Colorado celebrates National Small Business Development Center Day

DENVER -- The Colorado Small Business Development Center Network, a division of the Office of Economic Development and International Trade (OEDIT), will celebrate National SBDC Day on Wednesday, March 17. 

SBDC Day is a national proclamation of the vital impact America’s Small Business Development Centers (SBDCs) have on economic development and the small businesses community. In 2020, their work was more important than ever as they helped small businesses across the country navigate the various support from local, state and federal agencies, and provided free counseling and no or low-cost training  to small businesses across the nation.  

In 2020, 176 Colorado businesses attributed their start to the help they received from an SBDC. The Colorado SBDC network helped businesses to create 1,532 new jobs, retain an additional 2,772 jobs and increase their sales by $95,570,036. When looking at the National SBDC economic impact over the course of 2020, SBDCs helped businesses to create a new job every 5.7 minutes and a new business every 26 minutes.  

Throughout the month, the Colorado SBDC website will be posting stories about companies who found success through their work with the Colorado SBDC network. 

“In Colorado, 99 percent of our economy comes from small businesses,” said Joey Jenkins, Colorado SBDC Network Director. “Last year, we pivoted our resources to combat the economic impact of COVID-19. Our singular focus was to help both existing and new businesses survive, pivot, and thrive.

“Despite the unprecedented scale of economic distress, Colorado saw more than 73,000 new business filings through the Secretary of State. In 2021, as the vaccine rolls out and the economy starts to recover, we are committed to helping each of these Colorado businesses succeed by providing the support, resources, education, and the overall economic climate they need.”