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small business

265 Va. companies make 2024 Inc. 5000 list
Aug 13, 2024

265 Va. companies make 2024 Inc. 5000 list

This year, 265 Virginia companies made the Inc. 5000 list of the nation’s 5,000 fastest-growing privately held companies, released Tuesday by Inc. magazine. Ranking at No. 53 overall, Ashburn IT services firm Blu Omega, a woman-owned small business founded in 2020, was the highest-ranking Virginia company on the list. Blu Omega’s clients include federal agencies […]

Jul 30, 2024

StartVirginia: Heard Around Virginia August 2024

Blacksburg is moving forward with the renovation of a former dry-cleaning business into a retail business incubator. Slated to open by the end of 2025, the Blacksburg Retail Incubator is planned at 414 N. Main St., a 5,000-square-foot building owned by the town. After the building has been improved, Downtown Blacksburg Inc. will locate there […]

Apr 29, 2024

StartVirginia: HEARD AROUND VIRGINIA

Comcast said April 9 it is opening grant applications for a program benefiting small businesses across Greater Richmond. The global cable broadcasting company said the grant packages include business coaching, education sources, media schedules, creative production, technology makeovers and $5,000 in cash. Comcast’s RISE program is aimed at supporting the growth of small businesses while [&h[...]

Small biz pilot program to aid Phoebus retailers
Jan 30, 2024

Small biz pilot program to aid Phoebus retailers

Five small retailers in Hampton’s Phoebus downtown historic district will receive micro grants and nearly a year of free professional guidance, thanks to funding from a state grant awarded to The Retail Alliance, a nonprofit trade association in Norfolk. The Retail Alliance and the Phoebus Partnership, a nonprofit organization bolstering area small businesses, won the […]

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Jan 17, 2024

Anthem, Va. Chamber partner on WiseChoice Healthcare Alliance

The Virginia Chamber of Commerce is partnering with Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield on the WiseChoice Healthcare Alliance, the next step in providing health insurance to small business owners through a newly legalized consortium structure, President and CEO Barry DuVal announced Wednesday. In June 2022, Gov. Glenn Youngkin signed legislation allowing associations — including […]

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Nov 10, 2023

Richmond-area mainstay Saxon Shoes moves onto its next step

When Gary Weiner’s parents, Jack and Gloria, opened Saxon Shoes in Richmond in 1953, they mostly carried shoes for children with orthopedic needs. Now, 70 years later, the store has something for everyone and is about 10 times the size of the average shoe store and operates in Henrico County’s Short Pump area. It‘s become a […]

A bigger piece of the pie
Sep 28, 2023

A bigger piece of the pie

For the past 15 years, Vibhaa Vermani has led a successful woman-owned small government contracting business, providing integrated technical solutions and services to numerous U.S. government agencies, including the Department of Defense and the Internal Revenue Service. Vermani’s Virginia Beach-based company, Chitra, is one of many Virginia small businesses thriving in the federal contracti[...]

WASHINGTON - SEPTEMBER 20: A "danger" sign is posted at a work site on the East Plaza of the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday, September 20, 2023. (Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call via AP Images)
Sep 27, 2023

Federal shutdown could have deep impacts in Va.

In late 2018, the last time the federal government shut down for an extended period, Eric Ingram was furloughed from his job at the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration for six weeks. He used that time to co-found a startup focused on space safety, Scout Space. Launched in 2019, the Alexandria-based technology startup now has several […]

Ida MaMusu, chef and co-owner of restaurant Africanne on Main, says the city’s prior parking regulations were costly and difficult for small businesses. Photo by Shandell Taylor
Jul 30, 2023

Parking repeal gives developers space

Opening a small business is never easy, but for many Richmond entrepreneurs, the city’s previous minimum parking requirements added extra hassle. Two years ago, when restaurant Africanne on Main relocated from its longtime downtown location to a spot near Virginia Commonwealth University’s Monroe Park Campus, city parking regulations stalled the move for weeks, recalls co-owner [&helli[...]

Lynchburg center to lift entrepreneurs
May 30, 2023

Lynchburg center to lift entrepreneurs

Months before its opening in late summer or early fall, Lynchburg’s new Center for Entrepreneurship already has gathered about 15 applications from local business owners and professionals seeking to mentor those launching or looking to grow their own companies. That’s a positive sign, says Stephanie Keener, executive director of the Lynchburg region’s Small Business Development [[...]

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May 16, 2023

Shenandoah Valley SBDC names new director

Shenandoah Valley’s Small Business Development Center, based in Harrisonburg, has named Allison Dugan its newest director.  Dugan started with the regional SBDC as a part-time program manager in 2014 and became a business adviser in 2015, adding the title of assistant director in 2019. She took on the leadership role May 1, after serving as […]

Hampton Roads Chamber exec retires
May 8, 2023

Hampton Roads Chamber exec retires

In her 33 years with the Hampton Roads Small Business Development Center, Debra Hamilton Farley helped launch 252 businesses that created more than 9,000 jobs. Now, she’s taking a break — Farley retired on April 28. “Debra’s contributions to the small businesses community she has served over her sterling career is invaluable,” said Bryan Stephens, […]

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