[ad_1]
by Danny Monahan
The Small Business Administration and VermontBiz held its annual small business awards ceremony June 15 at the ZenBarn in Waterbury, Vt.
The event recognized and celebrated the outstanding contributions of Vermont’s entrepreneurs over the past year.
For more than 20 years, the SBA Vermont District Office and VermontBiz have partnered annually to recognize individuals and businesses throughout the state that have increased sales, grown employment and made significant contributions to their communities.
This year, the awards ceremony featured eights awards categories including Small Business Persons of the Year, Exporter of the Year, Family-Owned Business of the Year, Minority-Owned Business of the Year, Microenterprise of the Year, Woman-Owned Small Business of Veteran-Owned Business of the Year and Young Entrepreneur of the Year.
More than 100 friends, family, community leaders, lenders and entrepreneurs attended the ceremony to celebrate the evening with the award winners.
Notable guest speakers were Mike Vlacich, SBA New England Regional Administrator, and Lindsay Kurrle, Vermont Secretary of Commerce and Community Development, and representatives from Vermont’s Congressional Delegation.
Vlacich and Kurrle stressed the importance of small businesses have on the Vermont economy, such as driving economic growth in communities, providing local tax revenue, supporting local charities, and fueling innovation. Also how the citizens of Vermont rely on small business for their livelihood and the role it plays in their daily lives.
Since the 1960s the SBA has been recognizing the critical contributions of Vermont’s small business owners and held an award ceremony to highlighting the impact of outstanding entrepreneurs and small business owners.
Small businesses drive the American economy
Small Business Week is an annual celebration of the small businesses and innovative startups driving the American economy. The nation’s 33 million small businesses create two-thirds of net new jobs, employ nearly half the workforce, produce more than 40% of economic output and deliver the products and services Americans depend on every day to make the world a better place.
Photo: Isabella Casillas Guzman. Courtesy photo.
Whether a business is starting out, scaling up or recovering from the unprecedented hardships caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the SBA is here to support the American Dream of business ownership. The SBA is providing the right tools at the right time so every entrepreneur can be a part of the great American recovery.
Over the past two years, the SBA played a crucial role in implementing President Biden’s Investing in America agenda and helping small businesses survive and build resilience. The economy created more than 12 million new jobs, meaning every job lost during the pandemic has been recovered. A record-breaking 10.5 million optimistic entrepreneurs applied to start new businesses under the Biden-Harris administration. Millions of Americans are stepping up and are ready to seize the promise of a future made by historic investments in infrastructure, a clean energy economy, Made in America manufacturing and innovation, and recovery of Main Streets.
As experienced during the pandemic, an ability to pivot and adapt is key to small-business resilience. As the market changes, businesses must continually identify and respond to their customers’ wants, employees’ needs and vendors’ performance capacities. The SBA is no different. We modernized how we work with small-business customers, distribution networks of lenders and advisers, and stakeholders so the SBA can provide the tools to strengthen entrepreneurship across the nation. The agency is proud to be the voice of the nation’s small businesses and shape the policies and programs critical to small-business success and resilience.
The SBA powers the American Dream by connecting entrepreneurs to funding, counseling and training, and revenue opportunities with government contracts and strategies for expanding to emerging digital and global markets. The SBA ensures resilience by providing disaster relief not just to impacted small businesses but also employees and customers with individual disaster assistance.
The SBA is committed to meeting small businesses, startups and disaster survivors where they are — and everywhere they are. The agency continues to work with its 68 district offices and hundreds of disaster field team members, more than 1,800 lending partners, over 300 investment companies, nearly 400 growth accelerators and more than 1,400 small business centers, which include the Small Business Development Centers, Women’s Business Centers, Veterans Business Outreach Centers, SCORE chapters and Community Navigators to ensure the resources entrepreneurs need are always in reach.
The nation is thankful for all small businesses do for employees, communities and America. Together, America is rebuilding the economy, bringing new ideas and talent into the market and fostering innovation that will lead to a brighter, more prosperous future for all.
Isabella Casillas Guzman is administrator of the U.S. Small Business Administration.
Recognizing small-business achievements
Every year the Small Business Administration recognizes the achievements of the nation’s 33 million small businesses and innovative startups. It is a time to highlight the impact of outstanding entrepreneurs, small-business owners and others who support entrepreneurship across the country.
Photo: Mike Vlacich. Courtesy photo.
Starting a business is a hallmark of the American Dream. This is the perfect time for new business starts. Over the past two years, a record-breaking 10.5 million Americans and 332,000 New Englanders applied to start businesses.
The businesses we are recognizing this year are well-established, with a long record of success. They not only contribute greatly to their local communities, they help drive the national economy as a whole. Small businesses like these are the reason we emerged from the pandemic stronger, and they are leading the way for new businesses.
I am especially proud of the achievements of this year’s Vermont Small Business Week Award winners. These business owners demonstrate the hard work, drive and determination of entrepreneurs across the Green Mountain State and the nation. They have proven their staying power. They are our job creators and give back to their communities. Most importantly, they inspire others to strike out on their own and start businesses as well.
These entrepreneurs have faced uncertainty, disruptions and hardships on an unprecedented level. Yet, they have overcome these challenges and achieved hard-won successes, innovating and creating to find new ways to serve customers, support workers and sustain our communities.
I am happy to recognize these small business giants and their impact on our economy and our communities. Congratulations to the SBA Vermont Small Business Award winners!
Mike Vlacich is New England regional administrator at the U.S. Small Business Administration.
[ad_2]
Source link