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NetWork Kansas
Facilitates Launch of Economic Gardening Pilot Program
Wichita, Kansas, June 16, 2010 - NetWork Kansas announced today
that it will coordinate and provide matching funds for the launch of an
Economic Gardening pilot program for businesses in rural communities
throughout Kansas. In addition to existing NetWork Kansas funds, NetWork Kansas also received a
$50,000 Rural Business Enterprise Grant from
USDA Rural Development to help fund the pilot program.
NetWork Kansas has
collaborated with an Economic Gardening Working Group convened by the Kansas Department of Commerce Rural Development
Division since the fall of 2009 to determine the pilot program's
objectives, scope, and criteria for evaluation. Current members of the
working group crafting the vision and direction for this pilot program
include representatives from the following
organizations: Advanced Manufacturing Institute at Kansas
State University; Kansas Department of Commerce
Business Development Division; Kansas Economic
Development Alliance; Kansas Inc.; Kansas Small Business Development Centers; Kansas Technology Enterprise Corporation; NetWork Kansas; Western Kansas Rural Economic Development Alliance (wKREDA);
and Wichita Technology Corporation.
Pioneered in 1989 by the
city of Littleton, Colorado, Economic Gardening embraces strategies to
grow existing 2nd-stage businesses by providing them with valuable
business-intelligence tools such as: A.) Sophisticated databases that
identify market trends, potential partners or competitors and unknown
resources buried deep inside industry information; B.) Geographic
information systems; C.) Search-Engine Optimization (SEO) tools; and
D.) Social media monitoring applications that can track websites, blogs
and online communities to see what people are saying about specific
companies and products. By supporting existing businesses in a
community that is poised for growth, economic gardening encourages the
development of essential infrastructure that sustains long-term,
internally-propelled economic growth. "The Economic Gardening Working
Group and dozens of other organizations dedicated to helping Kansas companies grow are very excited about the
concept of providing sophisticated assistance to businesses in this
stage of development, said NetWork Kansas Director Steve Radley, "This is where jobs will
come from."
The Kansas
Pilot Program will engage 35-40 Kansas
businesses in rural communities statewide. These selected businesses
will engage with an experienced national "Jump Start" team of technical
assistance professionals who will deliver economic gardening services
tailored to each business' particular situation. The Economic Gardening
pilot program will be officially launched at a kickoff conference in
Dodge City, KS on November 15, 2010 in conjunction with the Kansas Marketplace conference November 16-17, 2010.
Economic Gardening Pioneer Chris Gibbons and Mark Lange from
the Edward Lowe Foundation will be the featured speakers. After the
conference, early growth and 2nd Stage Businesses will be encouraged to
apply online. Application requirements will be available online and at
the kickoff conference.
For more information about the
Economic Gardening pilot, contact Steve Radley at 316-218-6304 or Erik
Pedersen at 316-978-7310.
***** ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** *****
***** ***** *****
Mark your calendars for the Kansas
Economic Gardening Entrepreneurship Forum
November 15, 2010
The forum will feature Economic Gardening Pioneer
Chris Gibbons and Mark Lange from the Edward
Lowe Foundation and will include sessions discussing the nature and uses
of Economic Gardening technical assistance for 2nd stage growth
businesses, an overview of the status of Economic Gardening's deployment
and use in other states and across the world including information
about the Kansas pilot program for businesses in
rural communities.
More information is coming soon!
Sponsored by: NetWork Kansas For additional information, please
contact Steve Radley at 316-218-6304 or sradley@networkkansas.com or
Erik Pedersen at 316-978-7310 or epedersen@networkkansas.com
***** ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** *****
***** ***** ***** Announcing the Launch of the 2010 Entrepreneurship (E-)
Community Competitive Round
NetWork
Kansas is seeking additional Kansas communities to participate
in its innovative Entrepreneurship (E-Community) Partnership. This
fourth round of E-Community applications will be accepted through August
16, 2010.
Each E-Community benefits from
an injection of capital that is raised locally through the NetWork
Kansas Entrepreneurship Tax Credit Program. Participants can apply for
up to $125,000 in tax credits, which allows them to raise approximately
$150,000 in funds designated for matching loans and grants to businesses
in their respective communities.
Communities
chosen to become E-Communities partner with NetWork Kansas to achieve
the following results: 1) Through the NetWork Kansas Entrepreneurship
Tax Credit Grant, communities establish a fund for entrepreneurs and
small business owners that is administered at the local level; 2) Each
E-Community maps local, regional and state assets available to assist
entrepreneurs and businesses; 3) The establishment of a long-term
tracking accountability system to measure business and economic growth;
and 4) A long term partnership with nearly 500 NetWork Kansas partners
statewide that assist entrepreneurs and small businesses to provide a
positive impact on the Kansas economy.
Click
below to download an application kit.
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Posted on 07/13/2010 *Governor Parkinson announces Governor's Award of Excellence, Governor's Exporter of the Year at Kansas Cavalry Encampment, *Independent Evaluation says Public Square is Working
more | Posted on 07/13/2010 NetWork Kansas has worked hard to create a statewide network of nearly 500 resource partners offering services ranging from business plan assistance to help leasing a storefront. Our referral coordinators are powerful encyclopedias of resource knowledge and perform the almost magical task of uniting entrepreneurs with the right resources at the right time. Still, it is not often we put ourselves in the shoes of entrepreneurs and experience the specialized assistance of our resource partners firsthand. I recently attended a KSBDC (Kansas Small Business Development Center) class titled "Small Business Marketing Strategies." The KSBDC has 19 different offices located across the state staffed by 35 team members eager to foster the entrepreneurial spirit. The KSBDC offers a diverse range of classes on including, "Meeting the 3 Ms: Learning the Basics of Marketing, Management and Money," "Federal Tax Workshops," "Introduction to Social Media for Businesses," and more.
more | Posted on 07/13/2010 The second Rural Grocery Store Summit in Manhattan, KS June 14-15, 2010 brought to our attention the vital role rural grocery stores play in the survival of rural communities. Rural grocers have to deal with a host of difficult issues: declining local populations, increased cost of doing business, and intense competition from big box stores. States all across the nation are interested in these issues because rural communities throughout America face the same dilemmas.
more | Posted on 07/13/2010 The forum will feature Economic Gardening Pioneer Chris Gibbons and Mark Lange from the Edward Lowe Foundation and will include sessions discussing the nature and uses of Economic Gardening technical assistance for 2nd stage growth businesses, an overview of the status of Economic Gardening's deployment and use in other states and across the world including information about the Kansas pilot program for businesses in rural communities.
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