Expo helps people seeking to start their own business in shrinking job market

By JENNIFER ROBISON – LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL

People stroll the aisles at the Small Business and Entrepreneur Expo on Friday at South Point. The expo is projected to nearly triple its attendance from last year, an official said.

Local civil engineer Bill Bolduc has lost his job twice in the last year.

Rather than fret about his fate, though, Bolduc decided it might be the perfect time to launch his own company. Bolduc said he’s eyeing an engineering niche that few others serve, and working for himself could be his best opportunity to jump back into the labor force.

"I’ve never owned a business. I’ve thought about it often, but I’ve always had someone offer me a great job," Bolduc said. "Why take the risk and not make any money for that first year if someone’s offering you a job? But no one is offering me anything right now, so I have to make business for myself."

His interest in opening a startup led Bolduc to the Small Business and Entrepreneur Expo on Friday at South Point. Bolduc had plenty of company: The free show, a production of Nevada’s Center for Entrepreneurship & Technology, was set to nearly triple 2008′s expo attendance through Friday night, said Dave Archer, chief executive officer of the center. Early registration numbers indicated that as many as 1,500 visitors might attend the expo, which also featured educational sessions on raising capital, marketing, networking and writing business plans. That’s up from 600 in 2008. The number of exhibitors jumped from 62 a year ago to 100 Friday.

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Nevada continues to be recognized nationwide for our entrepreneurial climate, even in times of national economic uncertainty. As a state founded by entrepreneurs, we fully believe Nevada will remain a state that continues to thrive into the future because of our ever-present entrepreneurial spirit.

Small businesses employ half of the workers in the private sector in this country, account for the majority of the job growth, and according to the Small Business Administration, have generated 60 percent to 80 percent of net new jobs annually during the past decade. In an environment where so many are finding themselves out of traditional jobs, we fully anticipate a surge in startups from entrepreneurs.

That’s good news for all of us.

The SBA reports that while every industry saw employment losses during 2008, the figures for incorporated self-employed businesses remained steady.

NCET, Nevada’s Center for Entrepreneurship and Technology, is an independent nonprofit organization that works year-round to help Nevada start businesses, and to connect them to the resources they need to succeed. This mission is even more vital to the overall health and well-being of our state and local economies than ever before.

Going into business for yourself can be a daunting prospect, especially in this uncertain economic environment. However, a slow economy also is a time that presents entrepreneurs with opportunities, if only they know where to look for guidance, information and education. That’s just one reason why participation in and support of the upcoming in eWeek Nevada 2009 is more important than ever before.

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