Events — Small Business

Your [Small] Business Matters

April 10, 2012 By Adam Ney Leave a Comment

Friday, June 15, 2012
Marriott Hartford Downtown, 200 Columbus Blvd., Hartford, CT
Networking breakfast: 8 am
Program: 8:30 to 11 am

Connecticut’s history is rich with successful entrepreneurs. But whether you’re going it alone, or working with cofounders, new hires, or investors, every entrepreneur needs the right tools to anticipate and avoid the pitfalls that can make or break your business. Don’t get blindsided on your entrepreneurial journey.

Hear top experts and business leaders discuss: [Read more...]

Connecticut Get Your Business Online Workshops Slated For Later This Month

March 12, 2012 By Adam Ney Leave a Comment

Google to hold free events hosted by the Connecticut Small Business Development Center.

Connecticut Get Your Business Online is the fastest, easiest way to create an online presence for your business. Attend a free Get Your Business Online event and you’ll find everything you need to be successful, including individual help from web professionals. Hands on workshops for website building are first come, first serve. [Read more...]

NPR Small Business Project Will Stop In New London

March 3, 2012 By Adam Ney Leave a Comment

CT’s National Public Radio outlet, WNPR, is hosting a small business breakfast on Friday, March 23, during the Chamber of Commerce of Eastern Connecticut’s Business Forum at the Garde Arts Center in New London. The program’s major sponsor is Webster Bank.

Networking begins at 7:30 a.m., and a live remote broadcast of the WNPR program “Where We Live” will start at 9 a.m. The radio program will feature WNPR News Director John Dankosky, with guest panelists and award-winning business reporter Harriet Jones. [Read more...]

#1 Reason Why You Should Go to Connecticut Business Day

January 27, 2012 By Adam Ney 1 Comment

As a small business owner or manager, you know that time is money. That your business needs you on site. (And working your smart phone helps get even more things done these days.)

But sometimes you just have to get something done face-to-face. When showing up makes all the difference.

That’s why Connecticut Business Day on Wednesday, Feb. 29 is so important.

State leaders talk a lot about small businesses, but many don’t really know that much about what makes your business tick, or what’s holding it back.

From taxes to costs to new rules and regulations, decisions are being made at the Capitol that impact your success. [Read more...]

Startup Weekend Storrs

January 4, 2012 By Adam Ney Leave a Comment

January 27-29, 2012, UConn, Storrs, CT

Startup Weekend Storrs is an intense 54 hour event which focuses on building a web or mobile application which could form the basis of a credible business over the course of a weekend. The weekend brings together people with different skillsets – primarily software developers, graphics designers and business people – to build applications and develop a commercial case around them.

For the latest about Startup Weekend Storrs, follow us on Twitter @swstorrs (http://www.twitter.com/swstorrs), or look for the hashtag #swstorrs. For specific questions, contact the organizing team at storrs@startupweekend.org.

Small Businesses Apply for New State Help

December 19, 2011 By Adam Ney Leave a Comment

Help is on the way for small businesses in Connecticut. The Connecticut Department of Economic and Community Development (DECD) has been touring the state for the last several months to promote all of the various small business programs the state has initiated through the special legislative session held this past October. The Jobs Session produced legislation geared to helping small business grow and create jobs here in Connecticut.

Peter Lent, Assistant Executive Director at DECD gives an update on the Reinventing CT Workshops held to date.

The DECD Reinventing Connecticut Workshops have been well attended and have given hope to the Connecticut small business community. This excitement was clear when DECD’s commissioner, Catherine Smith, said in an AP press report last Friday that her office had received 95 applications for the state’s new small business assistance program and that she expects more will be filed. [Read more...]

Pledge Your Support for Small Business Saturday®

November 23, 2011 By Adam Ney Leave a Comment

Initiated by American Express and being held this year on November 26, the 2nd annual Small Business Saturday® is a day dedicated to supporting small businesses on one of the busiest shopping weekends of the year.

The effort is aimed at supporting and celebrating the value that small businesses bring to our communities and the economy. The campaign is asking millions of people to Shop Small^sm at their favorite local stores and help fuel the economy. When we all shop small, it will be huge.

To find out more and to take the Pledge to shop small, visit the Small Business Saturday® web site.

State Has New Help for Small Businesses

November 9, 2011 By Adam Ney Leave a Comment

This morning I had the pleasure of attending the first of 15 Reinventing Connecticut outreach meetings hosted by the Connecticut Department of Economic and Community Development (DECD). These workshops are designed to educate the Connecticut small business community about the new programs available to them as a result of the new jobs bill that was passed during the special legislative session held last month.

George Thomson from CBIA member Filomeno & Company.

Attendees were welcomed by DECD Commissioner Catherine Smith and then got a great overview from Deputy Commissioner Ronald Angelo on the different financing and grant options available to Connecticut-based small businesses which in turn should help them grow and creat jobs. Attendees also got to hear about some of the new funds that are availavle to train workers. [Read more...]

DECD to Hold Reinventing Connecticut Small Business Workshops

November 7, 2011 By Adam Ney 1 Comment

Last month’s special session on jobs resulted in a comprehensive set of pro-business measures being adopted that will help businesses—most notably small businesses—prosper and grow.

The Connecticut Department of Economic and Community Development (DECD) invites you to learn firsthand how this new legislation can positively affect your business by attending one of the meetings listed below. Additional dates, times and locations are being added, so be sure to check www.decd.org for updates. DECD will also be hosting webinars for those that cannot participate in person.

With $180 million in new funding specifically targeted to small business, these new initiatives are a key piece of the state’s strategy to accelerate its economic recovery and reinvent Connecticut. These sessions are a great opportunity to learn about the new programs aimed at assisting businesses and will also afford you the opportunity to meet one-on-one with economic development representatives to access fast-track assistance from the state. [Read more...]

Small Businesses Lead the Way in Green Technology Innovation

October 21, 2011 By Adam Ney Leave a Comment

When it comes to green technology innovation, U.S. small businesses are leading the way according to a report released yesterday by the SBA Office of Advocacy. The report titled Analysis of Small Business Innovation in Green Technologies was released by Chief Counsel Winslow Sargeant at the World Green Energy Symposium in Philadelphia. The study was designed to highlight differences in the patent activity of small and large firms in green technologies and industries.

“Small businesses are leading the way in green technology innovation as they have with innovation over all,” said Sargeant. “It is important that government help foster innovation which leads to commercialization. At Advocacy, we support this process by helping to reduce the regulatory burden on small business.”

The report found that while small firms account for about 8 percent of all U.S. patents, they account for 14 percent of green technology patents. Small firms account for more than 32 percent of the patents in both smart grids and solar energy, and 15 percent of patents in batteries and fuel cells. Also eighty percent of the “prolific” inventors—those with five or more recent green patents with a citation index of 1 or more—from small green technology firms had previously worked at large companies, or large government or university labs. [Read more...]