(Source: Enid News & Eagle)
By James Neal, Enid News & Eagle, Okla.
Sept. 24--ENID -- Budding entrepreneurs and seasoned small business owners alike will have an opportunity to explore ways to improve business when Enid hosts the first Northwest Oklahoma Business Expo Thursday.
The expo will feature a full day of information for small business owners with presentations covering topics ranging from developing a business idea to marketing and growing an established business.
Rural Enterprises of Oklahoma Inc. (REI), a nonprofit agency funded by state and federal grant money to boost small business growth, will host the expo 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at Cherokee Strip Conference Center, 123 W. Maine.
Jennifer Edwards, REI Women's Business Cen-ter coordinator, said Thursday's business expo will offer something for everyone involved in small business.
"We've included sessions that will appeal to everybody, from people who might still be in the thought process of starting a business to established business owners who want to grow their business," Ed-wards said.
The event will begin with registration 7:30-8:30 a.m., and will continue with a full day of breakout sessions, a keynote address, lunch and a vendors' fair.
Breakout sessions will cover a wide variety of topics, including marketing a small business, business incubators and tax credits, using social media to boost business and agritourism.
"Our main goal with the expo is to raise awareness of all the resources that are available in the community, and we just want to get those resources out in front of the entrepreneurs in the area," Edwards said.
Small business development specialists from Autry Technology Center, Northwest Technology Center in Alva and Pioneer Technology Center in Ponca City will be present Thursday to discuss the technology centers' business incubator programs and how they can help aspiring entrepreneurs.
Phillip Gillham, self-employment coordinator at Autry Tech, said the incubator program and Entrepreneur Boot Camp offered at Autry Tech can help start-up business owners with a wide variety of services, including business plan preparation, marketing plans, evaluating and filing for tax benefits and training on new equipment.
"No matter where you are in the state, there's probably an incubator near you," Gillham said. "We just want people to know about incubators and what kinds of services are available."
Thursday's business expo will feature a keynote address by Cally Johnson and Kathryn Mathis, owners of Big Truck Tacos and Mutt's Amazing Hotdogs of Oklahoma City.