B C C SMALL BUSINESS CENTER C A P E F E A R SCORE Provides local, experienced counselors as advisers for new and existing businesses. Their professional staff will help you find solutions to your challenging business questions. They also have a wide variety of seminars and workshops to help small businesses become successful. BCC provides One-on-One counselors who can meet you at the College, your business or at the Southport-Oak Island Area Chamber of Commerce Brunswick Community College Small Business Center April Scott, Small Business Director 2054 Enterprise Drive, Leland Mailing: P.O. Box 30, Supply, NC 28462 scotta@brunswickcc.edu (910) 755-7306 http://www.brunswickcc.edu/continuingeducation/small-business-center/ SCORE is the nation s largest network of volunteer, expert business mentors, with more than 10,000 volunteers in 300 chapters. Local experts from our business community can help your business. They focus on making small business owners thrive. SCORE provides a team of local counselors who will meet you at your business or at the Southport-Oak Island Area Chamber of Commerce. If you need assistance on marketing they have an expert. Need advice about what it takes to get your business ready to sell they have an expert. SCORE is a valuable resource for our business community. SCORE also has an extensive web-based learning center, which provides free webinars on many topics related to operating a small business. The learning center offers the flexibility of accessing any number of the training courses and webinars at the convenience and pace of the business owner. SCORE Cape Fear Browning Plaza II, Suite 6 4010 Oleander Drive Wilmington, NC 28403 Phone: (910) 452-5395 https://www.score.org/
S O U T H P O R T - O A K I S L A N D A R E A CHAMBER OF COMMERCE The Chamber is an advocate for the business community It s what we do! A vibrant and active business centric non-profit membership organization, the Southport-Oak Island Area Chamber of Commerce mission is to create economic prosperity for the greater Southport-Oak Island area. Members have access to numerous programs to grow their business through networking, referrals, promotion, recognition and the benefits of connecting with other entrepreneurs. Through its partners BCC Small Business Center, SCORE Cape Fear and the UNCW SBTDC, the Chamber can provide new or existing small businesses the counseling support they need. Southport-Oak Island Area Chamber of Commerce Karen Sphar, Executive Vice President 4433 Long Beach Road, SE Southport, NC 28461 (910) 457-6964 www.southport-oakisland.com karen@southport-oakisland.com For a list of member businesses who can provide you with ongoing business counseling please visit our website directory under Services. U N C W SBTDC-SE REGION Small Business Technology Development Center at University of North Carolina Wilmington empowers business owners and entrepreneurs to make businesses in southeast NC more competitive and more profitable. Serving Brunswick, Columbus, Duplin, Onslow, Pender and New Hanover counties, SBTDC business counselors specialize in government procurement, international trade, and research commercialization. SBTDC has seminars and webinars that you can participate in from the comfort of your home or office. They also added a few larger, statewide events that may be of interest to their webinar offerings. A new service provided by the SBTDC is a UNCW Marketing Intern to perform a high-level snapshot of either social media or ecommerce/website presence and make suggestions for improvement. SBTDC Southeast Region @ UNCW Robin Bennett, Business Counselor (910) 962-3744 Gloria Monroe, Business Counselor (910) 962-7307 803 S. College Road, Suite A Wilmington, NC 28403-5977 www.sbtdc.org/uncw
U S S M A L L B U S I N E S S ADMINISTRATION N C M I L I T A R Y BUSINESS CENTER The U.S. Small Business Administration has delivered millions of loans, loan guarantees, contracts, counseling sessions and other forms of assistance to small businesses. Online Learning Center has a vast library of webinars and online courses on a variety of topics as they relate to starting or running your small business. SBA Don Spry District Office Wilmington, NC Phone: 910-398-0746 https://www.sba.gov/ https://www.sba.gov/learning-center The North Carolina Military Business Center (NCMBC) is a business development entity of the North Carolina Community College System, headquartered at Fayetteville Technical Community College (FTCC). The mission of the NCMBC is to leverage military and other federal business opportunities to expand the economy, grow jobs and improve quality of life in North Carolina. NC Military Business Center Paulanne Page Coastal Carolina Community College Melton Skills Bld Rm 107 444 Western Blvd Jacksonville, NC 28540 (910) 938-6785 pagep@ncmbc.us http://www.ncmbc.us/
