CITY OF CHICAGO PARTNERS WITH WESTERN UNION TO HOST FIVE NEIGHBORHOOD SMALL BUSINESS EXPOS
“Small Business Center on the Road’ series Brings City Hall to Neighborhoods; will Kick-off on March 14 at Malcolm X College
March 17, 2015
The City of Chicago Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection (BACP) Small Business Center and the Office of New Americans (ONA) have partnered with Western Union to present a series of small business expos in neighborhoods throughout Chicago.
“Providing free professional resources is the City of Chicago’s way to for entrepreneurs to start a new business and help established businesses grow,” said Maria Guerra Lapacek, Commissioner, Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection. “This partnership with Western Union is another opportunity to bring business resources from City Hall into the neighborhoods.”
Western Union is providing $45,000 to sponsor the City of Chicago’s “Small Business Center on the Road” series in 2015, 2016 and 2017.
The series, which is free to attend and open to the public, kicks off on Saturday, March 14, at Malcolm X College, 1900 West Van Buren Street, Chicago, and includes a keynote from author and former White House Director of Events, Laura Schwartz.
Small Business Center on the Road Series location and dates:
- March 14 at Malcolm X College, 1900 West Van Buren Street
- May 9 at the Arturo Velasquez Center/Westside Technical Institute, 2800 South Western Avenue
- July 18 at the South Shore Cultural Center, 7059 S. South Shore Drive
- September 19 at 1871, 222 West Merchandise Mart Plaza
- November 14 at Wilbur Wright College, 4300 North Narragansett Avenue
During the expos, entrepreneurs and business owners will be able to consult, network and gather information from more than 40 government and non-profit agencies including the City of Chicago Department of Buildings, IRS, and U.S. Small Business Administration, that will provide information about licensing, taxes, finance, business planning and much more.
Business consultants from the Small Business Center will be on hand to help attendees apply or renew for a business license, walk people through the steps of obtaining a business license or make an appointment for additional counseling at City Hall. The Center for Economic Progress will provide a free tax clinic with representatives providing 20-minute consultations, two workshops will be offered on trending business topics and one for Chicago Public School students to learn about beginning a career by being an entrepreneur, and a photographer will take free professional headshots for attendees to use on their social media sites, marketing materials and more.
For more information about the City of Chicago’s Small Business Center and the business expo series, visit www.cityofchicago.org/sbc.
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