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Recap of the 2017 Small Business Matters Entrepreneurship Summit
The mission of the Urban League Movement is to enable African Americans and other underserved urban residents to secure economic self-reliance, parity, power and civil rights. Within that mission, one of our goals is for every American to have access to jobs with a living wage and good benefits. One of the ways we address this goal is through the National Urban League’s Signature program, the Entrepreneurship Center Program (ECP). It is geared towards the skill development of small business owners via one on one counseling, group training, mentorship, networking and leadership development to provide job creation and economic stability to communities. 13 Centers across the country provide entrepreneurs with the necessary tools and education to start or grow their businesses.
The premier event for the ECP is the Small Business Matters Entrepreneurship Summit. On Saturday, July 29th at the Hyatt Regency St. Louis at the Arch, the National Urban League’s Entrepreneurship & Business Development team hosted its’ 7th Annual Small Business Matters Entrepreneurship Summit presented by Wells Fargo. The goal of the Summit is to provide small business owners the opportunity to attend workshops, and to learn from and network with industry leaders and successful entrepreneurs all across the country. The overarching themes of the Summit were Money, Management and Marketing segmented in tracks by stage of business- Start-up (0-2 years in business), Growth (2-5 years in business) and Accelerated (5+ years in business).
The day opened with a Networking Breakfast hosted by Jodi Brockington, CEO of Niara Consulting, where attendees heard Opening Remarks from Stephanie DeVane, VP of Entrepreneurship and Business Development for the National Urban League, Cy Richardson, SVP of Economics and Housing for the National Urban League, Denise Miles, SVP/Manager- Strategic Partnerships for Wells Fargo, Veta Jeffery, Manager- Community Economic Partnerships for the Missouri Dept. of Economic Development, and Chris Garcia, Acting National Director for the Minority Business Development Agency.
The morning featured the Money and Management workshops including: Millionaire Moves: Seven Principles of Entrepreneurship sponsored by AARP, Taking Control of Your Credit Profile for Business Success sponsored by Wells Fargo, Learn How to Turn Your Company into a Million Dollar Business presented by the Heartland Black Chamber of St. Louis and US Black Chambers, Inc., Small Business Matters: It’s an Original Idea, but is it a Business? presented by Black Enterprise, Supplier Training & Empowerment Program sponsored by Coca-Cola, and Are You Ready to Become a Corporate Supplier? The Empowerment Area was also open and ready for networking. This was a place where business owners met with private and public sector companies to learn about opportunities and resources that could grow their business.
The midpoint of the day was highlighted by the Luncheon and Pitch Contest sponsored by the Coca-Cola Company. Caron Washington, Manager of Entrepreneurship and Business Development kicked off the luncheon with brief remarks, followed by Marc H. Morial, President & CEO of the National Urban League. Lori Billingsley, Vice President, Community Relations for the Coca-Cola Company, introduced the Keynote speaker, Linda Spradley Dunn.
J. Brandon Neal demonstrated Wells Fargo’s commitment to Small Business with a short video which set the stage for the Pitch Contest, hosted by Jodi Brockington. The judges of the contest were Linda Brigham (Senior Manager, Public Affairs and Communications, The Coca-Cola Company), J. Brandon Neal (Senior Counsel, Capital Markets Banking, Wells Fargo & Company and National Urban League Trustee), Daynise Joseph (Community Impact Manager, Google Fiber), Timothy J. Moore (Founder & CEO, T. Moore Media), and Keon Davis (Owner, Smooth N Groove and 2015 Small Business Matters Pitch Overall Winner).
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The Participants
Lachelle Bender Gimmeahand Inc
Donald Broussard Urban Education and Debate Connections LLC
Michelle Dalzon The Black-Owned Market (theBOM)
Jennifer Lyle Lush Yummies Pie Company
Danielle Mitchell Mitchell Marketing Group
Shanice Ruffin Elated Harmonies Massage, LLC.
Jasmine Shells Five to Nine
Kiley Summers SpenDebt, LLC
Jimmy Prude Jimmy's Vegan Cookies
The Winners
1-Jimmy Prude: Jimmy’s Vegan Cookies-TOP PITCH OVERALL- $5,000
2-Shanice Ruffin: Elated Harmonies Massage, LLC. - TOP PITCH 2+YEARS- $2,500
3-Kiley Summers: Pendent, LLC. - TOP PITCH FOR START-UP- $2,500
The day concluded with the afternoon Marketing workshops which were Social Media Boot camp: Turning Likes To Leads, Grow Your Business Online sponsored by Google, and A Conversation: Turning Your Pitch into Profits. Another exciting component of the Summit this year, was the addition of the Shark Tank Casting Call. Over 100 entrepreneurs were pre-selected to pitch their business to producers for an opportunity to appear on Shark Tank. Save the date for the 2018 Small Business Matters Summit which will be held in Columbus, Ohio on Saturday August 4th.
