NEWSLETTER
Issue 2
·
November 2015
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The University of Mary Washington Center for Economic Development is partnering to enhance resource capacity for entrepreneurs. Center for Economic Development collaborations in 2015 yielded new resources
Inside This Issue
for export
Introduction
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Governor McAuliffe announces partnership with Virginia Public Universities
2
The UMW Small Business Development Center assists downtown Fredericksburg's “The Olde Towne Butcher”
3
EagleWorks Business Incubation Center client Achieve-it LLC hiring University of Mary Washington students
4
UMW Center for Economic Development honors woman entrepreneur of the year Debby Girvan of Flair Communications
5
Big Cloud Media looks to new markets working with UMW student teams
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UMW VOBER member Fred Wellman wins 2015 Veteran owned business of the Year Award
7
The 2015 VBIA Annual Conference in Charlottesville, VA
8
UMW Center for Economic Development partners with the Northern Neck Planning District Commission
9
New guides and expanded resources will be
REDCO partnering with UMW Center for Economic Development
10
available in 2016.
Our Partners
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trade, private investment, and a new and expanded Business Reference Guide. The Business Reference Guide relies on a simple taxonomy that helps business owners find valuable information quickly. Use these guides or refer them to your associates. They are free and can be found at http://economicdevelopment.umw.edu/centerfor-regional-initiatives/guide-downloads/ .
Again, thank you for taking the time to read our newsletter and for your continued relationship with the University of Mary Washington Center for Economic Development. Drop us a line with your suggestions and opportunities at engagement@umw.edu .
http://economicdevelopment.umw.edu/
Contact Us University of Mary Washington Center for Economic Development
1125 Jefferson Davis Highway Suite 400 Fredericksburg VA 22401 540-654-1096 engagement@umw.edu
Newsletter Editorial Staff: Mark Speirs mspeirs@umw.edu Heather Wheeler hwheeler@umw.edu
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UMW Center for Economic Development
Newsletter
Governor McAuliffe announces partnership with Virginia Public Universities University of Mary Washington Center for Economic Development partners with the Virginia International Trade Alliance (VITAL)
The UMW Center for Economic Development is proud to be a partner in the new Virginia International Trade Alliance (VITAL), announced by Governor Terry McAuliffe on July 15 in Richmond. VITAL will partner with Virginia’s public universities, industry associations, and the Virginia Chamber of Commerce to expand inter-
Governor Terry McAuliffe establishes the Virginia International Trade Alliance
national sales and bring export dollars into the commonwealth. Speaking about the announcement, Governor McAuliffe said, “International trade is key to creating private sector jobs and building a new Virginia economy that is less reliant on our federal government. We are committed to helping Virginia businesses succeed in the international marketplace.” The commonwealth exported more than $36 billion in manufactured goods and services in 2014, according to Virginia Secretary of Virginia Secretary of Commerce and Trade, Maurice Jones
Commerce and Trade Maurice Jones. "VITAL will exponentially accelerate Virginia companies’ engagement with the global economy, resulting in
stronger, more resilient businesses and more jobs for Virginians,” he said. As a partner to VITAL, the UMW Center for Economic Development will identify companies with international business as a corporate strategy and conduct international research to position those companies for global expansion. Goals for VITAL include: growing Virginia exports by $1.6 billion in five years, creating 14,000 trade supported jobs in five years, and increasing the number of companies enrolled in VEDP’s international trade programs to serve 390 companies per year. If you would like to be
involved please let us know at engagement@umw.edu. http://economicdevelopment.umw.edu/
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UMW Center for Economic Development
Newsletter
The UMW SBDC assists “The Olde Towne Butcher” in downtown Fredericksburg The decision to quit his job as meat manager at Costco and start his own business was made easier for Lee Russell due to the hassle of his daily commute on Rt. 95. By March of 2009 he decided, even though the economy was still sputtering from the recession, that it was time to start out on his own. His vision was to open a butcher shop in downtown Fredericksburg. Being in the meat cutting business for 30 years, Lee had as much butchering experience as anyone and was confident in his ability to run the meat selection, purchasing, and cutting areas of the store. However, for help with the business side, he contacted the SBDC at the University of Mary Washington in Fredericksburg where he was introduced to Susan Ball, one of the lead consultants there. Susan, a busi-
Current employees Jenalee Schenk, Sky Maeshiro, and Allan Reimann, with Lee Russell at the meat counter
ness consultant with the SBDC for 8 years, sat down with Lee to discuss his goals and vision. She worked with Lee to forecast cash flows, prepare his business plan, put together a
SBDC YOUR BUSINESS RESOURCE FOR CONSULTING, TRAINING, AND RESEARCH.
loan package, and layout an outline for his exit strategy. Lee sold his business this spring after operating the store for 6 years. During this time, he expanded his store space from 950 to 2150 sq. ft. and increased the number of employees from one to fifteen. Twelve of his
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ince 1992, the University of Mary Washington Small Business Development Center (UMWSBDC) has provided assistance to the small business community via management training, industrial and demographic research, and confidential one-on-one consulting with a focus on capital access and management planning. For further information , please access the link below.
http://sbdc-umw.com
http://economicdevelopment.umw.edu/
hires are UMW students who were able to work full time during the summer and then change to part time during the school months. “Susan’s experience was really essential in configuring our business plan in order to obtain our business loan.” Lee said, “It was important to have someone with the business experience, which was what we were lacking.”
