The Eastern Plains Chamber of Commerce held its monthly meeting on March 2. About 25 people attended. Members and guests introduced their individual businesses and some talked about upcoming events relative to their business. The chamber welcomed guest speaker, Mackenzie Tamayo.Mackenzie’s background includes over 15 years in hospitality. She was the COVID 19 program manager for the Small Business Development Center and lead liaison for all rural initiatives with El Paso County Economic Development. She has planned and executed more than 1,000 events in the Colorado Springs Metro area. She is currently the special programs manager/contractor at the Pikes Peak Small Business Development Center. ìAdvancing Small Business is Our Businessî is their motto. According to the Small Business Administration Profile, 99.5% of all businesses in Colorado are small businesses. Pikes Peak SBDC is among the top 10 in the nation for superior programs. Supporting El Paso and Teller counties, the SBDC received the Small Business Administration Award for Innovation and Excellence in 2014 and 2020. SBDC is funded by the American Rescue Plan Act, which was created during the COVID 19 pandemic and allowed their expansion to the Falcon area for rural and small business support. Consultants are mostly small business owner volunteers who work and live in the community, which allows people to gain knowledge and training from someone who has experience running a small business. ìEducation is our thing,î Mackenzie said. ìWe have a great team that offers tax and legal help along with business startup help.î Whether someone is an entrepreneur with an idea and not sure where to begin or an existing business, SBDC offers free consulting, practical training and business resources. Many are free one-on-one workshops, with topics such as pre-venture and startup 101 level programs. New free on-demand classes have been added, including business insurance, funding options for starting or funding a business and assistance with creating a business plan.Grants and loans are not available through the SBDC, but they will help with the application process. Another option to jump-start oneís small business is known as ìBoot Camp,î which includes instruction on steps to owning a business, choosing between sole proprietorship, LLC or a corporation and plenty of resource partners. SBDC also offers programs for child care providers, connecting them with business education, along with an extensive program called tech source and cybersecurity workshops.SBDC is also dedicated to veteran focused programs. Executive Director Aikta Marcoulier said, ìWe love our veterans!î The programs that are offered are led by veterans and cover a wide range of topics, including investments, finance and consulting for active duty and retired military. Ongoing workshops are held at the Ft. Carson satellite location, with the intent to add 20 more workshops this year. In addition to sponsoring the annual Veterans Small Business Conference, SBDC also partners with ìBoots to Business,î which is for soldiers and their spouses as they exit the military. This program directs men and women of the military to the resources available to them. The SBDC mission is to help existing and new businesses operate effectively, grow and prosper, with little to no cost. ìThere are a lot of free resources out there,î Marcoulier said. ìDon’t spend money before you ask questions. This will help you avoid expensive and risky mistakes. Instead of cutting corners, we help you cut the right corners.îUpcoming eventsFour-part E-Commerce series for small businesses: April 6, 13, 20, 25; noon to 1:30 p.m. at the High Prairie LibraryVisit the SBDC website for more information at https://pikespeaksbdc.org.The Eastern Plains Chamber of Commerce holds its monthly meetings the first Wednesday of the month; breakfast and coffee at 7; meeting from 7:30 to 8:30 a.m.The next meeting is April 6 at Grace Community Church, 9475 Grace Church View.
