct. 17—independent business owners implementing valuable services and socially responsible ideas through our companies.

Sosa, a recognized expert on entrepreneurship, is Director of the Dell Social Innovation Challenge and Senior Fellow in Social Entrepreneurship at the RGK Center for Philanthropy and Community Service.

If her motivating message for women entrepreneurs energized you to start a new business or to grow an existing one, the Texas State Small Business Development Center (SBDC) can help you. The SBDC—an Annual Partner in sponsoring AWC Austin—provides free, confidential management consultation to start-up and existing businesses, pairing them with appropriate resources in every phase of the business life cycle.

“Some businesses are expanding and need advice, others want to expand. Some are looking for funding, others aren’t sure whether they’re ready for angel investment,” according to Peg Richmond, Certified Business Adviser at SBDC, who spoke to AWC Oct. 17.

Richmond said the SBDC can help you:

• Develop a business plan to improve the likelihood of receiving funding

• Identify target customers and craft strategic marketing plans

• Improve financial management practices for improved cash flow and profitability

• Provide guidance through the loan application process

• Facilitate new product development, and more

“We provide counseling on any issue a business owner faces,” Richmond continued, including start-up assistance, business retention and expansion, funding assistance, technology and commercialization, community and rural development, market research and specialty programs, international trade, government contracting, and more.

“Rather than fishing for the client, we teach the client to fish, to execute their own plans,” Richmond said.

Surveys show that SBDC clients’ businesses perform better than the average Texas business, Richmond said. From 2009 to 2011—during the height of the recession—SBDC clients’ sales grew 24.7 percent as compared with sales growth of 5.6 percent for the average Texas business. Employment growth among SBDC clients’ businesses also exceeded the average business in Texas—8.2 percent versus 0.3 percent,
respectively.

“We’re building the Texas economy one business at a time,” Richmond said, “helping them to grow, to become more profitable, and to compete better in today’s global economy.”

To learn more about the Texas State SBDC, please visit www.austinsmallbusinessanswers.com.
Appointments with business advisers can be made by calling (512) 610-0996.