March 16, 2020
In January 2020, the Hannibal Regional Economic Development Council (HREDC) opened Northeast Missouri’s first Small Business Development Center in Hannibal MO. Though the SBDC has been serving communities across the U.S. for forty years, they have not had a presence our community until now. Business owner and Hannibal citizen, Brittany Weldy was hired on January 21st, 2020 as the first SBDC employee in the NEMO regional office. She serves as the Entrepreneurship Specialist.
Representative Louis Riggs has awarded a resolution to Brittany Weldy for her contributions thus far to the community on behalf of the SBDC & the HREDC today as they celebrate National SBDC Day. As an Entrepreneurship Specialist, Brittany provides unique services to small businesses and startups of all industries in her 6-county region. “One on one confidential counseling is the bedrock of my services to my clients. Through the SBDC network, I can help guide business owners to become more confident and educated business owners by providing resources in areas such as research & marketing, cash flow and financial analysis, obtaining government contracts, how to write a business plan, options to obtain funding, and much more,” Weldy shares.
In less than 2 months of the office opening, Weldy is already very busy serving her area, having connected with over 25 local businesses and startups thus far, and is eager to benefit many more as the SBDC becomes more notable in her territory. The near future aspirations for the office is to create a free mentoring program with local experts connecting with local businesses. Weldy sees this program as a win-win for the Northeast MO economy, “The benefit of this program is 2-fold; the new business owner gains the knowledge and direction they need from an expert, and the mentor can build relationships and gain exposure to potential new clients.” She will also be coordinating several free and low-cost workshops for on all topics throughout the Northeast Mo Region, so keep your eye out for more opportunities this year.
The fourth annual America’s SBDC day will take place on Wednesday March 18th, 2020. SBDC Day is a national, collective proclamation of the success and impacts America’s Small Business Development Centers (SBDCs) have across the nation in economic development and the small businesses community. SBDC Day unites the nearly 1,000 SBDC centers across the country and the hundreds of thousands of clients they serve by sharing, in real-time, the success stories and notable impacts SBDCs collectively have on the small business community at large. This special day will be celebrated with social media campaigns, public relations initiatives, online and in-person events and more. You can participate by following us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter @MissouriSBDC & #SBDCDay.
Also, the HREDC invites you to share on their Facebook page any testimonies and success stories you’ve experienced thus far from Brittany and the NEMO regional SBDC.
