SBA Announces 2023 Florida Small Business Week Winners

By on April 21, 2023   /   Award, Blog, Education, Emineo Media, SBA, US Small Business Administration   /   Leave a comment

Miami, FLA. – The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) South Florida District Director Malcom Richards is proud to announce the 2023 Small Business Week winners for the district and state.  The South Florida district is also home to two national award winners:   SCORE Chapter of the Year and Small Business Development Center of the Year.

“National Small Business Week is the time when SBA recognizes and congratulates those small businesses and champions that are having impact on our loc al, state, and national economies.   We are delighted to work with two nationally recognized Resource Partners: Broward SCORE and SBDC at FIU.  We also like to recognize Orlando Espinosa our 2023 South Florida District and State of Florida Small Business Advocate of the Year.  This year’s small business winners from South Florida have demonstrated the innovation, determination, and leadership that typifies the entrepreneurial spirit that is so vibrant in our District.  All businesses make enormous and meaningful contributions to their communities by creating jobs and giving back of their time, talents, and treasures” stated District Director Richards.

The 2023 Small Business Week Award Winners and lenders will be recognized at events around the district during the 31st annual Small Business Week Celebration from April 30 to May 6, 2023.

For more information about local winners or programs available through the Small Business Administration, please visit us at https://www.sba.gov/southflorida or call (305) 536-5521.

2023 Small Business Development Center of the Year

National Winner

South Florida District and State of Florida

Florida International University SBDC (Miami, Florida)

Brian Van Hook, Director

2023 SCORE Chapter of the Year

National Winner

Broward SCORE (Broward County, Florida)

George Gremse, Chapter Chairman

2023 South Florida District and State of Florida Small Business Advocate of the Year

Orlando Espinosa, Emineo Media (Miami, Florida)

2023 South Florida District and State of Florida Small Business Persons of the Year

Karina Doracio & Luis Contreras, AmePower (Miami, Florida)

2023 South Florida District Woman Business Owner of the Year

Rochelle Graham-Campbell, Black Oynx World (Fort Myers, Florida)

2023 South Florida District Minority Business Owner of the Year

Mark Clifton, Spathe Systems (Tampa, Florida)

2023 South Florida District and State of Florida Rural Business Owners of the Year

Dustin Blank & Stacey Howell, B&H Farms (Immokalee, Florida)

2023 South Florida District Exporter of the Year

Christopher McKenney, Mango Publishing (Coral Gables, Florida)

2023 South Florida District Women’s Business Center of the Year

Jaime Brock, weVenture (Melbourne, Florida)

The 2023 Small Business Week Award Winners and lenders will be recognized at events around the district during the 31st annual Small Business Week Celebration from April 30 to May 6, 2023.

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2018 SBA South Florida Small Business Awards

By on May 2, 2018   /   Award, Businesses, Emineo Media, Entrepreneurs, SBA, US Small Business Administration   /   Leave a comment

Congratulations to Orlando Espinosa, co-founder of Emineo Media! Orlando was recently announced as winner of the 2018 State of Florida Small Business Advocate of the Year by the U.S. Small Business Administration. Florida SBDC at FIU was proud to have nominated him for this well deserved honor.

Read about some of the other winners here:
SBA

MIAMI – U.S. Small Business South Florida District Office recently announced the winners of the SBA’s 2018 District and State of Florida Small Business Week Awards.
Rockledge, Florida-based SeaDek was named the SBA 2018 Small Business National Exporter of the Year. The company, nominated by the Small Business Development Center at the University of Central Florida, will be travel to Washington D.C to receive their award during the 2018 National Small Business Week Awards Ceremony.
“This is a celebratory announcement for the entire South Florida region,” said Lynn Douthett, interim district director for the South Florida District Office. “First and foremost, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to the entire SDBC at UCF team for their contributions towards SeaDek’s success. Rewarding this company on a national stage for their hard work and dedication will help to inspire other entrepreneurs considering expanding their business into the international trade marketplace.”
Exporter of the Year (National, Region IV, State of Florida and South Florida District)
Serenity Gardner, chief operating officer and Jason Gardner, vice president of marketing for SeaDek in Rockledge, Florida
Women’s Business Center of Excellence (Region IV, State of Florida and South Florida District)
weVENTURE at Florida Institute of Technology in Melbourne, Florida
Small Business Person of the Year (South Florida District)
Anais Badia, chief medical officer and owner of Florida Skin Center in Fort Myers, Florida
Minority-Owned Small Business Person of the Year (State of Florida and South Florida District)
Brian Butler, president and chief executive officer of Vistra Communications – an 8(a)-certified and Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business (SDVOSB) in Tampa, Florida
Community Partner of the Year (State of Florida and South Florida District)
The Miami Bayside Foundation in Miami, Fla.
Small Business Advocate of the Year (State of Florida and South Florida District)
Orlando Espinosa, co-founder of Emineo Media and 2016 SBA State of Florida Advocate of the Year, located in Miami, Florida
Young Entrepreneur Small Business Person of the Year (State of Florida and South Florida District)
Luisa Santos, founder of Lulu’s Nitrogen Ice Cream in Miami, Florida
Veteran-Owned Small Business Person of the Year (South Florida District)
Moises Montañez, owner of Alta Quality Builders and SBA Region IV Regulatory Fairness Board member, located in Miami, Florida
Woman-Owned Small Business Person of the Year (South Florida District)
Karen Viera, owner of The Med Writers and 2016 SBA Emerging Leaders graduate, located in West Palm Beach, Florida
Winners will be presented with their NSBW awards during various ceremonies throughout the District.
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Doral Business Forum

By on February 5, 2017   /   Branding, Businesses, Education, Emineo Media, Entrepreneurs, SBA, SCORE Miami Dade, US Small Business Administration   /   Leave a comment

Doral Business Forum – Thursday, February 9, 9 a.m.-12 p.m.

The City of Doral and the Economic Development Advisory Board present a free Business Forum that presents engaging speakers and experts in business, higher education, government and trade. Attendees will have the opportunity to interact with representatives from Miami-Dade County,
Miami Dade College, the Small Business Administration, SCORE, the Beacon Council and other organizations that provide resources to help small businesses succeed.

The keynote speaker will be Miami Herald President and Publisher Alexandra Villoch.

Other speakers include: Vivian Walters Jr.,Small Business Development Section Chief of the Internal Services Department at Miami-Dade County;

Dr. Roger Ramsammy, President of Miami Dade College West Campus;

Jonel Hein, Deputy District Director of the Small Business Administration;

Orlando Espinosa, Co-Founder of MICROscholarships Inc.

Stanley Rigaud, Economic Developer of International Programs for The Beacon Council.

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