UMW Center for Economic Development
Newsletter
Focus on Achieve-it LLC Hiring UMW students
UMW Business Incubation Center Achieve-it, LLC owners Trudy and John McCrea have been EagleWorks clients since May of 2014. Achieve-it is an IT services firm with many federal, civilian, private, and state clients that provides permanent staff and project recruiting for IT, Accounting & Finance, Procurement, and IT Sales positions. John believes the decision to move from northern Virginia to the EagleWorks facility was a great choice, “EagleWorks is responsible for our relocation to Fredericks-
Achieve-it owner John McCrea.
burg. With a great locale, strong amenities such as access to profes-
sional networks, office facilities, consulting services, peerengagement opportunities, favorable fee options, a helpful and supportive staff, and other business resources; it was a great fit for us.”
John McCrea with UMW student intern James Rives in their EagleWorks office.
In addition to the location and amenities, Achieve-it has found the proximity of the UMW student body to be a great staffing resource for quality part-time interns. One of these is Walter McMichael, a UMW 2015 graduate. Walter began at Achieve-it as a part time intern during his junior year but after graduation was hired
Work. Meet. Grow
as a full time employee. As far as other advantages John states, “One of the big unexpected bonuses of having this location is
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he University of Mary Washington’s Center for Economic Development offers an incubation program that extends business development services to local start-up and early-stage companies looking to grow their enterprises. Our incubation programming supports entrepreneurs through our access to professional networks, office facilities, consulting services, peer engagement opportunities, and other business resources. For further information , please access the link below.
www.umweagleworks.org
being around so many people who have such a diverse knowledge base concerning business challenges. Networking in this environment I was encouraged by staff to bid on state contracts, which was something I hadn’t thought about, but is now a successful, growing segment of our business. This was a direct result of our EagleWorks location.”
http://economicdevelopment.umw.edu/
UMW Center for Economic Development
Newsletter
Debby Girvan recognized as CED Woman Entrepreneur of the Year The University of Mary Washington’s Center for Economic Development recognizes women owned small business owners for their community and business achievements through the 2015 Meta R. Braymer Woman Entrepreneur of the Year Award. The award is named after Meta R. Braymer, former vice president for economic development and regional engagement at the University of Mary Washington. Brian Baker, Executive Director for Economic Development, presented the award during a Veteran Owned Business Executive Roundtable (VOBER) event on May 28. Congressman Rob Wittman was the keynote speaker. Award recipients were selected from numerous contributors at the Center for Economic Development on the basis of commitment to their enterprise, industry leadership, proven business success, and dedication to community. Debby Girvan, owner of Flair Communication, received the Meta R. Braymer Woman Entrepreneur of the Year Award for her involvement in the small business community. Ms. Girvan was applauded for pro-bono con-
Debby Girvan, winner of the Meta R. Braymer Woman Entrepreneur of the Year Award
tributions to over 60 clients at the University of Mary Washington Small Business Development Center. Debby was able to assist clients in social media strategies, e-marketing, as well as other technical areas of business development. Over the years Debby has been active in the Fredericksburg community serving on the Fredericksburg City Council as well as on the Board of Directors for the Fredericksburg Area Youth Development Foundation. The Woman Entrepreneur of the Year Award is a tribute to Debby’s commitment to business development and to the community where she resides and serves. She is now an automatic nominee to state level recognition at year’s end. http://economicdevelopment.umw.edu/
UMW Center for Economic Development
Newsletter
Big Cloud Media looks to new markets UMW student team studies historical e-commerce data to identify strong market potential for underserved industries For Big Cloud Media budgeting time for crucial marketing projects and deciding which marketing areas are the best to spend time on can be exceptionally challenging. When owner Koji Flowers presented this issue to the Center for Economic Development, they suggested a solution that has proven successful with other local businesses, using student teams from Chris Garcia’s Research Methods class to collect the data and perform the analysis as part of their class project. For the last several semesters students in this class have been given the opportunity to work with local businesses doing statistical analysis to support strategic planning, marketing, and other business decisions. Using data from the Bureau of Economic Analysis, the project team created a comprehensive matrix of e-commerce and traditional sales for the entire list of industries represented, from mining and transportation to paper manufacturing and eduFrom left to right: UMW Professor Chris Garcia, Big Cloud Media Owner cational services. From this list they performed various statistical calculations and Koji Flowers, and Eagleworks Director Kelsey Whitman observe the e-commerce were able to pull a target group for Koji based on which industries in Virginia presentation. showed the highest internet sales growth since 2009 but still have low saturation
levels. After the presentation and submittal of the report, Koji stated “The data and analysis as well as the conclusions in the report are really going to save me a lot of leg work. Having the numbers for every industry really gives me confidence that I will be budgeting my marketing time in the most efficient
Regional Initiatives COLLABORATE. PROMOTE. ADVANCE
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he Office of Regional Initiatives is the Center for Economic Developments outreach section with responsibilities including engagement, communication, and research. In addition the Office of Regional Initiatives works with faculty and students in providing research and analysis for local business, NGO’s, and economic development agencies. For further information , please contact Mark Speirs at engagement @umw.edu or access the link below.
