E Newsletter April 2009
Small Business Owner Uses Wired Scholarship to Attend Emerging Entrepreneurs Program
Involvement in program leads to start of new small business center office in Wayne County
Leah Bamberger was looking for new resources and ideas to help improve her business when she learned about the Emerging Entrepreneurs program through contacts at SCORE. Bamberger, an entrepreneur since 1991, manages a commercial/residential property in Wayne County
The Emerging Entrepreneurs program is designed to encourage entrepreneurism and new business growth in the Finger Lakes region through formal entrepreneurial training. The program, offered at both Genesee and Monroe Community Colleges and partially funded by Finger Lakes Wired, offers two, three-credit Entrepreneurship courses that provide participants with the tools to grow their own businesses. Students learn ways to explore new business opportunities, write a business plan, market their business and seek additional funding.
Bamberger applied and was awarded a Wired scholarship to attend the program at MCC. Bamberger praised the program and its professors, saying the program exposed her to many new resources and gave her great ideas to help her business. “This class is crucial for small business start-ups and existing small businesses,” she said.
Through her involvement in the Emerging Entrepreneurs program Bamberger was introduced to the resources and representatives from the SUNY Brockport Small Business Development Center (SBDC). The SBDC provides technical assistance and counseling to entrepreneurs and business start-ups. According to Bamberger, the SBDC “provided me with resources I otherwise would not pursue.”
When she learned that there was no Small Business Development Center office in Wayne County, Bamberger met with SBDC advisors and government officials, including Palmyra Mayor Vicky Daly, to discuss establishing a business center in Wayne County. As a result of the meeting, a business center with advisors from the Small Business Development Center will be established in Palmyra, using a vacant space available at Bamberger’s Wayne County property.
Bamberger hopes that the Center will “attract small businesses to the area, and add exposure to [her] three remaining storefronts.” The kickoff date is scheduled for May 1, and consulting with small businesses and entrepreneurs could begin as early as June 1.
