What's Inside:
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Latest Covid-19 Relief $ Available, including SBA's Shuttered Venues Operator Grant
- 2021 Small Business Award Winners
- What is the Technology Innovation Center?
- Tech Center Client Shoutout
- Upcoming Training Events
- Digital Marketing Day 2021
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Key 2021 Covid Financial Support Programs |
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Loan and grant program highlights include:
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Employee Retention Tax Credits - Up to $28k per employee. Employers can claim up to 70% of total compensation expense per employee (up to $7k per employee per quarter in 2021).
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Restaurant Revitalization Fund - This fund can help provide restaurants with grants equal to pandemic-related revenue loss, up to $5 million per physical location.
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SBA Debt Relief Program -New SBA Loans now through September 2021 get their first 3 months of payments FREE (capped at $9,000 per month per borrower) made on your behalf. Existing SBA Loans may get additional months of FREE payments as well, based on additional criteria.
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Shuttered Venue Operators Grant - (Up to $10 million per venue) The program includes over $16 billion in grants to shuttered venues, to be administered by SBA’s Office of Disaster Assistance. After some initial delays, the application portal reopened on April 26th. Venues need to have SAM# which takes about a week to register. Restaurant applicants should use caution as this may interfere with your ability to receive the Restaurant Revitalization Fund. More info here.
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EXPIRING SOON! Paycheck Protection Program 2021 - SBA forgivable loan made through local banks to help businesses keep the workforce employed ends May 31st.
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Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) - The U.S. Small Business Administration is increasing the maximum amount small businesses and non-profit organizations can borrow through its COVID-19 EIDL program. Starting the week of April 6, 2021, the SBA raised the loan limit for the COVID-19 EIDL program from 6-months of economic injury with a maximum loan amount of $150,000 to up to 24-months of economic injury with a maximum loan amount of $500,000.
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Kansas SBDC Small Business Award Winners |
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Our clients tell our story best. Every year we choose two or three clients from each of our service regions that exemplify small business success.
Our objective is to honor them at our annual Kansas SBDC Existing, Emerging, and Exporting (E3) Small Business Awards. Our goal is to highlight both the impact of small businesses in our Kansas communities and the impact of our work with these same businesses.
This program includes summaries of their stories along with information about the Kansas Small Business Development Center (Kansas SBDC).
Congratulations to all of the 2021 Small Business Award Winners!
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What is the Technology Innovation Center?
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The Kansas SBDC helps innovators and inventors evolve from the Idea stage to the Commercialization & Launch stage.
While the Kansas SBDC has always helped entrepreneurs launch their new business ideas, the Kansas SBDC Tech Innovation Center specializes in helping advise and connect people who have innovative ideas to the government or private entities that can use and or fund those ideas.
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Current Technology Center clients have presented at the Encountering Innovation conference which attracts Department of Defense technology scouts. Clients have also previously attended the Rural & Independent Innovator's Conference where rural innovators can find the resources needed to further expand ideas and business.
Learn more about Technology Commercialization here.
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Kansas SBDC Tech Center Client Shout Out |
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EMP Shield is an innovative company based out of Emporia, Kansas, headed by Tim Carty and Pete Keegan. Through the help of the Kansas SBDC, the company has earned many industry successes. Carty came up with a way to improve a surge protector that prevents irreparable damage from High-Altitude Electromagnetic Pulse surges.
After reaching out to the Kansas SBDC at Emporia State and talking with advisors, the two pitched their idea at the 2018 Encountering Innovation conference. They also saw the opportunity to pitch EMP Shield to Department of Defense scouts. Through the help of the Kansas SBDC, the duo prepared the paperwork for the application and received coaching for the presentation at the conference.
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A notable result through their work with the Kansas SBDC was EMP Shield saw an expanded client base and the company has also started to export the surge protector. Tim Carty and Pete Keegan credit the success of the business to the advisors at the Emporia SBDC, as well as to their hardworking team. They advise meeting with local SBDC representatives, and to key in on suggestions the advisors make, as well as keeping the advisors current on any successes and failures.
Carty notes that the Kansas SBDC advisors always go out of their way to problem-solve and brainstorm solutions.
"They have always made time to listen and offer advice, or gather information so that they can research the issue," Carty said. "Then they have always come back with answers, suggestions, or resources suggestions with which we could follow up."
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Upcoming Webinars and Virtual Events |
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Upcoming Webinars
Fee: $15.00
Fee: $75 before April 30th
$99 after April 30th
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Facebook Live
May 26th @ 10:00
Innovators who are interested in commercializing your product/idea, check out our upcoming Facebook Live event that will provide an overview on how the Kansas SBDC can help.
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Digital Marketing Day at JCCC
Fresh Thinking for Tomorrow's Customer
"In 2020, small businesses dove directly into the tidal wave that was the Covid-19 pandemic. One word echoed around the world: “PIVOT”! Businesses quickly adapted their business models to the changing climate, and with that adaptation came the rush of digital marketing."
Digital Marketing Day is an all-day virtual event filled with breakout sessions, two mainstage events, and two early morning boot camps featuring industry experts from marketing, content creation, graphic/web design, and many more.
With Keynote speaker Christina Hager, President of Ovations Digital, will the keynote speaker. Christina has a long-standing reputation as a master communicator and has worked with individuals from entrepreneurs to executives from Fortune 500 companies.
May 18, 2021
8 am - 5 pm
Fee: $99
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Funded in part through a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Small Business Administration |
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Kansas Small Business Development Center
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Questions? Don't hesitate to contact our 7 day-a-week assistance line at (800) 949-7661 |
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