Update on SBA’s 7(a) Loan Program | 7 Tedious Office Tasks You Can and Should Automate

Conference Call | Interested in Doing Business In Cuba? July 29 at 4:00 PM ET Small business owners often tell us that they have many questions about how to enter a new market - and those questions are magnified when it comes to doing business with Cuba. There have been several changes to the bilateral relationship in recent months. Join SBA Administrator Maria Contreras-Sweet and other senior officials to discuss the opportunities that exist for exporting to Cuba. >>Register Now

Update on SBA’s 7(a) Loan Program America's small businesses are back and growing faster than ever. In recent months, SBA's 7(a) program has experienced unprecedented demand from America’s small business community. Last week, the 7(a) program reached its FY 2015 loan guaranty program limit.   >> Read more GES 2015: Why the Smart Money is On Kenya Last week, I joined President Obama in Nairobi, Kenya, for the sixth-annual Global Entrepreneurship Summit. GES 2015 shined a spotlight on the extraordinary potential of entrepreneurs in sub-Saharan Africa and beyond. >>Read More Kauffman Founders School Twitter Chat | Why Every Entrepreneur Needs a Mentor July 28, 2015 @ 12:00 PM CDT Join Kauffman Founders School and the SBA on Twitter for a one hour chat as we discuss why every entrepreneur needs a mentor. Questions will be tweeted out from @SBAgov. Participate in the chat by following @KauffmanFS, @SBAgov and the hashtag #MillennialTreps on Twitter. >>Read more Blog | Part I: Not Every Business is Franchise-Worthy Do you ever have ideas for a new business running through your head? I do. Most of the business ideas I come up with nowadays are marketing-related. It’s probably because I own a business and I’m always thinking of ways to market my services and products. But, once in a while, I come up with an idea that’s bigger than just a marketing tool. >>Read More Blog | 7 Tedious Office Tasks You Can and Should Automate Why work harder when you can work smarter instead? Several office tasks are perfect candidates to automate -- without sacrificing the well being of your business. In fact, some of these tasks not only save time, but also can actually be done better through automation.  >>Read More Webinars | Affordable Care Act 101 SBA and Small Business Majority will host free Affordable Care Act 101 webinars so small business owners can learn the basics of the Affordable Care Act and how they can enroll in health insurance marketplaces. Join us every other Thursday at 2 PM ET. July 30: Click to Register August 6: Click to Register August 20: Click to Register Join us for the Affordable Care Act 101 webinar in Spanish. August 11: Click to Register Video | Meet the National Small Business Person of the Year! Jenny Doan of Missouri Star Quilt Company tells us how she became an entrepreneur after retirement. When business started booming and the Missouri Star Quilt Company needed direction, SBA provided operational and financial support throughout their journey.  >>Watch the Video    Sales: A Guide for the Small Business Owner  You have a great product or service. Now you have to sell it. This course will give you an overview of sales plans and other tools to get your product or service into your customer/consumer’s hands.  Learn how to create a sales plan.  See how marketing techniques can improve your sales. Discover how to uses blogs, web site, and emails to generate sales. Learn best practices of hiring sales employees. >>Learn More   Report | What Do Consular Products Really Mean? When you do business abroad, do you know the difference between a Travel Warning and a Travel Alert? How about an Emergency Message vs. a Security Message? Find out what State Department travel advisories really mean and how they affect your business. >>Read more Event | ChallengeHER Atlanta Wednesday, July 29, 2015 | 8:00AM – 12:30PM SBA, Women Impacting Public Policy (WIPP), American Express OPEN (OPEN), and Small Business Development Centers (SBDC) have partnered to host women business owners for this special contracting event. WOSB federal contractors can have a unique opportunity to: Learn about the WOSB Set Aside and how to market your business under this program Contract officers explain how to do business with their agency and the federal government in general Benefit from the experience of women contractors on best practices and real-life stories Get contracting advice and learn about resources in your local community Participate in matchmaking with federal buyers Network with peer mentors and other women business owned firms.  >>Register now

Co-work Binghamton, 45 Lewis Street

Introducing, CoWork Binghamton Bring your Laptop, We'll Provide the Rest   Located in the newly renovated Lackawanna Train Station at 45 Lewis Street, CoWork Binghamton is designed to be a professional, collaborative office-sharing environment for freelancers, independent creatives and startups seeking a dynamic downtown presence. Offering daily & monthly work space options, CoWork Binghamton fills a need for creative professionals that currently work from a home and/or coffee shops. Just bring your laptop, and we provide the rest. Internet, copies, & coffee. CoWork Binghamton is more that a place to work, It’s a place to collaborate with like-minded professionals to be creative, and develop community. If your interested in CoWork Binghamton and would like more information, visit our website at www.coworkbing.com or e-mail info@coworkbing.com   Facebook   Twitter   Pinterest   Website   Email Our mailing address is: CoWork Binghamton 45 Lewis Street Binghamton, NY 13901 Add us to your address book

Mi Casa Restaurant Looks to Spice Up Binghamton With Authentic Latin Cuisine

Winter is approaching quickly and we are now finding ourselves bundling up and yearning for those hot summer days which passed by so quickly. Don't let the cold get to you. Spice things up by visiting the newly opened local restaurant, Mi Casa. The family owned and operated business opened this month and features classic Latin recipes that are sure to have you coming back for more.

