Administrator Linda McMahon, head of the U.S. Small Business Administration, announced on March 16th, 2017, this year’s Small Business Person of the Year winners from the 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

“It is my honor and distinct pleasure to announce the 54 winners from across the U.S. and its territories,” McMahon said. “These small business owners define entrepreneurial spirit and best represent the 28 million small businesses that are the backbone and economic engine for today’s economy. I look forward to welcoming the winners to Washington next month when they are officially honored for their achievements.”

The Guam winner is Guam SBDC client Derrick Muna Quinata, CEO/Dealer Principal of Monster Auto Corp. (dba Guam Autospot) in Hagatna, Guam. Guam Autospot was also selected by SBA as a finalist for the “National Small Business Person of the Year” award. Guam Autospot will join the other finalists on Monday, May 1st, for an awards luncheon where SBA Administrator Linda McMahaon will announce the America’s “Small Business Person of the Year” for 2017.  (more…)

Abram’s Bed LLC, doing business as The Safety Sleeper™, has been named Small Business Exporter of the Year by the U.S. Small Business Administration. The Pittsburgh-based company will be officially recognized during National Small Business Week, an annual event honoring the accomplishments and contributions of the best small businesses in the nation.

The award will be presented by SBA Administrator Linda McMahon on May 1, during a luncheon held at the U.S. Institute of Peace, in Washington, D.C. Rose Morris, Abram’s Bed LLC’s president and inventor of The Safety Sleeper™, will receive the award on behalf of her company.

A mother of three, Morris struggled with finding solutions to protect her middle son Abram, who is on the autism spectrum, as he faced nights of fitful and erratic sleep. Her determination to help her then toddler-aged son lead a healthy life was the inspiration to invent The Safety Sleeper™, a lightweight tent-like structure that is placed on top of the bed, and includes padding and an air mattress.

“It’s overwhelming to learn you just won the whole enchilada for the entire country. I thought it was a mistake and kept wondering how I could have won,” said Morris.  (more…)

Administrator Linda McMahon, the head of the U.S. Small Business Administration, has selected the Ohio Small Business Development Center at The Hamilton Mill as the National SBDC of the Year. The Ohio-based SBDC competed against nearly 1,000 SBDCs nationwide. Center Director David Riggs and his team at The Hamilton Mill SBDC will attend an awards ceremony in Washington, D.C. on April 30 – May 1, as part of the 2017 National Small Business Week ceremony.

The announcement came on National SBDC Day, March 22, 2017, which is dedicated to the nation’s largest business assistance network. Since 1980, America’s SBDCs have helped aspiring and emerging small business owners achieve the American dream of entrepreneurship.

“Our SBDCs are key to small business success,” said SBA’s Columbus District Director Ricardo Garcia. “Through them, Ohio’s 900,000 small businesses are able to grow, leading a strong, local economy.”

Ohio’s SBDCs are funded in partnership with the SBA, the Ohio Development Services Agency, higher education institutions and private donations. With 26 SBDCs in Ohio, entrepreneurs have easy access to no-cost business training and consulting to help their small businesses grow.  (more…)

America’s SBDC is excited to announce that the Ohio SBDC at The Hamilton Mill in Hamilton, Ohio and three SBDC clients from around the country will be acknowledged and awarded during this year’s National Small Business Week. National Small Business Week honors America’s 28 million small businesses and their entrepreneurial, innovative and resilient spirit that serves as the backbone of the American economy. (more…)

Success Story: Connecticut

From an early age, Brian Cooper of Pawcatuck, Connecticut, was drawn to woodworking. In high school, he took the maximum number of trade classes possible, and during that time he built a Grandfather’s Clock. “Woodworking is in my DNA,” Brian says. Unbeknownst to him, he became the same type of craftsman his grandfather was, a family member he never had the opportunity to meet.

Brian started professionally as a boat builder and cabinet maker, and years later found out that his grandfather was also a boat builder and cabinet maker. He eventually inherited all of his grandfather’s tools, which had his name stamped into them. It is serendipitous that Brian is in the profession he is in. While working in the boating industry, the construction of wooden boats started to become obsolete. Brian wanted to continue to pursue his craft of working with wood and checked out a 18th century home. He dismantled it, preserving the 300-year-old wood, and started on the next phase of his career of restoring early New England homes and buildings to museum quality — making his own nails and windows.

Then a trend started where builders did not possess the preservation mentality and historic buildings were getting burned or bulldozed and not preserved. His business then turned to dismantling the entire building and storing it in trailers so it could be reconstructed in another location. Then a recession hit, and It was a painful time for Brian and The Cooper Group. He had to lay off 40 employees.  (more…)