REPORT FROM THE SBA — The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) is pleased to announce the successful completion of the 2012 e200 Emerging Leaders initiative. Fourteen small business owners conducted their final presentations before expert panels comprised of business consultants, experienced business executives, entrepreneurs, and bankers in the last week. The powerful executive-level training course provides small business owners who demonstrate potential for growth with the resources, skills and the network to help them drive their business to the next level of success and sustainability.
“The e200 Initiative has been a catalyst for expanding opportunities for many promising small businesses in underserved communities,” SBA District Director Jane Sawyer said. “The results gathered from follow up surveys of past e200 classes showed dramatic gains for graduates. They’ve increased revenues, gotten bigger contracts, formed joint ventures and taken on entrepreneurial expansion. We witnessed some great strategic planning by these business owners that will accelerate business growth and create more jobs.”
The 2012 graduates include:
- Charlie Bright, BF Enterprise LLC dba Makiki Bank Shop
- Wendy Chang, Pacific Commercial Services, LLC
- Nowel Dudiot-Alana, Kalaka Nui, Inc.
- Liane Fu, the Wine Stop
- Byron Goo, The Tea Chest
- Clinton Goo, Goko Restaurant Enterprises, LLC dba Sizzler Restaurants
- Ann Kutaka, InForm Design, Inc.
- Stanley Lau, Hawaii Tech Support/HTS Information Systems
- Mylene Reyes, R&M Reyes Enterprise, LLC
- Theresa Schenk, Schenk Specialized Services, LLC
- Bernadette Shafer Robins, Shafer’s Roofing
- Iris Terashima, ITerashima Environmental Services
- Bill Wong, AAC- Pacific, LLC
- Michael Yasui, Corporate Environments International, LLC
To be eligible to participate in the e 200 Emerging Leaders Initiative, a small business must be at least three years old, have achieved annual revenues of $300,000, and have at least one employee. Only one person, the key decision maker of the small business, attends the classes and mentoring groups. In Hawaii, the initiative for entrepreneurs will target small businesses in underserved market segments such as those owned by Native Hawaiians.
The nine-month training includes approximately 100 hours of classroom time per participant and provides the opportunity for small business owners to work with experienced mentors,attend workshops and develop connections with their peers, city leaders, and financial communities.
SBA will open recruitment for the 2013 class in mid- January.