Seminar held at Richlands Business Incubator

By JIM TALBERT\Staff
RICHLANDS – “We’re from the government and we are here to help you.’
  That statement from Carl Mitchell drew laughs at the Linked Workforce program July 12 but the program did offer lots of help for business people.  The initiative is part of the Virginia Economic Bridge program and the seminar dealt with accessing new markets and enabling rural business growth.
Mitchell is director and CEO of Virginia Economic Bridge and the non profit corporation attempts to bring companies from different regions of the Commonwealth together for business partnerships. The program offered guidance in doing business with the federal government, international companies and the state.
There was also a presentation on the Small Business Administration’s programs in technical, financial and procurement assistance. The SBA’s website offers training courses for entrepreneurs and existing small business owners.
The SBA’s financing program offers several different loan options to for profit businesses that qualify. Sandy Ratliff from the Virginia Department of Business Assistance presented information on workforce incentives, financing, business information and counseling, state procurement assistance and educational opportunities.
The seminar also covered programs offered through the Virginia Department of Business Assistance. That organization offers direct lending, indirect lending and conduit financing.
Selling to the Commonwealth covered the fact that 171 state agencies buy $5 billion in goods each year. Mitchell said 490 localities use the eVA system for soliciting bids for goods and services.
Speakers at the seminar provided step by step guidelines for using the eVA system. That system lists current solicitations, current statewide contracts and connections to state and local government buyers who use the system.
The session in Richlands at the business incubator was one of several stops the Bridge program is making in Southwest Virginia. They cover an area from Lee County to Roanoke and attempt to connect companies in southwest Virginia with companies in northern Virginia.