Mayor Woodfin celebrates entrepreneurs during National Small Business Week, May 6-10
Birmingham, Ala. ー The City of Birmingham and its partners will celebrate National Small Business Week, May 6 – 10, with events to help entrepreneurs grow their business and help the public show their pride for small businesses.
“Small businesses are the backbone of our economy and the pride of our neighborhoods,’’ said Mayor Randall Woodfin. “Like many of our residents, my first job was at a small business. Today, small businesses are responsible for creating over half of the jobs in our city. This week, we salute those taking risks and making a mark in following their dreams of running a small business in Birmingham.”
The city’s office of Innovation and Economic Opportunity will help facilitate programs this week.
“Our vision is for Birmingham to become a destination for small businesses to thrive,’’ said Josh Carpenter, director of IEO. “This year, we took a big step in executing that vision by launching the Small Business Council, which gives small business owners a seat at the economic development table. Celebrating National Small Business Week also highlights just how important small businesses are in creating jobs, supporting families and building our community.”
Here’s the schedule:
- Small Businesses and Social Media
May 6 – 10
Show your pride for small Birmingham businesses by taking photos of some of your favorite small businesses in Birmingham and posting to social media, especially Twitter and Instagram. Tag photos with the hashtag #BHMsmallbiz.
Paid in Full: Navigating Business Financials and Tax Compliance
Monday, May 6 | 11 a.m. – 1 p.m.
REV’s Social Venture | 5529 First Ave. South in Woodlawn | Birmingham
Workshop audience: Aspiring business owners and business owners who’ve been in business for three years of less
Instructor: Certified QuickBooks ProAdvisor Talibah M. Bayles will lead this workshop on how Quickbooks can assist entrepreneurs. Laptops are not required.
What you will learn: How Quickbooks can help business owners with bookkeeping; create invoices; generate financial statements; use financial statements to attract investors, apply for bank loans; apply for local/federal government contracts; apply for various certifications; develop performance goals and business growth; file taxes as a business owner; and more. (Registration is now full for this class.)
About the instructor
Talibah M. Bayles is founder and CEO of TMB Tax & Financial Services in Birmingham, a full-service tax and revenue planning firm on a mission to help small businesses thrive with airtight financial strategies that enable and maintain growth. Bayles is a member of Birmingham’s new Small Business Council.
About REV Birmingham
REV Birmingham creates vibrant business districts, which are the hubs of cultural commerce. They create a cool factor that enhances lives and helps attract and retain talent to our region.
A Real Boss Practices Self-Care! A workshop for entrepreneurs
Tuesday, May 7 | 8:30 – 10 a.m.
Practice Works |3613 Sixth Ave. South | Birmingham
What you will learn: It’s often said that small business owners do more by 9 a.m. than most people do all day. But during that drive to run a business, so many small business owners fail to stop and take a break. They can get overwhelmed and forget to take care of themselves. This course examines a few techniques on how to practice self-care in a fast-paced business world. Entrepreneurs can’t take care of their businesses, employees and customers if they don’t take care of themselves.
8:30 – 9 a.m. – Networking/coffee/snacks
9:00 – 9:30 a.m. – Tricks to introducing a self-care practice into your busy day
9:30 – 10 a.m. Reset and rejuvenate: A short meditation and chair yoga practice (It’s optional to remove shoes. Work clothes are appropriate.) Registration is required.
Facilitators
Sheri Bagwell, meditation coach
Meredith Calhoun, yoga expert
Valerie Thompson, LPC
Snacks will provided by Blueroot Co., a locally-sourced healthy/whole food start-up.
About Practice Works
Practice Works provides wellness professionals with the ideal setting to effectively and successfully practice through flexibility, support and community.
PitcHER Perfect – Pitch, Practice & Java
Wednesday, May 8 | 8:45 – 10:15 a.m.
TruFund Financial Services | 1927 First Ave. North, Suite 602 | Birmingham
What will happen: Budding, female entrepreneurs will appear before a panel of experts and a live audience to get feedback on how they pitched their business idea. Come be part of the live audience and learn what it takes to hit the right points in making a compelling pitch for investors. Most pitch participants are part of the TruFund’s Women In Business: An EmpowHERment training cohort. (Participants have already been selected to make the pitches. Registration is to watch the pitches.)
Networking and coffee will be in full effect.
Admission is free, but advance registration is required for event.
About TruFund Financial Services Inc.
TruFund Financial Services Inc. is a wholly independent national non-profit Community Development Financial Institution. TruFund seeks to stimulate economic development in communities that are underserved by traditional banking institutions by providing fair and accessible capital, hands-on technical assistance and innovative solutions to small businesses and non-profit organizations.
