Sandy Ratliff

Bio

As a way to make business support resources more accessible to the 23, mostly rural, Southwest Virginia counties that I serve, I am leading Virginia’s signature business outreach program, the Entrepreneur Express: Moving Your Business Forward workshop series. Business owners and potential entrepreneurs throughout Virginia’s great Southwest region are attending these free ½ day workshops designed to help struggling entrepreneurs learn about resources and programs to help their business succeed in Virginia. The program includes information on available business resources and delivers practical, hands-on training covering key elements of business practice. Workshop segments include information on how to start and operate a business, growing an existing business, marketing strategies, financing and other available resources within the Commonwealth. Many local economic developers are finding this to be a great way to grow their small business community. What makes this program unique and successful is that it’s a collaborative program of nearly 20 organizations/agencies within the Commonwealth that support entrepreneurship development and expansion. The winner in this approach is the small business owner who can attend one event and learn about the various programs and resources that can support his/her business start-up and business expansion. In addition, they can network with nearly a dozen services providers at one location. Find out more about the program and a listing of upcoming workshops in Virginia by visiting www.vastartup.org. Also provide counseling on sales growth through state government procurement and social media consulting to small business owners throughout Southwest Virginia. Specialties:Economic development, small business development, sales growth counseling, branding and marketing consulting, social media consulting, and community development.