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Greetings!
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Kelly Manning
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I hope your 2012 is off to a great start! I am very excited about the year ahead and the ever growing potential of Colorado small businesses. In this issue we celebrate another great success story and I am confident 2012 will hold many such successes. January has two great conferences: the Seed Capital for Startups on January 23rd, and the Colorado American Legion Employment Committee Job and Resource Fair on January 26th. These are great resources that I encourage you to take advantage of.
I am also pleased to announce the opening of the Aurora SBDC. This satelite location will be operated by the South Metro Denver SBDC and will service the City of Aurora and eastern Arapahoe County. Additionally, the Larimer SBDC has a new director: Deborah Moeck. Welcome aboard Deborah!
With new partnerships, exceptional conferences, a growing network and quality training courses, the SBDC is poised for another great year. I look forward to seeing the expanding impact of small business in Colorado. Please don't hesitate to contact your local SBDC center to find out how we can be of service to you and your business!
Sincerely,
Kelly Manning
State Director
Colorado Small Business Development Centers
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 Success Story: Denver Beer Company
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article by Danielle Findley of South Metro Denver SBDC
When college buddies Charlie Berger and Patrick Crawford opened the Denver Beer Company this summer, it was the culmination of over two years of hard work and dedication towards making a shared passion a business reality.
"I was a home brewer, brewing beer in my bathtub, and enjoyed it a lot," says Crawford. "I found out Charlie was a professional brewer, so I called him up and asked him if I could come over and brew a beer with him one day."
The two began brewing together on the side, trying out new recipes and bringing their beer to barbecues and other get-togethers. It was then that they began talking about possibly starting a business.
"We found out early that the first step, if we were serious about this, was to write a plan," says Berger. "So we did a little research on it and found ourselves at the South Metro Denver SBDC and they were offering the Colorado Leading Edge business planning course right when we were ready for it." The Colorado Leading Edge is a 12-week course which assists entrepreneurs in writing a business plan and each participant receives five hours of one-on-one consulting for individual help.
The men registered for the Colorado Leading Edge: NxLeveL™ for Start-Ups course in August 2009 and began developing a business plan to open their own brewery. The class proved to be valuable to them in more ways than one.
"I don't think we'd be anywhere close to where we are now without [the class]. It definitely kept us on track with writing the business plan," says Crawford. "Neither of us had a business background, so we gained all of our business knowledge from the class and one-on-one consulting meetings with the experts at the SBDC."
Berger adds, "We put a bunch of time and energy into writing the plan. Without having done that, I don't think we would have been as sure that we could work together every day."
They completed the first draft of their business plan that fall, but continued working with the SBDC while tweaking and adding to it over the course of the next year. They raised the $400,000 in capital they needed (plus more!) in just 8 days, secured their desired location in the heart of Denver and began construction. On opening day in August 2011, they served over 1,200 people and made $14,000.
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Photo provided by Denver Beer Co., courtesy of Mackinnon Photography
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"Charlie and Patrick worked very hard on their business plan and have reaped the rewards by opening, and now running, a successful business. They won both local and statewide awards for their in-depth business plan," said Marcia McGilley, Executive Director of the South Metro Denver SBDC. McGilley went on to say, "Many of the SBDC consultants who worked with these entrepreneurs have visited the beer garden and enjoyed the pretzels and beer immensely."
With 10 employees on the payroll, 46 different recipes already created, 750 gallons of beer brewed each week, national recognition for their beer garden, an award-winning batch at the Great American Beer Festival in Denver this fall, and having already surpassed their $350,000 sales goals for the year, the two are now looking to what the future may hold for their company.
"This winter, we're going to start writing on a business plan to build a bottling facility. Within the next 2-3 years, we want to try and have a bottling facility so that we can serve our customers in another way. Right now, we're brewing beer as fast as people are drinking it," says Crawford. "A bottling facility will be a $1.5- $2 million project, so we need to start writing our business plan right away!
Patrick is also featured in the "Back to School" story in the January 2012 edition of
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| Seed Capital for Startups - The Fine Details | | |
Do you need a sound strategy to raise capital for your startup? Join CAMT to de-mystify the investment process and get an inside look at how seed investors think and operate.