way possible. The secondary benefit will be having hard data and analytics to produce for potential clients on how their market is changing and how they need to adapt to these changes.”
Students from UMW Professor Chris Garcia’s Research Methods class give their presentation of market penetration selection for e-commerce industries.
economicdevelopment.umw.edu/center-forregional-initiatives/ http://economicdevelopment.umw.edu/
UMW Center for Economic Development
Newsletter
Fred Wellman of ScoutComms Benefit Corporation wins 2015 Veteran Owned Business of the Year Award The University of Mary Washington Center for Economic Development began hosting it’s first peer advisory group on July 18th, 2013 with the formation of the Veteran Owned Small Business Executive Roundtable (VOBER). The University of Mary Washington’s Center for Economic Development recognizes veteran owned small business owners for their community and business achievements through the Veteran Owned Business of the Year Award. Frederick Wellman, owner of ScoutComms Benefit Corporation, received this year’s award. Mr. Wellman is a member of the VOBER and the Yellow Ribbon Committee that founded an endowment to support Veterans at the University of Mary Washington. Brian Baker, Executive Director for Economic Development, presented the awards during a Veteran Owned Business Executive Frederick Wellman, winner of the Veteran Owned Business of the Year award
Roundtable (VOBER) event on May 28. Congressman Rob Wittman was the keynote speak-
er. Award recipients were selected from numerous contributors at the Center for Economic Development on the basis of commitment to their enterprise, industry leadership, proven business success, and dedication to community. The award is a tribute Congressman Rob Wittman
to Mr. Wellman’s commitment
to business development and to the community where he resides and serves. He is now an automatic nominees to state level recognition at year’s end.
http://economicdevelopment.umw.edu/
VOBER SERVING COUNTRY. GROWING THE ECONOMY.
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usiness owners tend to share common challenges. A peer advisory group engages business owners with like interest for purposes of learning new approaches and solutions to business problems and challenges. For further information, or for an application to join, please access the link below. http://economicdevelopment.umw.edu/veter an-owned-small-business-assistance/
UMW Center for Economic Development
Newsletter
The VBIA 2015 Annual Conference Charlottesville, VA October 19-20 The Virginia Business Incubation Association 13th Annual Conference was held in Charlottesville this year. The focus of this year’s conference was to prepare practitioners and stakeholders to position Virginia small business for growth in international markets. Keynote speaker Ellen Meinhart of the Virginia Economic Development Partnership (VEDP) began the conference with an overview of VEDP programs available to assist Virginia business in exporting. She shared that “95% of demand is outside of U.S. borders but only 2% of domestic companies export…this presents great opportunities for Virginia business”. Also speaking the first day was Aaron Miller of George Mason University who discussed the ‘Four Keys to Readiness’ in International Markets. Chris Engel (MWC ’92), B.A. Geography, and Director of Economic Development in Charlottesville, VA was a keynote on day 2. He advocated for “creating diverse economic culAaron Miller from George Mason University
tures by avoiding silos and One Stop – One Size fits all solutions”. Mike Abbott of Cambrian Design and Development shared that “Incubation clients can be better served by a lean approach that helps them quickly identify the value that their companies bring to the market.”
Keith Segerson, an international business expert at P3 Innovation Strategies cited guidance for Virginia business. He noted that “Companies need to focus on Global Business Parity…this will result in better cultural, technological, and economic impacts”. In addition to the speakers an incubation program question and answer session was led by a panel of subject matter experts. Senator Warner sent Sam Louis Taylor to share his unequivocal support for startup entrepreneurs and initiatives focused on access to capital.
The Virginia Business
Incubation Association is an education and networking association for professionals who support entrepreneurship, small business development, and the advancement of incubation throughout the Commonwealth, and is
Congratulations to our 2015 Donna Noble Award Recipient:
SecureTech 360, LLC Redefining Cybersecurity. One client at a time.
hosted at the University of Mary Washington Center for Economic Development. Learn more about the
asso-
ciation at www.vbia.org.
