NEWBERRY — The 17 Small Business Development Centers across the state — including the one in Newberry County — have helped individuals start and grow businesses.
“The organization has done a lot for the state of South Carolina,” Pete Oliver, Columbia’s area manager for the S.C. Small Business Development Center, told the Rotary Club of Newberry on Friday.
Oliver said that with $26 billion in federal contracts for South Carolina, “we must be doing something right to make South Carolina businesses grow and prosper.”
Oliver also said four of the 17 locations are regional offices including Clemson, Winthrop, the University of South Carolina and S.C. State. The Newberry office is located at 2100 College St. Nancy Williamson is the certified business adviser at the Newberry office.
“A lot of people want to have their own business to grow, develop and support their families,” Oliver said, adding that there are pros and cons. “I think we can learn from their mistakes.”
Oliver spoke of people who had succeeded but also told those in attendance about someone who had to scale back and is trying to work on the problems before beginning again.
Oliver relayed a story about a Columbia woman who lost her job because the company she worked for went went bankrupt. The woman had more than 18 years experience and within six months of walking in the door, she had her own location for a photography business.
He said that she and her partners are open and profiting well in their first month of business.
“However, this is not true all the time,” said Oliver.
He said that “people who are in total denial and unwilling to change or work and are not willing to make sacrifices and unwilling to do marketing can’t survive.”
“The people we serve are real, their problems are real and we need to work with them for more success. That’s the goal of the small business development center,” said Oliver.
For more information about the Small Business Development Center, visit www.scsbdc.com.
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