WASHINGTON – A new award has been added by the U.S. Small Business Administration in celebration of National Small Business Week 2013. The Small Business Exporter of the Year award will recognize a small business that is successfully engaged in exporting. A national award winner will be selected from among state award winners from each of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands and Guam.
“The winner of our south district small business exporter of the year will not only compete for state honors but now compete for national recognition,” said SBA South Florida District Director Francisco “Pancho” Marrero. “Small businesses are key in Florida’s manufacturing and exporting, comprising 95.8 percent of the state’s exporting firms and responsible for producing 67.1 percent of the state’s total exports. This national award emphasizes the importance of small business exports in our state and national economies.”
The announcement of the Small Business Exporter of the Year award will be made during World Trade Month in May 2013. Detailed information including eligibility and required documents for the national Small Business Exporter of the Year award are available at http://www.sba.gov/about-offices-content/3/3074/news/354841.
Nominations for the Small Business Exporter of the Year award are being accepted through the online portal, launched last month, at http://nationalsmallbusinessweek.sba.gov/, and in hard copy.
The dedicated web portal was designed for easy submission and tracking of award nominees for Small Business Week 2013, and is actively accepting nominations of small businesses for each award category.
In addition, SBA has extended the deadline to submit nominations, via the online portal and in hard copy form, to January 31, 2013.
Guidelines for Small Business Exporter of the Year and the other south Florida district awards can be found online at: www.sba.gov/content/2013-south-florida-district-office-small-business-week-awards-nominations-guidelines. The deadline for all SBA South Florida District Small Business Week award nominations will be extended from Jan. 11 to Jan. 31 to coincide with the new national award submission timeline.
The additional award categories for Small Business Week 2013 are:
• National Small Business Person of the Year (chosen from among state award winners from each of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Guam)
• Phoenix Awards (recognizing outstanding accomplishments during disaster recovery)
• Small Business Prime Contractor of the Year
• Small Business Subcontractor of the Year
• The Dwight D. Eisenhower Award for Excellence (recognizes large prime contractors who have used small businesses as suppliers and contractors)
• SBA 8(a) Graduate of the Year (for recent graduates of the SBA’s 8(a) contracting program)
• Small Business Development Center (SBDC)Excellence and Innovation Award (nominations of SBA-funded SBDC Service Centers)
• Women’s Business Center (WBCs) of Excellence Award (nominations of SBA-funded WBCs)
• Veterans Business Outreach Center Excellence in Service Award (nominations of SBA-funded Veterans Business Outreach Centers)
Award winners for each of the award categories, including the Small Business Exporter of the Year
award, will be invited to Washington, D.C., to receive the national title and to attend National Small Business Week events.
