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New England Regional Office  – September 9, 2021

National Small Business Week: Celebrating Resilience and Renewal

Amy K. Bassett Acting Regional Administrator New England Regional Office U.S. Small Business Administration Did you know that the U.S. Small Business Administration has celebrated National Small Business Week (NSBW) for more than 50 years?  Each year during NSBW, SBA recognizes the critical contributions of America’s entrepreneurs and small business owners.

Last year amid the COVID-19 pandemic we made a shift toward an entirely virtual celebration and here we are again.  We continue to face unique and unexpected challenges together.  Through these challenges, American small businesses continue to play a central role in building a strong country, prepared for any obstacles in the future.

More than half of Americans either own or work for a small business, and they create nearly two out of every three new jobs in the U.S. each year. During NSBW, the SBA takes the opportunity to highlight the impact of outstanding entrepreneurs, small business owners, and others who support entrepreneurship from all 50 states, Washington, D.C., and U.S. territories.  Every day, they are working to grow small businesses, create 21st-century jobs, drive innovation, and increase America’s global competitiveness.

On September 13-15, the SBA will host the National Small Business Week Virtual Summit to spotlight America’s entrepreneurs and the renewal of the small business economy as they build back better from the economic crisis brought on by the pandemic.

The virtual summit will honor the nation’s 32.5 million small businesses for their perseverance, ingenuity, triumphs, and creativity.  I’m thrilled that during the virtual summit this year, SBA will feature New England based entrepreneurs Annette Lee and Nicole Carrier of Throwback Brewery in North Hampton, New Hampshire. 

Brewing beer and farming are industries with a long-storied past in New England.  Throwback Brewery combines these two traditions in their brewery and restaurant they operate on a working farm. During NSBW, you’ll get to hear more about them, how they built their business, the challenges they have faced over the course of the pandemic and what they’ve done to face these challenges and keep moving forward. 

The pandemic affected Nicole and Annette’s business dramatically. When Covid first hit, they transitioned to 100% takeout pivoting from the normal 5% while implementing an online ordering system. As all restaurants transitioned and were allowed to open outside, Throwback moved to a table service model with a hostess and an online reservation system.

I’m proud that SBA has had the opportunity to assist Nicole and Annette over the years, first to expand with a 504 loan back in 2015 for the purchase of their 12-acre farm and now to help with their economic recovery.

Annette and Nicole are two entrepreneurs that have demonstrated their perseverance, resiliency, and creativity as they’ve weathered the storm of the COVID-19 pandemic. They made full use of SBA’s recovery programs including the Paycheck Protection Program and the Restaurant Revitalization Program. With hard work and determination, Annette and Nicole are in a great position to build back better.

Please join me in celebrating Annette and Nicole’s achievements and the resiliency of all our nation’s small businesses by attending the National Small Business Week Virtual summit.  You can register here: www.sba.gov/nsbw.

While it is my hope that next year will bring us normalcy and the ability to gather to celebrate the resilience of the small business community, either way the SBA is here to help you at any stage of your business journey. 

During the National Small Business Week Virtual Summit on September 13-15, 2021, the U.S. Small Business Administration will host a series of educational webinars to help small businesses recover and build back better. Register for this free, online summit to learn new business strategies, meet other business owners and chat with industry experts.

Register Here

Looking for Small Business Statistics?  The SBA Office of Advocacy recently released the latest federal economic data into state-by-state snapshots of small business health and economic activity.   This year’s profiles focus on state small business dynamics and employment. They answer questions like:  How many small businesses are in my state?  How many people do small businesses employ?  How many jobs do they create?  How many establishments opened and closed?  What industries have the most small businesses?   What demographic groups own the most small businesses?  How much do small businesses export?  Learn more Fun Fact: There are 1.5 million small businesses in New England employing 3.2 million workers.

Paycheck Protection Program borrowers: If your loan is $150,000 or less, you may be eligible to apply for direct forgiveness through SBA using our online portal. Follow the steps below.

1. Find out if your lender is participating. 
2. Watch a video about how to use the portal.
3. Apply for forgiveness.

For additional information, visit the SBA website.

Financing Export Sales Webinar

Striking the right balance between risk mitigation and ease of doing business is a challenge that faces many exporters, especially when working with unfamiliar customers located in unfamiliar places. How do you protect your business against export credit risk and nonpayment while adapting to the factors surrounding each transaction? How can you best work with your buyer to offer credit terms that will benefit you and enable them to pay your business? Fortunately, tools are available for businesses to finance export sales and protect against nonpayment that can meet the unique needs of sellers and buyers.

Please join us as we hear from the U.S. Small Business Administration and the Export-Import Bank of the U.S. to learn about grants and loan programs for export sales; tools for extending credit to foreign buyers; and export credit insurance resources that can protect against foreign buyer nonpayment.

Speakers include:

• Richard Foy, Regional Director, Eastern Region — Export Import Bank of the United States

• Joseph Raycraft, Export Finance Manager — U.S. Small Business Administration

Friday, September 27, 2021

12:00 – 1:00 PM ET

Register Here

Learn to Trade Roundtable Series

Standards and Complying with Foreign Regulations

Tuesday, September 28, 2021

2:00pm EDT

Join SBA’s Office of International Trade for a third installment of our new Learn to Trade Roundtable Series with Standards and Complying with Foreign Regulations. This 45-minute session will provide an overview of the fundamentals of complying with regulations, the role of international standards, and where to find additional support and resources, when selling internationally.  We will be joined by experts from the International Trade Administration’s Office of Standards and Intellectual Property. The session will cover:

• How you can find out about foreign regulations, including testing and certification requirements, that your product must meet in foreign markets?
• The standards your product can use to meet regulatory requirements.
• What international agreements exist to help you learn about foreign regulations?
• What support is available if you feel you are facing discriminatory foreign regulations?
• USG resources to help small business exporters and manufacturers.

REGISTER

Stay up-to-date on SBA programs, changes, reforms and training webinars by subscribing to SBA email updates (if you aren’t already on our mailing list) at: https://www.sba.gov/updates.  And by following the New England SBA office in your state on twitter: 

New England: @SBA_NewEngland

Connecticut: @SBA_Connecticut

Maine: @SBA_Maine

Massachusetts: @SBA_MA

New Hampshire: @SBA_NH

Rhode Island: @SBA_RhodeIsland

Vermont: @SBA_Vermont