An entrepreneurial spirit is one of southwest Minnesota’s greatest assets. It’s been developed for generations, grown through our history of agriculture and innovation, and taken off to impact practically every industry while providing a global reach. Fostering this spirit is good for our communities, whether you run your own business or not. Entrepreneurs and business leaders are a key part of creating the type of community we all want to live in.
We’re celebrating that entrepreneurial spirit during this year’s Small Business Week. The National Small Business Week Virtual Summit September 13-15 will spotlight the resilience of America’s entrepreneurs and the renewal of the small business economy as they build back better from the economic crisis brought on by a once-in-a-lifetime pandemic. The virtual summit will honor the nation’s 30 million small businesses for their perseverance, ingenuity, triumphs, and creativity.
Learn more and register for the Small Business Week Roundtable Panel – Resiliency and Pivots
At Southwest Initiative Foundation, we invest in ideas large and small that spur economic development. Loans have always been a key function of Southwest Initiative Foundation in its support of communities and businesses throughout southwest Minnesota. In the last 35 years, we’ve closed 1,247 loans totaling $54 million in our region that have created or retained nearly a million jobs. But it’s not just about the money. We come alongside entrepreneurs, coaching and equipping them to improve their business management skills.
Find out more by reading some of our small business stories from the year. And be sure to check out our Women Mean Business feature!
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Elevate Business Academy graduates first class of entrepreneurs July 6, 2021Five local entrepreneurs celebrated a step toward their small business dreams as they graduated from [...]
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Flank Steakhouse opens in downtown Hutchinson June 23, 2021
HUTCHINSON, Minn. – Entrepreneurs Vince Maertz and Amanda Thrawl-Maertz opened Flank Steakhouse in [...]
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New Granite Falls business serves up good old-fashioned fun March 22, 2021
GRANITE FALLS, Minn. – More than five years in the making, Taste in Time soda fountain and sandwic [...]
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Startup Reinvention reshapes 2021 for small business owners January 27, 2021
Four small businesses in southwest Minnesota are starting 2021 with a new game plan thanks to Southw [...]
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Matthew Dostal opens tax and consulting firm in Hutchinson January 6, 2021
HUTCHINSON, Minn. – Matthew Dostal has opened Dostal CPA Tax & Consulting in Hutchinson with h [...]
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