Association of Women's Business Centers

We are happy to officially share that Klassi Duncan, Vice President of the Center for Entrepreneurship & Innovation (CEI) at the Urban League Of Louisiana, is the recipient of the prestigious 2024 Marsha Bailey Leadership Award!🏆 Klassi’s exceptional leadership and unwavering dedication to empowering women entrepreneurs in the Greater New Orleans Region truly exemplify the spirit of this award. Her commitment to Servant Leadership, Integrity, Empowerment of Others, and Collaboration has not only transformed the Women’s Business Resource Center but also uplifted countless small businesses in her community. Congratulations, Klassi, on this well-deserved recognition! Your impact is inspiring, and we can’t wait to see how you continue to shape the future for women entrepreneurs! 👏 Learn more below: https://lnkd.in/edK9Csez

Join Mastercard to learn how Artificial Intelligence (AI) can transform the way you run your small business. This webinar offers straightforward, practical insights the best AI solutions to save time, increase efficiency, and deliver a better customer experience.🌟 Plus, don’t miss an exclusive sneak peek at a groundbreaking AI tool Mastercard is developing just for small businesses! 📅 Register now: https://lnkd.in/efFxUU96

We are proud to celebrate the Jacksonville Women's Business Center’s 20th anniversary!🎉 Their recent event was a fantastic tribute to two decades of empowering women and entrepreneurs in their community. See more of the details and special guests they had in attendance below. Let's all join in congratulating them on this incredible milestone!✨

🎉 We’re excited to celebrate the opening of the Pasadena City College Women's Business Center (WBC), providing local entrepreneurs with a dedicated space for resources, support, and connection! As Lizzy Okoro Davidson, Pasadena WBC Director, shared, "We are so excited to have the opportunity to support women in the San Gabriel Valley at every stage of their business journeys. I'm often asked why a center like this needs to exist, and the answer is simple: women face unique challenges but also have unique strengths. A little extra help to overcome those obstacles and unlock those strengths means stronger small businesses, and that's good news for everyone!" If you’re looking to connect with Pasadena City College's WBC or need support for your business, visit pasadenawbc.org to learn more! #WomensBusinessCenter #PasadenaWBC #SmallBusinessSupport

This year at the 2024 Leadership Conference, we were proud to honor Heather Lux, Regional Director of the Southeast Wisconsin Women’s Business Initiative Corporation (WWBIC), with the Business Advisor of the Year Award! 🎉 Heather’s unwavering commitment to empowering women entrepreneurs has had a profound impact across Southeast Wisconsin. Her leadership, mentorship, and dedication to supporting small businesses have been instrumental in driving growth and success in her community. Read more about her impact below. Congratulations, Heather, on this well-deserved recognition! 👏 https://lnkd.in/ePysJs8t

Calling all veteran entrepreneurs! We are excited to announce the launch of S.O.A.R. for Veterans—a business accelerator program aimed at uplifting Veteran-Owned Businesses and boosting the growth of their TikTok Shops. This is a GREAT resource to share with your veteran clients! https://lnkd.in/eYp8rzzv Eligibility: • Must be 51% or more U.S. Veteran-owned • A legally registered U.S. business • Actively selling products or services on an e-commerce platform (e.g., TikTok Shop, Etsy, Shopify) Applications are due by THIS FRIDAY October 25, 2024 for current round consideration! https://lnkd.in/eYp8rzzv

Join us for the SME Access to Finance Webinar 💼 hosted by the U.S. Small Business Administration in partnership with the U.S.-EU Trade and Technology Council. This session will focus on the importance of working capital for small and mid-sized businesses and provide insights into the financial tools available to help your business thrive. 📅 When: Wednesday, October 23, 10:00-11:00 am ET 🎤 With opening remarks by Deputy Assistant Secretary David De Falco and a presentation by SBA's National Director of Trade Finance, Daniel Pische. Register here: https://lnkd.in/gA2d62jY

As we continue to reflect on our 2024 Leadership Conference sponsors, we want to shine a spotlight on Stearns Bank N.A. !🌟 One of the highlights of the conference was the mainstage session, "A Capital Rebel: How Stearns Breaks the Mold on Traditional Commercial Loans," led by Kelly Skalicky, President and CEO of Stearns Bank. This session ranked in the top 10 and received fantastic feedback from attendees. One participant shared, “I would listen to her talk about just about any business topic in relation to banking!” From flexible lending solutions to fast approvals, Stearns Bank consistently breaks away from the traditional banking mold. Their support for small businesses is unmatched, and we’re so glad they could join us at this year’s conference. Thank you, Stearns Bank, for your dedication to supporting entrepreneurs. We value our ongoing partnership and are excited about what’s ahead! #AWBCLead2024 #StearnsBank #LeadershipConference

🌟 Today was an exciting day at the 2024 IMPACT Summit hosted by weVENTURE Women's Business Center! Our own Corinne Goble and Jackie Perrault had the privilege of attending this annual event in Cocoa Beach, FL, pictured below with AWBC board member and executive director of weVENTURE, Kathryn Staczek Rudloff, and WBC Program Director Jamie Brock. The IMPACT Summit has been a cornerstone for professional development since 2012, providing a great opportunity for both women and men to network and learn from experts in business management, strategy, communications, and more. Today, keynote speaker Dr. Lauren Hodges guided attendees on achieving less stress and more joy. Various breakout sessions covered topics like Building Your Dream Team, Unlocking AI's Potential for Small Businesses, Protecting Your Business IP, and more! For those who are new to the area or not yet clients, this event served as a fantastic introduction to the weVENTURE WBC program and our empowering network. 💪 Thank you to weVENTURE WBC for a fantastic event!

We’re incredibly grateful to Amazon for their amazing support as a sponsor at the 2024 AWBC Leadership Conference! One of the standout moments was the mainstage session, Success + Best Practices from an Amazon Seller: Once you get on the Amazon platform, how do you create sell-through? featuring our CEO Corinne Goble, Kate Hill from Amazon, and Lisa Govro, an inspiring Amazon seller. The conversation sparked tons of audience feedback, with many attendees from Women’s Business Centers eager to learn how to navigate the Amazon platform—not only to grow their own businesses but to share these valuable insights with their clients. We’re so grateful for Amazon’s ongoing support of Women’s Business Centers and their dedication to helping entrepreneurs thrive. 🙌 #AWBCLead2024 #SmallBusinessSupport #WomensBusinessCenters