Business Development
Whether you just have an idea, or you’re trying to grow and accelerate your business, we’ve partnered with key organizations to help your business in house. Learn more about our partners below and the resources that they offer.
The Southwest Colorado Small Business Development Center offers no-cost business consulting and low-cost trainings that maximize the economic potential of entrepreneurs within our region. Our mission is to help existing and new businesses grow and prosper and to help emerging and existing entrepreneurs gain control of their business operations. With help from our network of business advisors we provide free guidance and counseling in all aspects of starting a new business or developing and improving your existing small business. While we cannot eliminate risk, we work to minimize it by helping clients write comprehensive business plans, conduct financial forecasts, strategize marketing tactics, apply for funding, create a social media strategy, and improve operations.
The Ute people are the oldest, continuous residence of the area that has become Colorado. Today, the Southern Ute Indian Tribe (SUIT) has approximately 1,500 tribal members with more than half living on the reservation. The Tribe is aggressively creating and operating new businesses on and off the reservation in many different industries. SUIT is the largest employer in Southwest Colorado, their economic development endeavors allow them to provide numerous services to tribal members such as: water, utilities, scholarship programs and more!
Your fledgling business idea could earn you $5,000 in this year’s Hawk Tank Business Plan Competition hosted by the Kats School of Business and the Office of Alumni Engagement. The competition is open to teams led by current Fort Lewis College students, recent graduates, and high school students! Business plans in any industry are eligible for participation.
Creating a business plan is a pivotal stage of a business’s development. The process of crafting a plan and translating its viability helps set up a business for funding and long-term success. The Fort Lewis College Business Plan Competition is a prime opportunity to take a new business idea from concept to storefront, and can earn successful plans prizes up to $5,000.
A series of educational programs prior to the day of competition help participants grow their skills and network with the Durango business community. Participating teams also can be partnered with mentors in the Durango business community.
Led by a team of rural entrepreneurs and community champions, Startup Colorado works throughout the Western Slope and Eastern Plains, supporting initiatives that benefit the long-term resources and success of Colorado’s rural entrepreneurs. The Startup Colorado mission is to demonstrate that rural entrepreneurship will ignite a culture of potential, empowering people and places to thrive and define their own future.
Silicon Flatirons is the engine powering and managing the initiative.