Category: Business

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With the weather heating up and the Fourth of July fast approaching, thousands of Florida residents and visitors will be heading to our world-class beaches this month. People aren’t the only ones that love coming to our beaches every summer. July is also peak nesting season for both sea turtles and shorebirds, and many other creatures both large and small inhabit sandy shores. In honor of Clean Beaches Week, celebrated July 1 through 7, here are tips to help keep our beaches healthy and beautiful.

Pick up trash

Be mindful of shorebirds and sea turtles

Steer clear of dunes

Fill holes in the sand

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Earlier this year, the State of Florida secured nearly half a billion dollars in loan funding specifically targeted for Florida small businesses and entrepreneurs. Approximately $142 million dollars of the total $488 million is currently available to fuel small business growth.

The Florida State Small Business Credit Initiative (SSBCI) is administered by the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity with the goal of promoting small business lending, supporting small business growth within Florida, and creating jobs that support families and build strong economies. SSBCI can help businesses in any industry access credit for any business purpose even if they don’t have much collateral, are in a rural area, are very small, or new. There are several loan options available to meet the needs of the individual businesses, including:

Collateral Support Program: Enables financing that otherwise might be unavailable due to collateral shortfall.

Loan Participation Program: Supports a private loan by either acting as a companion loan or purchasing a portion of a loan already made by the private lender.

Loan Guarantee Program: Guarantees a loan or line-of-credit for eligible small businesses.

For more information, please click here.

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The Miami-Dade Business Navigator (MDBN) program is an exciting local initiative funded (in part) through a grant from the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA). It is led by the Florida Small Business Development Center (FSBDC) at Florida International University’s College of Business (FIU Business) in partnership with six experienced community organizations: Ascendus, Branches, the EDC of South Miami-Dade, the Miami-Dade Chamber of Commerce, Prospera, and StartUP FIU Procurement.

Through the program, the group of community partners will connect with underserved local entrepreneurs in Miami-Dade County to launch, grow and revitalize their businesses. The MDBN program focuses on small businesses—including microbusinesses with fewer than 10 employees—owned by women, veterans, and socially and economically disadvantaged individuals.

Webinars will begin in July, click here to view the full listing of events and to register.

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The Small Business Growth Fund is back! In partnership with the Global Entrepreneurship Network (GEN) and with funding from Etsy and Progressive, the Small Business Growth Fund provides small business owners the capital they need to make their next move. Recipients will receive $5,000 – $25,000 grants to accelerate their growth and achieve their goals in 2023.

Applications are due by July 21, 2023. To apply click here.

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The Small Business Growth Fund is back! In partnership with the Global Entrepreneurship Network (GEN) and with funding from Etsy and Progressive, the Small Business Growth Fund provides small business owners the capital they need to make their next move. Recipients will receive $5,000 – $25,000 grants to accelerate their growth and achieve their goals in 2023.

Applications are due by July 21, 2023. To apply click here.

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This free virtual hospitality training session will focus on Developing a Service Culture; Onboarding Seasonal Teams and Developing Plans of Action. The session is 90 minutes in duration, followed by a 15-minute Q&A with your Forbes Travel Guide Executive Trainer.

To register for this training click here.

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Small-business owners can apply for a $25,000 grant offered by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Top Small Business Awards. Eligible businesses will have fewer than 250 employees or less than $20 million in revenue for both 2021 and 2022.

Businesses will go through several rounds of judging to select an eventual winner. About 70 finalists will receive a yearlong membership with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and seven top finalists will get recognition during an award ceremony.

The deadline to apply is July 7, 2023. Click here to apply.

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Are you an aspiring entrepreneur looking to start or grow your business? This grant is for you! Whether you’re starting over or starting from scratch, Incfile wants to be there to help your business succeed. One adult entrepreneur will receive $2,500 to put toward business startup costs and will also receive free formation services from Incfile.

Click here to apply.