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Posted: 3/11/18

TAMIU SBDC Sets Free Export Seminar March 21

 

Globe at TAMIU Entrance
Michael González, TAMIU-SBDC director  

Local business owners interested in learning more about exporting their goods and services are invited to a seminar organized by Texas A&M International University's (TAMIU) Small Business Development Center (SBDC) Wednesday, March 21 from 9 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. in the TAMIU Student Center room 231.

The event is free and open to the public.

Michael González, TAMIU-SBDC director, said that business owners are invited to the event targeting local business owners or potential business owners interested in exporting.

"We will be discussing opportunities available for these types of business activities, and providing information on the STEP Grant, offered by the U.S. Small Business Administration," González explained.

"Speakers from the Department of Commerce, the Texas Department of Agriculture and the University of Texas at San Antonio’s International Trade Center  (UTSA-ITC) will provide information about incentives and programs available for business owners," González said.

González explained that a business owner may be an exporter and not know it.

"If you have a product or service that is provided to an international clientele, you are an exporter," he said, "This means that many local professional services firms, retail, restaurants and hotels may qualify as exporters.”

“Funded by the State Trade Expansion Promotion (STEP) Grant Initiative from the U.S. Small Business Administration, the Texas Department of Agriculture (TDA) aims to increase the number of Texas small businesses exporting to foreign markets, and to boost the value of exported goods and services,” González said.

“The TDA has partnered with the Texas Governor's Office of Economic Development and Tourism (OOG), UTSA-ITC, and the U.S. Department of Commerce to develop and implement a program to offer Texas businesses export training, technical assistance, and market expansion opportunities through participation in State-led trade shows, and financial support to conduct individual export activities,” González said.

"We encourage Laredo business owners to attend this event to learn more about resources available to them as exporters, including upcoming scheduled foreign trade activities," González said.

The TAMIU-SBDC has been assisting small businesses in the community for 31 years. In 2017 alone, it assisted a total of 699 new clients, and provided 3,197 counseling hours to new and existing businesses.

For more information, please contact González at 956.326.2480,or by email at michael.gonzalez@tamiu.edu. Additional information is online at sbdc.tamiu.edu, or by visiting TAMIU-SBDC offices located in the Sue & Radcliffe Killam Library, room 321.