UNION CITY, TN – The Union City community is now an official Tennessee SmartStart™ Community. As a SmartStart™ Community, it strives to increase community collaboration and support a thriving small business and entrepreneurial environment by providing new and existing businesses with education, tools and resources. The SmartStart™ Community initiative contributes to the goal of making Tennessee the easiest place to open and run a business in the nation.
Union City and Main Street Union City along with support from the Obion County Economic Development Corporation stepped up to become Community Partners. Community Partners come in the form of diverse organizations and will increase value in the community- not to mention in customer and stakeholder satisfaction- by addressing the needs of small business owners and entrepreneurs.
Wisty Pender, BERO state director said, “It is important to have a robust group of Community Partners engaged in making their communities small business and entrepreneur friendly. Community Partners are the core of making their SmartStart Community tick!”
The SmartStart™ Community initiative trains Community Partners to assist small businesses and entrepreneurs in accessing tools and resources. The training includes how to use the SmartStart™ Guide and the breadth of resources that are available statewide. The SmartStart™ Guide provides users with a checklist on how to register a business, create a tailored business model canvas and locate important resources.
Lindsay Frilling, CEO of the Obion County Economic Development Corporation said, “We are proud to participate in an initiative that contributes to making Tennessee the easiest place in the country to open and run a business!”
The Business Enterprise Resource Office (BERO) is housed within the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development (TNECD).