Dean and Giane Tonev are great examples of immigrants who came to this country to pursue and succeed at the American Dream. Dean, from Bulgaria, and Giane, from Brazil, moved to Minnesota six years ago, opening Hotova Crossfit Studio soon thereafter. Their business has transformed from a studio into on-line training programs, allowing their customers to use equipment they need for the fitness routines. The SBDC advised them, helped them to grow in 2019 and to secure a CARES grant in 2020.

Karen Abad, SP, of Check Exchange Services shares her thoughts on the SBDC at The College of NJ.

Jasper Riddle is a man on the move. Raised in Ruidoso, New Mexico, Jasper left his hometown for college and other life experiences. He later returned home where he became a successful entrepreneur. Jasper Riddle is passionate about small business and wants to see his company, his town and all of New Mexico succeed. His long term vision is to create a sustainable industry in Lincoln County that will create even more jobs in New Mexico.

We were the first SBDC to have a “technology” focus. It started in 1984 with this focus and remains to date the most significant “T” focused SBDC in the country. The Tech program provides counseling and training and focused support to companies to help them access SBIR/STTR funding and early-stage private capital. The SBTDC and the NC PTAC programs are operating components under the Business & Technology Extension Program unit at NC State University.

Ohio SBDC offers full time advising in Spanish at three locations and can accommodate services in any language. A Ohio SBDC Spanish-language advisor helped Omar D'Angelo launch a growing chain of restaurants and food trucks in central Ohio.