Facilitated by Jim Troxel, Training Director, Development Capital Networks, LLC. Jim has led close to 100 seminars on seed investing for entrepreneurs and angel investors, and has launched five businesses and served as advisor to countless others.
Topics Covered:
* Attracting capital to your technology
* Make or break factors for investors
* Valuing your enterprise
* Pricing and negotiating the deal
* Closing, mentoring and cashing out your investors
What You'll Get:
* Know-how-- on pricing and structuring seed investments
* Networking-- with entrepreneurs, local professionals,
advisors, and seasoned investors
* Team skills-- learn how to engage with investors to
accom plish your goals
* Valuable references-- materials include a manual with a duediligence
guide, detailed listing of resources, and articles on
business planning
Date: Monday, January 23rd For More Info:Elizabeth Weiland
Time: 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. eweiland@camt.com.com
Location: Golden, CO or 303.854.4900
Cost: $149
To Register: http://camt.com/events
**This seminar has been subsidized by the NIST Manufacturing Extension Partnership to bring affordable expertise to startup companies looking to scale-up manufacturing during the commercialization process.
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Colorado American Legion Employment Committee Job and Resource Fair | | The Colorado American Legion Employment Committee invite all Veterans to the Mid-Year Job and Resource Fair :
Thursday, January 26th 2010 Plaza Hotel Conference Center 1900 Ken Pratt Blvd. Longmont, CO 80501 10:00 am - 3:00 pm
The Fair is FREE and open to all veterans - Active, Guard, Reserve & former service members!
*FREE Resume writing for federal jobs seminar presented by Avue Technologies - preregistration is required!
*FREE Starting a small business seminar presented by the Colorado SBDC - preregistration is required!
*VA Regional Office,VA Hospital and VA Voc Rehab will be there to assist veterans with claims and Medical Registration!
*Veterans Service Officer will be present to assist veterans with questions and provide assist!
*Business will be looking to hire. So please come prepared with resumes and dress professionally!
For Employer/Education/Resource Organization Registration go to |
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SBDC & Revenue North Teaming Up
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Small businesses face a lot of uncertainty in 2012 - but the Colorado Small Business Development Center and Revenue North Small Business Growth Summit are working hard to help businesses succeed despite the odds stacked against them.
The SBDC will provide free small business counseling for attendees of the two-day conference organized by Revenue North. In addition to the SBDC counseling, attendees will have access to over 60 sessions designed to educate small business owners on sales, marketing and talent and capital acquisition.
 "The SBDC supports organizations that help small business receive essential information through trainings, conferences and counseling," Kelly Manning, SBDC State Director, said. "We are thrilled to partner with Revenue North and their conference which could provide great information to help small businesses thrive in thiseconomy." The SBDC counseling will focus on the immediate needs of the business - anything from starting a business to growing a business to staying in business. "The SBDC is an invaluable resource to attendees of the Revenue North Small Business Growth Summit," Chris Coughlin, Revenue North CEO, said. "Our objective is to provide affordable, world-class training to small businesses. The onsite and follow-up training and counseling from the SBDC will help attendees implement what they learn at the conference." Tickets to the event are $99 per person or $299 for up to five staff members. Organizers are maintaining high quality because they don't fly in high-priced celebrities to give pep talks or host expensive meals or cocktail parties. Instead, the Revenue North Small Business Growth Summit is a no frills event where you'll need to bring your own pen and paper. Speakers are drawn from the pool of talent right here in Colorado - professionals at the top of their field with first-hand knowledge of the Colorado market. |
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Veterans Job Bank
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The Veterans Job Bank powered by NRD.gov provides Veterans with a central source for identifying Veteran-committed employment opportunities and assists America's employers  in identifying qualified Veterans. A key part of the White House's ongoing commitment to improve access to employment opportunities for transitioning Service Members and Veterans, it facilitates access to hundreds of thousands of private-sector job openings specifically targeted at Veterans.
The Veterans Job Bank returns job opportunities based on search criteria entered by the user. Powered by a Google search, jobs are drawn from various job boards that have posted or specifically tagged jobs for Veterans.