C O A S T A L WOMEN'S VENTURES U N I T E D S T A T E S ECONOMIC CENSUS The YWCA Lower Cape Fear business development initiative, Coastal Women s Ventures, created in partnership with Carolina Small Business Development Fund. Coastal Women s Ventures is a collaborative program focused on creating and supporting small business opportunities for women entrepreneurs through business coaching, mentoring, small business education, and connecting participants to loan capital. Coastal Women's Ventures Acquinetta Beatty Director, Coastal Women's Ventures Email: abeatty@carolinasmallbusiness.org (910) 745-0597 http://www.ywcalowercapefear.org/site/c.dulqkaorlkkae/b.9537769/ k.7ea3/coastal_womens_ventures.htm Every five years, the U.S. Census Bureau collects extensive statistics about businesses that are essential to understanding the American economy. This official count, better known as the Economic Census, serves as the foundation for the measurement of U.S. businesses and their economic impact. As part of the Census Bureau s mission to provide timely information on the health of the U.S. economy, this business census serves as the most extensive collection of data related to business activity. Nearly 4 million businesses, large, medium and small, covering most industries and all geographic areas of the United States will receive surveys tailored to their primary business activity. U.S. Census Bureau 4600 Silver Hill Road Washington, DC 20233 https://www.census.gov/economiccensus
N C D E P A R T M E N T O F COMMERCE B R U N S W I C K C O U N T Y BUSINESS & INDUSTRY DEVELOPMENT The North Carolina Department of Commerce is the state's lead agency for economic, community and workforce development. Housed in Commerce are the Business Development, Employment Security, Film, International Trade, Labor & Economic Analysis, Rural Development, Science/Technology/Innovation, Small Business, Tourism and Workforce divisions. Small Business - Commerce serves as a one-stop resource for small businesses and start-up companies with big ideas. Many partners and allies support Commerce s work in assisting North Carolina s small businesses, but Commerce provides a centralized point of contact to assist them. Commerce reaches small business owners and those considering a start-up to offer services and support designed to ensure these businesses are afforded the best opportunity to Thrive in North Carolina. NC Commerce 301 North Wilmington Street Raleigh, North Carolina 27601-1058 (919) 814-4600 http://www.nccommerce.com/ http://www.nccommerce.com/smallbusiness Brunswick County Business & Industry Development is to encourage and promote the development of new business and industry, to assist in the retention of existing business and industry, and to promote the industrial development and general economic welfare of Brunswick County. Providing customized economic, demographic and community data; Promptly responding to your information requests; Building and site selection assistance; Expediting permitting and approval processes; Introducing you and your associates to key governmental, industry and community contacts; Construction and utility liaison; Infrastructure enhancement; Workforce identification, hiring and training; Housing and community acclimation; and Assistance with identifying incentives, grants and financial assistance. Brunswick County Business & Industry Development 75 Courthouse Drive (Building I) Bolivia, NC 28422 kevin.lackey@brunswickbid.com (910) 253-2237
N C R U R A L C E N T E R N O R T H C A R O L I N A WORKFORCE CENTER The NC Rural Center s mission is to develop, promote, and implement sound economic strategies to improve the quality of life of rural North Carolinians. We serve the state s 80 rural counties, with a special focus on individuals with low to moderate incomes and communities with limited resources. Advocacy Disaster Recovery Research Small Business Lending STEP for Small Business Boradband Innovation NC Rural Center 4021 Carya Drive Raleigh, North Carolina 27610 (919) 250-4314 www.ncruralcenter.org NC Works Online is a one stop shop for employers and employees. Find a Candidate Post and Opening Obtain Labor Market Information Recruitment Assistance NC Veteran Services NC Youth Services Unemployment Insurance Information Workforce Transition & Community Assistance NC Eligible Training Provider List Business Services: Transition Services Recruitment & Screening Training Pipeline Development NC Works Online www.ncworks.gov