Yesterday's Business Workshop, put on by the CRA...

The group at the beginning of the day - a great turn-out!

Adrian Salee, SCORE Business Counselor - gave pointers on preparing a business plan and stressed it's importance. Key message: A small business is not an extension of you; it's its own entity.

Laurence Davenport, Executive Director - Business Load Fund - specializing in smaller loans that are otherwise not "bankable" - or where physical access to credit sources is a problem.

Blurry picture of Bob Phoenix, the city of Lake Worth's new Chief Building Official, talking about the Certificate of Use program and business tax receipts.

I had the pleasure to be the Master of Ceremonies for this event. It kicked off National Small Business week. Lots of great information and an array of speakers from the Small Business Administration, Small Business Development Center, etc. One of the programs identified was the SBA's HUB (Historically Underutilized Business) Zone program - where you can register and get preferential treatment with the issuance of government contracts. Click here and you can see the sections of Lake Worth that are considered "HUB" zones. The Small Business Development Center is a free service and is housed at Palm Beach Community College - they even have a mobile assistance center (the RV was parked outside the golfcourse clubhouse during the day). They can help you get certified as a registered federal government contractor. Events will continue throughout the next week. Check with the Greater Lake Worth Chamber of Commerce for more information.