On a recent Thursday afternoon, I took a brief walk from my office on Hawley street up to the new establishment on the corner of Henry and Chenango. An old school sign with big, swooping red letters hung over the entrance. As I swung open the curtained glass door I was welcomed with the delicious aroma of jerk spices and seasoned rice. The walls were freshly painted and canvassed with maps and paintings of beautiful landscapes hugged by bright blue ocean water. Latin music played quietly in the background adding to the calming decor of the cozy restaurant.

 I sat down at a table and spoke with Sky Rodriguez, an employee and member of the family. We spoke about the process of starting up the restaurant and just how crazy those first few weeks of business can be. I was not surprised to learn that since opening, Mi Casa has been mainly concerned with making enough food to meet the demand of everyday customers. Located right across from the bus station and just a minute walk from busy Court street, the restaurant is in a prime location and looks forward to the business provided by city workers on lunch break and hungry college students. Mi Casa's fast service makes it a great option for takeout and the feel and attitude also makes it a great option for a fun dinner with friends or that hot date.

The food will have you coming back for more and the location makes that even easier. For some tasty Latin cuisine and a fun time, swing by Mi Casa, located at the corner of Chenango and Henry street.

Seeing Potential in Binghamton: 3i Graphics and Signs

If you’ve driven through Binghamton, you’ve seen their work. 3i Graphics and Signs is one of the largest providers of visual solutions in Broome County and services clients as far away as Ithaca and beyond. I met with Eric Olsen and Nick Taro of 3i to discuss their business and why they feel that Binghamton is the place to be.

“We don’t just provide graphics and signs,” said Eric, “we work closely with the customer to provide solutions that make them look as good as possible with the resources they have.” With the help of their in house design and fabrication teams, 3i can make anything from banners and trade show posters to illuminated signs. They have worked closely with Binghamton University, Lockheed Martin, BAE, Twin River Commons, and the City of Binghamton.

Since they acquired the business in 2011, Eric and Nick have seen their business expand. “It just keeps getting better. Binghamton is growing and we are growing, albeit slowly, too,” said Eric, “Binghamton is less volatile and has a lower cost of living than other places, which makes it easier to do business.”

Nick and Eric also praised the assistance they have received from community organizations “the Department of Planning Housing and Community Development at City Hall and the Downtown Binghamton Business Association have made it easy to do business here,” Eric said, “if you have a problem you can talk to someone and they say ‘I have the same problem’ and then you figure it out together.”

Nick believes that as business owners, they have a responsibility to their customers, their community, and their employees. “We have 10 employees, and some of them have been with us for more than 10 years,” he said, “we’ve tried to create an open atmosphere where everyone can share their ideas comfortably and feel recognized for them.” This atmosphere has helped 3i attract and retain a talented team that have come from as far away as Oklahoma to be a part of the company .

And what do Eric and Nick see for the future of Binghamton? “Binghamton has great potential. We’d like to keep hearing people tell a good story, to keep the communication going. That’s how good things will happen.”

For more information, check out www.3igraphics.com

Commercial Building/Warehouse at 92 Glenwood Avenue for Sale

Whole in the Wall: A Binghamton Staple

Whole in the Wall, a restaurant at 43 South Washington Street in the Southbridge section of Binghamton, has been serving up dishes that make its customers salivate since 1980. Co-Founder and senior partner Eliot Fiks has taken an approach that emphasizes buying quality ingredients from local vendors. Whole in the Wall is adding a new wrinkle to their restaurant: starting December 4^th, their hours of operation will change to Wednesdays through Saturdays from 11 AM to 10 PM to accommodate greater demand from customers.

Some of the menu items at Whole in the Wall have become especially popular, says junior partner Stacey Gould. She holds up their creamy mushroom soup as a fan favorite. Indeed, the author can confirm that the soup is delicious. In addition, the restaurant boasts that it makes delicious whole-wheat garlic balls on-site.

Stacey insists that a big part of Whole in the Wall’s success is the quality of their food. Whole in the Wall's menu is comprised entirely of unprocessed items. Instead of using processed white rice and corn syrup, Whole in the Wall uses brown rice, local honey and maple syrup. According to Stacy, these “good, clean ingredients” are “good for you, but also delicious.”

In addition to the restaurant, Whole in the Wall has operated a pesto business since 1994. The pesto business has been very successful; Fiks and Gould have been making sales all over the U.S. Whole in the Wall does most of its pesto sales on the Eastern Seaboard and the Midwest. One reason for opening the pesto business was to diversify Whole in the Wall’s revenue streams, says Stacey.

In addition to the pesto business, Whole in the Wall is attempting to start selling its soups and garlic balls online. Stacey says many Binghamton University students who ultimately move from Binghamton after graduation will want to continue to eat Whole in the Wall’s flavorful meals. Setting up an online retail operation will make it much easier for students to keep patronizing the restaurant, even if they’re hundreds of miles away.

Eliot Fiks started Whole in the Wall in 1980 after attending Binghamton University. Eliot had made 200 bagels daily by hand and delivered them by bicycle to the Binghamton University Food Co-Operative. Right off the bat, Eliot was committed to buying local; he went to local farmers for his eggs. “He was ahead of his time,” says Stacey. To this day, Whole in the Wall remains committed to buying local.

For more information on Whole in the Wall, call them at (607) 777-6344, or visit their website at wholeinthewall.com.