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NEWS & EVENTS

MARCH 1st  , 2022  |  NEWS & EVENTS

Lauderhill Making Historic Moves for Businesses Doing Business in their City – Led by Jamaican-Born Vice Mayor Melissa P. Dunn and the City Commission

In a show of unity, Vice Mayor, Melissa P. Dunn, Mayor Ken Thurston, and the Lauderhill City Commission shared with business owners and potential business owners in attendance the 10 resources designed to help them start and or grow a business in Lauderhill. This historic prosperity and sustainability model the city has created is called “Raising the BAR” which stands for Business Attraction and Retention.

Here are 6 of the 10 resources being offered to help you start or scale a business in Lauderhill.

  1. Lauderhill Shines – an education and mentorship program
  2. A Concierge Program – provides a consultant that walks people through getting their business licensed and registered with the city
  3. The Target Market Program – for current qualified Lauderhill businesses to gain access to a projected $10M in contracts in certain categories over the next 5 years
  4. Commercial Façade Grant – used for beautification and building improvement
  5. Small business micro loan program
  6. Small Business Entrepreneurship Center

Highlights of this major initiative are the huge investments the city is making to ensure Lauderhill businesses have access to capital, other funding, and procurement opportunities first before solicitations go to businesses outside the city. “We are committed to creating a thriving entrepreneurial ecosystem in Lauderhill. Now is the best time to own a business in Lauderhill and we invite you to open your business in our city and become part of this historical event“, said Vice Mayor Dunn.

One important group in attendance were the graduates of the Vice Mayor’s Lauderhill Shines Training Program for new and existing businesses. An education and mentorship program designed to give participants access to training modules providing lessons in marketing, bookkeeping and accounting, how to write a business plan, the ABC’s of becoming a certified business, how to gain access to funding and business capital, and just about everything business owners need to succeed and scale. All attendees were afforded the opportunity to meet and speak with representatives from the city’s procurement department after the presentation.

1. Important takeaways from Vice Mayor Dunn’s presentation:

  • The City has graduated 41 Lauderhill Shines businesses in 3 cohorts
  • They are on-track to graduate an additional 17 more in 4 weeks bringing the total number of business served through Lauderhill Shines to 58. A majority of whom are new business in the city
  • Lauderhill will be investing $1 Million dollars in grant funding to Lauderhill Businesses
  • Lauderhill businesses will have access to bid on over $80M in procurement opportunities over the next 5 years
  • Of the $80M, 25% of that investment is earmarked for certified Lauderhill SBEs
  • The new Target Market Program is designed to give businesses the chance to participate in over $10M in opportunities over the next five years.
  • BAR is projected to help 500 business start or scale in the City of Lauderhill
  • We could not do this without a team all of which were present to speak with business owners.

The City has put protocols in place to ensure staff and commission will be accessible to all businesses that need assistance to start, maintain or scale their business to achieve the highest level of success. This history making initiative comes right on the heels of Verizon declaring Lauderhill one of the “top 10 cities to do business in the U.S.” For more information and how to access programs through Raising the BAR visit https://lauderhill-fl.gov/BAR

Click here to read the original article.

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