Begin your job search by visiting the Veterans Job Bank powered by the NRD.
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New Larimer SBDC Center Director
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The Colorado SBDC is pleased to announce the addition of Deborah Moeck as the Center
Director for the Larimer SBDC. Please drop by the Larimer SBDC open house February 1st to help welcome her! The open house will run 4:00pm-6:00pm at the Larimer SBDC office: Key Bank Tower 125 S. Howes Street, Suite 150 Fort Collins, CO 80521
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Globe 2012 Conference & Trade Fair - Vancouver, Canada
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Who: Coloradocompanies specializing in the following areas: Water & Wastewater - Bioenergy & Biofuels - Hydrogen & Fuel Cells - Clean Energy - Green Buildings & Energy Efficiency
 What: Available free of charge for Colorado companies participating in this mission: Access to the GLOBE trade fair: Profiles of confirmed exhibitors are available online. Site visit program: On Tuesday March 13, 2012, the Canadian Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade will be organizing six different full-day site visit programs offered in the Canada in Denver. Tentative date: Thursday March 15, 2012.following sub-sectors: Water & Wastewater, Clean Energy, Bioenergy, Hydrogen & Fuel Cells, Green Buildings, and Smart Grid. B2B matchmaking: pre-screened, one-on-one business meetings will be arranged through the General Consulate of Available at a reduced rate for Colorado companies participating in this mission: Access to the GLOBE conference: Colorado companies interested in attending the conference (see the conference program online) will receive the special rate of CA$995 (+12% tax) which includes access to all three days (Mar 14-16) of the conference, welcome reception on Mar 13 & other networking events. Access to the trade fair is included. Why: Over the past 20 years, the GLOBE Series has become the nexus for global networking and leadership on the business of the environment. Taking place in Vancouver, Canada every two years since 1990, the GLOBE biennial conference & trade fair has served as a major world platform to transform environmental challenges into business opportunities. Where: Vancouver Convention Centre, Canada When: March 13 - March 16, 2012 Attendance statistics from GLOBE 2010: 9,000participants, 3,600 participating organizations, 1,800 conference delegates, 800 CEOs & Presidents in attendance, 425 exhibitors and 52 countries.
GLOBE's 2012 trade fair has already confirmed pavilions from: countries throughout Europe, Asia and North America plus a number of private companies. Profiles of confirmed exhibitors are availableonline. 
The Colorado Office of Economic Development & International Trade has grant funds available that can help offset travel related expenses to Vancouver for eligible Colorado companies. Registration Deadline: January 31, 2012 To register or for more information, please contact Ms. Stephanie Garnica of the Colorado Office of Economic Development & International Trade at Stephanie.Garnica@state.co.us, Ms. Carine Vindeirinho, Director, International Relations, GLOBE at Carine@GLOBE.ca or Mr. Guillaume Parent, Vice Consul & Trade Commissioner, Consulate General of Canada in Denver at Guillaume.Parent@international.gc.ca. |
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Webinar for Counselors: Financing for your clients through BoeFly
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BoeFly is committed to the ASBDC and SBDC counselors and offers FREE accounts to all
 counselors to enable you to build loan request packages and connect with over 1500 lenders on the BoeFly platform. Please join us in a live webinar on January 17th, 2pm EST for a BoeFly tutorial. This will be beneficial for those already using BoeFly and those that are looking to get started. Here are a few topics that we will cover: - How to create your free account - How to build a lender ready package - How to securely post a loan request - How to work with Lenders on the BoeFly platform For more information on our partnership visit http://www.boefly.com/sites/sbdc/ Webinar: Financing for your clients through Boefly - Free Service for SBDCs Date: Tuesday, January 27th 2012 Time: 2 - 3 PM EST REGISTER HERE |
Colorado Lending Source shifts to Email Submission of Loan Apps.
