Last month, Dean Maratea, Economic Development Manager with Pinellas County Economic Development, joined local partners and business leaders in Toronto to tell more than 50 Canadian companies why business feels better in Pinellas County, Florida’s Ideal Business Climate.  The trip was spearheaded by the St. Petersburg Area Economic Development Corporation and included representatives from the City of St. Petersburg, SelectFlorida, and the Tampa Bay Partnership. The overarching goal? Help Canadian companies discover the resources, incentives, and opportunities available to help make the leap into the U.S. market. 

Maratea explains, “This mission was strategically planned to connect with companies we knew to be considering a U.S. market expansion or relocation and to sell the merits of locating in the greater Pinellas County-St. Petersburg area. No one organization could have presented the opportunities as well as we did as a group; our regional partnerships make events like this possible and powerful.”

Honorees of the 16th Annual GrowFL Florida Companies to Watch Awards have been announced, and we are delighted to see six Pinellas County companies included!

Recognized as Florida’s premier statewide awards program for second-stage businesses, the GrowFL Florida Companies to Watch Awards honors a distinguished group of established companies with 6 to 150 employees and annual revenue between $750,000 and $100 million. This year’s honorees emerged from a highly competitive field of nearly 500 nominations submitted from communities across Florida.

Please join us in congratulating Construction Corps, ICC-IMS, Optiversal, The Rise Collective, Top End Wheelchairs, and Top Hat Engineering. Thank you for choosing to grow in Pinellas!

Information and Opportunities for Business

National Small Business Week Awards: Apply Now

The U.S. Small Business Administration will officially recognize the hard work, ingenuity, dedication, and contributions to the economy of America’s small businesses at National Small Business Week 2027, May 2-8. Nominations are open now for NSBW Awards across a wide variety of categories.

Verizon Small Business Grant Opportunity

The Florida SBDC Network is partnering with Verizon’s Small Business Digital Ready Program, a nationwide initiative designed to equip small businesses with the tools, resources, and support they need to thrive in today’s digital economy. The program is open to all small businesses at no cost and does not require a Verizon subscription. Register explore the platform’s offerings, including over 100 curated courses, specialty offers on various business-related products. As a part of this program, Verizon has reopened its $10,000 grant opportunity and will be available all year long.