Markelle Shay and Wanda Haley will represent Berkshire Jobs, Berkshire Menu and Iberkshires at the Expo on June 30th.
Dalton, Massachusetts — Glory Ann Jones is opening a branch of her tea and self-care business in Berkshire.
That brought her to last week’s Small Business Resource Expo at The Stationery Factory, where she made connections with other like-minded entrepreneurs.
“I meet and say hello, and people look at me and say my name, and it makes me smile,” said two other small business owners and fellow tea shoppers in Pittsfield. She said over lunch with Kristena Turner from North America and Eva Skegula, who lives in the North. Adams runs his Fearless Ink, a freelance content and marketing consulting firm.
“This has allowed us to connect with some small businesses and more resources, which is great,” Turner said. “I’m all about local businesses and connections, and that’s why I’m here. It’s what keeps the community together.”
“I have so many business cards and need to follow up on so many businesses that I’ve heard their names, but I never really had time to sit down and talk to them for a few minutes,” Skegla said. rice field. “
The Resource Expo brought together over 30 businesses, lenders and organizations (including iBerkshire and BerkshireJobs) to show how they can support local small businesses. The morning event was hosted by 1 Berkshire in partnership with the Berkshire Regional Planning Commission, Berkshire Immigration Center, E for All, the Pittsfield Economic Revitalization Corporation and the Massachusetts LGBT Chamber of Commerce.
“We are bullish on Berkshire,” said David Harrington, vice president of commercial lending at Lee Bank, the event underwriter, welcoming attendees. “We are very bullish on small businesses.”
In addition to connecting with potential resources ranging from funding to hiring, advertising and training, there were three panels for attendees to drop by.
1 Benjamin Lamb, Berkshire’s vice president of economic development, spoke at the first of three panels that morning on how to make the most of the Expo.
“It’s very important to know who will support you before you need it,” he said. “Because if you are only looking for emergencies, you are likely to miss out on the opportunities and resources that are out there.”
Senior Vice President of Tourism and Marketing Lindsay Schmidt, social media strategist Kaitlyn Pearce and Coquest’s Liam Gorman discussed marketing resources during the second panel discussion.
Pierce Social’s Pierce said entrepreneurs should consider people on social media spending time interacting with their businesses, and if someone walks in to talk to them “You probably wouldn’t give them the thumbs up,” he said.
“I think social media has made us forget that part a little bit, like we treat it like a deal and it’s not a deal,” she said. “That’s why getting a million followers is not a good goal. or who your family is or know something about it: “It’s because they treat you as a person when you meet them. Do it on social media.” You can really invest in your followers.”
At the third and final panel meeting, Amanda LaCroix of the state’s Supplier Diversity Office said the criteria for veteran, disabled, women, minority, and LGTBQ+-run diverse business categories to receive state recognition. , processes and opportunities.
Shegla said he was particularly interested in Lacroix’s presentation because of his past work with government contractors. “I have worked with Congress wherever I have lived in the country, so I found it very interesting,” she said. “I wrote the law and did it all.”
Lamb said events like the expo could uncover hidden gems in Berkshire’s small business world.
“Having these kinds of events brings together the kinds of businesses that I didn’t know existed or are going to exist, and they come together and you’re like, ‘Oh my God, this is all right.’ “It’s our backyard,” he said. “Here we had 33 different resource providers networking with each other and networking with participants. Participants were building new networks. It’s really nice to see and hear them.”
tag: 1 Berkshire, Expo, Small Business,