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In an effort to improve efficiencies associated with the processing of loan applications, Colorado Lending Source will immediately begin encouraging partner lenders to submit all new loan requests via secure email to one of two new email boxes dedicated to the task of
 receiving, logging, processing and rapidly deploying loan packages, in a truly expeditious manner. Customer service has always been the focus of Colorado Lending Source and by introducing a single channel (actually two single channels) for new loan application submissions, in combination with a dedicated back-end loan portal, Colorado Lending Source hopes to improve turn-around times and the throughput of new loan requests. The two new email boxes that have been created are: submit504@clsloans.org submit7a@clsloans.org |
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Business Tip: Key to a good lease is not in the deal but in the details
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article from the Association of Small Business Development Centers, by Jack Garson
True story: A tenant signed a lease for more than 100,000 square feet in a warehouse district, intending to use the space for offices. Zoning laws, however, prohibited office use in the warehouse district.
Unfortunately, the tenant was unaware of this restriction. To compound his problem, the tenant was responsible under the lease for complying with zoning requirements. As a consequence, the bargain space became expensive, unusable premises, and the tenant was faced with an enormous financial loss.
Whether you are a tenant or a landlord, creating a successful lease requires attention to detail, knowledge of the law and prevailing practices, and careful drafting of the document.
Read the rest of the article at ASBDC.
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Upcoming Events
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NEECO
Wednesday, January 18th
Business Resource Workshop
Carbon Valley Regional Library
7 Park Aveneue
Frederick, CO 80504
1:00pm-3:00pm
Registration is required. For more information please call 720-685-5114
San Luis Valley
Friday, January 20th Business Workshop for Military Veterans The Depot 610 State Avenue, Suite 120 Alamosa, CO 81102 4:00pm-6:00pm Free to military veteran business owners Tuesday, January 24th Tax Seminar for the Self Employed The County Annex Building 965 6th Street Del Norte, CO 5:30pm-7:30pm Cost: $20/business Wednesdays, February 2nd - April 25th Leading Edge Seminar The Depot 610 State Avenue, Suite 120 Alamosa, CO 81102 6:00pm-9:00pm Cost: $250, with a $25 discount for any SLV Chamber of Commerce Member or Non-Profit. A scholarship of $100 may be awarded. To register, call the SLV-SBDC office at (719) 589-3682, or email donna@slv-sbdc.com South Metro Denver Tuesday, January 24th Legal Series: Startup Business? Help - 911! South Metro Denver Chamber of Commerce 2154 E. Commons Ave., Suite 342 Centennial, CO 80122 8:00am-10:00am (Check-in at 7:45am) Cost: $25.00 Monday, January 30th Business Startup Basics Smoky Hill Library 5430 S. Biscay Circle Centennial, CO 80015 6:30pm-8:30pm Cost: no charge Tuesday, February 7th Cash Flow Fundamentals Highlands Ranch Library 9292 Ridgeline Blvd. Highlands Ranch, CO 80129 6:30pm-8:30pm Cost: no charge Denver Tuesday, January 24th Breakfast Brown Bag: Reach Your Audience through a Combined Mobile Marketing and Social Media Strategy Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce
1445 Market St.
Denver CO, 80202 7:30am-9:00am Cost: $15 (includes breakfast) Wednesday, January 25th Creating Instant Connections to Rapidly Expand Your Network Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce
1445 Market St.
Denver CO, 80202 9am - 12pm Cost: Gold/Silver Level DMCC Members: FREE Bronze Level DMCC Members: $25 SBDC Clients/Non-members: $35 Wednesday, February 1st Grow Your Business with Google Plus, the Fastest Growing Social Network Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce 1445 Market St Denver CO, 80202 9am-12pm Price: Gold/Silver Level DMCC Members: FREE Bronze Level DMCC Members: $25 SBDC Clients/Non-members: $35 Southern Colorado Tuesday, January 31st Economic Gardening/GIS Seminar Pueblo Community College - Occhiato Theater 5:30pm - 7:30pm Cost: Free Tuesday, February 28th Get a "Y.O.B" (Your Own Business) Panel Presentation Pueblo Community College - Occhiato Theater 5:30pm - 7:30pm
Cost: Free
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 Colorado Small Business Development Center a division of
Colorado Office of Economic Development
& International Trade
1625 Broadway, Suite 2700
Denver, CO 80202 |
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