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Laramie, WY 82071

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Wyoming Entrepreneur SBDC Celebrates National Programs 35th Anniversary

April 2, 2015

The Wyoming Entrepreneur Small Business Development Center (SBDC) will join 62 other SBDC networks nationwide this year to celebrate the 35th anniversary of America’s SBDC, the nation’s largest technical assistance program for small businesses.

The SBDC program was created to stimulate economic growth. Funded in part by the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), the SBDC network consists of nearly 1,000 centers nationwide that provide business consulting at no cost and affordable training for entrepreneurs. Eight of those centers are located throughout Wyoming. The state office is based at the University of Wyoming with regional offices in Casper, Cheyenne, Gillette, Jackson, Powell, Riverton and Rock Springs.

Since 1994, the Wyoming Entrepreneur network -- consisting of the SBDC, the Procurement Technical Assistance Center (PTAC) and the Market Research Center (MRC) -- has helped more than 40,000 Wyoming businesses and entrepreneurs. In 2014, the state network assisted nearly 2,400 clients with issues ranging from establishing accounting systems to government contracting to business valuation and transition.

“With the SBDC, you always have a team of professionals to fall back on,” says Jill Kline, the SBDC state director at UW. “Clients can bounce ideas or discuss their issues, or anything that comes up, with our team; we can see and work from the client’s perspective.”

SBDC professionals provide counseling that strongly supports the needs of Wyoming’s small businesses, says Bill Gern, UW’s vice president for research and economic development.

“SBDC offices provide support and technical services to numerous Wyoming small businesses, helping them grow and become more successful,” Gern says.

These services strengthen the state’s economy. SBDC clients injected close to $13.8 million in financial capital into Wyoming’s economy this past year, according to the SBDC’s 2014 annual report. The clients reported creating or retaining 920 jobs.

The PTAC assists Wyoming firms with identifying and securing federal, state and local government contracting opportunities. In 2014, more than $15.7 million was awarded through 222 contracts, and PTAC clients reported creating or retaining 315 jobs.

The MRC provides state-of-the-art market analysis to small businesses as they consider locations, expansions, empty niches for business development and other business issues. The annual report notes that the MRC researched 954 projects.

In addition to funding from the SBA, the SBDC receives support from the Wyoming Business Council and UW.

For more information about business services, contact the Wyoming Entrepreneur SBDC at 1-800-348-5194, email wsbdc@uwyo.edu, or visit www.wyen.biz.

Contact Us

Institutional Communications

Bureau of Mines Building, Room 137

Laramie

Laramie, WY 82071

Phone: (307) 766-2929

Email: cbaldwin@uwyo.edu

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