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Do you know a teen who wants to own their own business someday or even now? UMD Teen Enterprise challenges students to think entrepreneurially while still in high school.
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CED monthly training opportunities newsletter.
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Contact Us
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UMD Center for Economic Development
The Small Business Development Center for Northeast Minnesota
Regional Center: Duluth
Satellite Offices: Hibbing/Chisholm
Quad Cities International Falls Grand Rapids Ely Grand Marais/Cook County Two Harbors/Lake County Carlton County
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HELPING ENTREPRENEURS AND BUSINESSES GROW AND SUCCEED
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| WATCH YOUR EMAIL - MN SBDC CLIENT SATISFACTION SURVEY | |
Have you worked with a Small Business Development Center (SBDC) Business Consultant in 2012 or 2013?
If you have met with Mike Andrews, Shannon Benolken, Richard Braun, Pat Campanaro, Jenny Herman, Jennifer Pontinen, Terry Rupar or Curt Walczak for assistance with your business in the past two years you might receive a Client Satisfaction Survey in your email this week! We value your feedback so please watch for, and take the time to complete the survey.
The Client Satisfaction Survey measures the economic impact that you as a client of the SBDC have experienced as well as our affect as a program. The results from our 2012 clients are analyzed by Dr. Chrisman and be measured against all SBDC's nationwide. 2013 client information gauges satisfaction on a statewide and regional basis for the Minnesota SBDC Network.
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SBA Office of Advocacy Releases Minnesota Small Business Profile
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 The U.S. Small Business Administration, Office of Advocacy has just published the latest "Minnesota Small Business Profile." Here are some of their findings for our state:
Minnesota has:
- 501,551 Small Businesses
- 114,111 Small Businesses with Employees
- 387,440 Small Businesses without Employees (Nonemployers)
- 1,173,793 Workers Employed by Small Businesses
State Economy Overall
* Minnesota's economy grew at a faster rate than the United States in 2012. Minnesota's real gross state
product increased by 3.5 percent compared to 2.5 percent for U.S. gross domestic product. (Source: BEA)
* The employment situation in Minnesota has improved. The unemployment rate in Minnesota declined from
5.5 percent in December 2012 to 4.6 percent in December 2013. This is below the national average of 6.7
percent. (Source: BLS)
Employment
* Minnesota's small businesses employed about half or 1.2 million of the state's private workforce in 2011.
* Almost all firms with employees are small. They make up 97.8 percent of all employers in the state.
* Firms with fewer than 100 employees have the largest share of small business employment.
* The three industries with the most small business employment were: health care & social assistance, manufacturing, and accommodation & food services.
* In Minnesota, small businesses created 14,429 net new jobs in 2011. The biggest gain was in the smallest firm size category of 1-4 employees. (Source: BDS)
* The number of people who were primarily self-employed increased in 2012. For demographic detail on the state's self-employment.
* The state's private-sector employment increased in 2013 by 2.0 percent, which was below the national average growth rate of 2.1 percent. (Source: BEA, BLS)
Income and Finance
* Most small businesses are sole proprietors. Annual income from sole proprietorships increased 7 percent in the 3rd quarter of 2013 and totaled $18.6 billion. (Source: BEA)
* The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation tracks banks and bank branches and publishes annual data for each state. For more detailed information see www2.fdic.gov/sod/sodSummary.asp?barItem=3.
* In 2012, 122,451 loans under $100,000 (and valued at $1.5 billion) were issued by Community Reinvestment Act lending institutions in Minnesota. (Source: FFIEC)
The Small Business State and Territory Profiles report on the economic status of small business from 2010 to 2013. They include information on the number of firms, employment, demographics and other topics using the most recently available government data. They are a reference tool for researchers, policymakers, and small entities who are interested in how small firms are performing regionally or nationally. Note that this report defines small businesses as firms with fewer than 500 employees. |
| myRA: HELPING SMALL BUSINESS OWNERS SUPPORT THEIR EMPLOYEES' RETIREMENT GOALS | | |
By: Victoria Suarez-Palomo
 Small business owners have a number of demands on their time and resources, and that's one of the reasons Treasury created myRA (My Retirement Account). This program, which will go into effect later this year, will enable employers to give workers access to a retirement savings account and a chance to begin saving regularly. For businesses, making myRA available to employees is straight-forward. Treasury will handle account set-up and maintenance and will provide informational materials for business owners to share with their employees. There is no employer-match or contribution. In fact, all that interested employers have to do is to make Treasury-provided program materials available to their employees and set-up ongoing payroll direct deposits into myRA for interested employees. myRA is intended for employees who do not have access to an employer-sponsored plan or who are not eligible for their employer's plan. myRA is not intended to replace current employer-sponsored retirement plan offerings. For workers, myRA is simple, safe and affordable. Employees will be able to start saving with an initial deposit of as little as $25 and recurring contributions each pay period of $5 or more. Account balances are protected--they will never go down in value, and there are no fees for savers to participate.The accounts are also portable so if savers change jobs, they can maintain their accounts across multiple jobs. Contributions to a myRA are made with after-tax dollars, and when savers retire, they won't have to pay taxes on what these accounts earn, provided they meet the relevant Roth IRA requirements. While myRA is for employers of all sizes, Treasury knows that this program has the potential to be a powerful tool for small business owners who want to help their employees begin to save for retirement. |
| GROW YOUR BUSINESS WITH GOVERNMENT CONTRACTS (St. Cloud) | |  Gain valuable insight into the process of selling to the government. Learn about getting started with federal and state contracting, registering as a vendor, financing options for small business owners, eligibility requirements for Veteran Verification, and legal considerations for working with the
government. Meet and network with community resource providers that help develop Minnesota businesses.
Tuesday, June 24, 2014 9:00 am - 4:00 pm St. Cloud State University - Welcome Center 355 Fifth Avenue S., Classroom 120 St. Cloud, MN 56301
Cost: $10.00 (Includes Parking and Refreshments) Pre-registration is required by Friday, June 20.
To Register:
For more information: Contact PTAC at (612)259-6565 or skomrosky@mnptac.org |
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