By BRENT MARTIN
St. Joseph Post
Missouri Western State University will reopen the Small Business Development Center in St. Joseph.
The Small Business Administration awarded Missouri Western the contract which goes into effect January first.
Missouri Western Workforce Development Director, Rebecca Lobina, oversaw the center previously and says its loss hurt businesses in the region.
“That was a huge loss for the entrepreneurs and other businesses within the region,” Lobina says about its closing. “They no longer had that free access of Fortune 500 resources at their disposal. And the loss was really felt by the different entities across the region.”
The Small Business Development Center had been operated in St. Joseph under the auspices of Northwest Missouri State University in Maryville. It closed when Lobina left to take her new position at Missouri Western.
Lobina is pleased to see the center reopen and to once again lead it.
“The center is at my heart and soul for sure,” Lobina tells KFEQ/St. Joseph Post. “I love helping small businesses across the region.”
This time Lobina will not be working directly with small business owners, but will oversee the center’s operations.
“I know that there was a big hole, a big gap when I left the SBDC and then the contract was closed after I left,” Lobina says. “So, now that it’s coming back, I feel like, I don’t know, I’m glad that it’s going to continue for the entrepreneurs across our region.”
Lobina says the aim of such centers is to educate entrepreneurs on how best to run their business.
“That’s why Small Business Development Centers are pared with educational institutions usually,” Lobina says, “because our whole process is about educating the entrepreneur so that they understand better how to be successful.”
Small Business Development Centers provide counseling and training to small business owners to help with business start-ups and expansion. Services are provided for free. The Small Business Administration will fund the St. Joseph center, according to Lobina, with matching funds from MoWest, which can be provided with in-kind contributions such as staff and facilities.
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