SBDCs provided support for 24K NYS small businesses in 2022

New York Small Business Development Centers (SBDCs) provided direct support to more than 24,000 small-business clients across the state in 2022. 

The work of New York’s 22 regional SBDCs last year resulted in more than $475 million in financial impact, 2,000 new business startups, and more than 10,000 jobs created or saved, SUNY said a July 26 news release.

SBDCs are administered by SUNY and primarily funded by the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA).

“NYSBDC is a vital organization that truly is a lifeline for small businesses and the customers and communities they support,” SUNY Chancellor John King, Jr. contended in the release. “SUNY is committed to economic development and upward mobility across the state. Hand-in-hand with the NYSBDC, SUNY showcases how networks of learning and entrepreneurship can fuel the future of business and the new world of work while creating a pipeline of support by educating the next generation of workers.”

The New York SBDCs work closely with other state economic-development agencies, faculty, and students at host institutions, as well as representatives from private industry and business to focus resources on assisting small businesses and entrepreneurs. 

The SBDCs emphasize counseling and training services for women, veterans, people with special needs, and minority clients, SUNY said.

In 2022, the SBDCs served a diverse group of clients with women accounting for 47 percent and minority groups comprising 40 percent. Another 15 percent of clients were from rural areas, 6 percent were veterans, and 2 percent were individuals with disabilities.

The New York SBDCs additionally served more than 17,500 individuals through a series of more than 500 webinars and workshops addressing various topics for entrepreneurs, including grant access, business-plan writing, and taxes. The webinars assist in attaining professional development and certification goals and help to ensure both advisors, NYSBDC clients, and the broader public have the necessary skills to tackle the challenges of business ownership. The SBDCs work also includes connecting potential employers with job-placement offices on SUNY campuses.

“I couldn’t have done it without the Onondaga SBDC & [SBDC Advisor Mark Pitonzo],” Michael Bower, president of Eagle Metalcraft, Inc. of DeWitt, said in the SUNY release. “They helped me with the business valuation, creation of a business plan and construction of financial projections for external funding.” 

“As a result of the funding facilitated by the Binghamton SBDC, the majority of Quadrant’s employees in New York State were retained (43 jobs saved),” Richard Uhlig, CEO of Quadrant Biosciences, said. “Further, since August, we’ve added six new employees.”          

Established in 1984, the New York SBDCs have worked with more than 519,000 businesses, helping them invest $7.5 billion in the state economy and create more than 240,000 jobs.