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Small Business Development Center Relocates to Utah State

nationalresourcedirectory.gov

  The Small Business Administration has selected a new home to head the Utah Small Business Development Center. 

15 colleges across the state of Utah currently host Small Business Development Centers. The Centers assists local companies by providing them with the resources, knowledge and experience that establishing businesses often lack.  Marion Bentley of the Utah State Applied Economics Department illustrates how this institution benefits Utah Businesses.

“A lot of people will start a business. It’s kind of the American dream. We grow entrepreneurs in our country, and in Utah, Utah is a very successful entrepreneurial state. So a lot of people are interested in starting a business, a lot of people fail. Their chances of succeeding are much greater if they get help from a small business center. Their opportunity of being successful is 50% greater, at least.”

Utah State University has been selected to be the new head of the USBDC Network. Starting April 1 the responsibilities of a main institution will be moved to Utah State University, from Salt Lake Community College, where it has been hosted for the past 20 years. Utah State has been selected because of its extension programs, its experience with federal grants, and its presence throughout almost every county in the state. Jason Yerka, who is currently serving as interim USBDC director during the transition tells us about what success we have already seen from the program,

“In 2015 alone, the SBDC helped bring in 66 million dollars in capital infusion, started nearly 200 new business’ in Utah, and it had nearly 60 million dollars in revenue increase. It’s one of the few programs that has a positive ROI. Every dollar that gets put in, the economic environment gets more than a dollar back.”

Clients of the SBDC are able to get free business counseling because of funding provided in majority by the Small Business Administration. Counselors listen to issues concerning small business owners and then together construct a strategy to help them reach their entrepreneurial goals.