The Blinn College Small Business Development Center (SBDC) served a record number of new clients in Washington, Colorado, and Austin counties during the recent fiscal year.

Through free and confidential advising for its clients, the Blinn SBDC helped to create 14 new businesses and 104 new jobs. SBDC staff served a record 105 new clients and helped to obtain more than $9.1 million in business loans.

“Small businesses play a pivotal role in our local economy and the Blinn SBDC is proud to assist our local entrepreneurs,” said Matthew Wehring, Blinn SBDC Director. “We have a terrific, experienced staff that truly cares about our local businesses and we look forward to helping even more small businesses in the year ahead.”

The Blinn SBDC specializes in business plan development, accessing capital, and identifying market opportunities. It provides free or low-cost workshops covering a wide range of topics, from hands-on QuickBooks classes to social media for beginners.

This year, the SBDC particularly assisted small business owners in identifying and applying for the stimulus packages made available this year in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

 

 

“The team at the Blinn College SBDC was an invaluable resource to our small businesses that were trying to navigate the CARES Act programs during the pandemic shutdowns,” said Susan Cates, Director of Brenham Economic Development. “Matthew and his team were proactive in reaching out, responsive in returning calls and emails, and compassionate in how they communicated to our struggling entrepreneurs. We are fortunate to have the SBDC in Washington County!”

Tony Meeks, owner of Zither Music Co., praised Wehring and Business Advisor John Tatum for helping his company qualify for a $10,000 federal grant, the Paycheck Protection Program, and “economic injury” funding.

“As a small business owner, there’s nothing like having somebody who can walk you through something like this,” Meeks said. “It gives you a sense of security.”

Nationwide, America’s SBDCs help small businesses acquire $5.6 billion in financing and create 99,194 jobs each year. SBDC clients see an 18% increase in annual sales compared to a 5.6% national average.

The Blinn College SBDC is a business advising and training center of the University of Houston Texas Gulf Coast SBDC Network serving 32 counties in Southeast Texas. The SBDC program is funded in part through a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Small Business Administration.

To discover how the Blinn SBDC can help your small business, call 979-830-4137 or visit www.blinn.edu/sbdc.