Charles H. “Chip” Templeton Jr., director of the Small Business Development Center at Mississippi State University, addressed the Eupora Rotary Club on Aug. 2.
Established in 1981 and located in the Thad Cochran Research, Technology and Economic Development Park, the center provides a range of free services to assist small business owners and entrepreneurs. One of eight units of the Mississippi Small Business Development Center, it also is an outreach program of the MSU College of Business.
The MSU-based center is responsible for 10 counties, including Webster. Its offices are located in Suite 105E of the Business Incubator Building at 60 Technology Blvd., as well as in Meridian.
Each center unit provides ongoing classes on launching and developing business plans. All information and counsel provided to clients is confidential.
Mississippi SBDCs provide aspiring and existing small businesses access to professionally certified and credentialed business counselors to help mitigate common obstacles and find success. They provide a comprehensive toolkit of specialized services for businesses looking to accelerate market growth, including:
• Market and finance research
• International trade
• Cybersecurity center
• Marketing specialist
• Technology commercialization
• Business resilience/disaster preparedness
• On-demand business workshops
During Fiscal Year 2020, the MSU SBDC served 356 clients. Of those, 66 were not in business and 286 were in business. Clients served included 175 women (48%), 53 veterans (15%) and 143 minorities (39%).
Templeton provided this data regarding the center’s economic impact from services provided during that period: 26 new business starts, capital formation totaling $5.71 million, 168 jobs created and gross sales of $83 million.
For more information about the MSU Small Business Development Center, visit www.business.msstate.edu/research/sbdc. Templeton may be reached at ctempleton@business.msstate.edu or 662-325-8684.