Ellen Meinhart of VEDP addresses the crowd http://economicdevelopment.umw.edu/
Bernie Niemeier of Virginia Business Magazine presents the Donna Noble Award honoring SecureTech360, LLC to Debbie Dever.
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UMW Center for Economic Development
Newsletter
UMW Center for Economic Development partnering with Northern Neck Planning District Commission
The U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development and the Northern Neck Planning District Commission (NNPDC) recently announced that two grants for programs benefitting small-business development have been awarded to the NNPDC. The Northern Neck Planning District Commission's business incubation initiative, implemented with the assistance of the University of Mary Washington EagleWorks Business Incubation Program, the University of Mary Washington Small Business Development Center (UMW-SBDC) in Warsaw, and MACorp, a faith-based community development corporation in Heathsville, has been awarded $50,000 for continuation of a training-based business incubation site. The location will offer private office space, shared access on a weekly, or daily basis, high-speed internet, and meeting and workshop facilities for small businesses in start-up mode, or seeking to expand. In addition, a grant for $70,174 has been awarded to the NNPDC to establish the Northern Neck Loan Program, a revolving loan program focused on small businesses in the area. To apply for the Northern Neck Loan Program, applicants must provide a business plan, references, balance sheets, personal financial statements, and recent tax returns. If an applicants loan request is approved, loan recipients will be required to receive ongoing business counseling through the UMW-SBDC in Warsaw. “I’m very excited about the awards of the two USDA grants and the UMW-SBDC conJoy Corprew, Director UMW SBDC, Warsaw, VA
tinuing the partnership with the Northern Neck Planning District Commission.” said UMW SBDC Warsaw director Joy Corprew. “These grants will allow the NNPDC Incubator program to continue to offer small businesses office space and access to necessary training and workshops and the award to the Northern Neck Loan program will assist pre-venture and existing businesses the opportunity to become sustainable and profitable.”
http://economicdevelopment.umw.edu/
UMW Center for Economic Development
Newsletter
REDCO partnering with UMW Center for Economic Development on business program
The UMW Center for Economic Development is partnering with the Rappahannock Economic Development Corporation (REDCO) to provide the CEO+ Program for REDCO 504 loan recipients. Joe DiStefano, REDCO President,
stated at their annual meeting, “The CEO+ Program will bring value to the overall business and financial manage-
ment and planning process for REDCO’s small business clients.” The CEO+ Program is a collection of training, business intelligence, and financial counseling designed to strengthen the capabilities of small business owners. 504 loan recipients will have access to specialized management training, industry reports, benchmark studies, and financial management assistance. A pilot of the program will begin in October with 10 clients. Brian Baker, Executive Director for Economic Development at
UMW stated, “This is a scaled solution with high value data and service that can be deployed quickly to business owners who need to make critical management decisions.” A full launch of the program is planned for January 2016. REDCO is a licensed non-profit, Certified Development Company that offers long-term fixed-rate financing for small business in Virginia through the SBA 504 Loan Program. The University of Mary Washington Center for Economic Development collaborates with business, government, education, and private parties to promote personal, professional and economic growth by advancing knowledge through entrepreneurship, small business development, innovation and competitiveness, research and analysis, and outreach and engagement. UMW programs that will support the partnership include the Small Business Development Center, the
Brian Baker of UMW discusses financial benchmark analysis with Koji Flowers,
EagleWorks Business Incubation Center, and the Office of Regional Initiatives. You can find more information about the UMW Center for Economic Development at economicdevelopment.umw.edu/ and REDCO-504 at www.redco504.org .
http://economicdevelopment.umw.edu/
OUR PARTNERS
SUNTRUST Bank - Executive Partner Fredericksburg VA Main Street Inc. Spotsylvania Department of Economic Development Virginia Business Incubation Association Compton & Duling - Attorneys At Law Employ-An-Eagle The Town of Kilmarnock Rappahannock Economic Development Corporation Caroline County Department of Economic Development FRANNET Franchise Opportunities Stafford County Flair Communication King George County Small Business Administration George Mason University Procurement Technical Assistance Program SonaBank Essex County City of Fredericksburg Economic Development Colonial Beach, Virginia Fredericksburg Regional Chamber of Commerce Virginia Economic Development Partnership Westmoreland County Fredericksburg Regional Alliance King and Queen County Northumberland County Northern Neck Planning District Commission Virginia SBDC at the University of Mary Washington County of Lancaster Richmond County Middle Peninsula Planning District Commission Greater Richmond Chamber of Commerce Middlesex County Virginia Department of Small Business and Buyer Diversity King William County
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For information on becoming an Executive Partner please click here