Top five ways Miami-Dade County is supporting small businesses

As Miami-Dade County celebrates Small Business Month during the month of May, Mayor Daniella Levine Cava highlights the top five ways her administration is supporting small businesses and announces a calendar full of events for all business owners and entrepreneurs to learn more about the County's programs and initiatives. Full list of events can be found at the end of this release.

"Small businesses are the backbone of our economy, and the fabric that makes Miami-Dade a vibrant, world-class community," said County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava. "I am committed to supporting all our small businesses to thrive and grow, not just during Small Business Month but year-round – and these five strategies are providing small businesses with the resources and support they need to succeed and be future-ready."

The following are Mayor Daniella Levine Cava's top five initiatives to support small businesses in Miami-Dade County:

1. Access to Meaningful Technical Assistance: Small businesses need access to meaningful technical assistance to help them navigate the complex business environment.  
   1. STRIVE305: Through Strive305, Mayor Levine Cava's small business program under the Office of Economic Development, the administration has reached over 5,000 small businesses through a host of workshops and classes. These workshops include one-on-one counseling, training, and technical assistance to small businesses at no cost.
   2. Virtual STRIVE305: Provides free 24-hour virtual access to meaningful workshops and classes for businesses in our community.
   3. Axis Helps Miami: Axis Helps Miami connects Miami-Dade County small business owners and residents to the economic resources our community needs to weather storms and emerge with stability and strength.
   4. BizHack Academy: Through a partnership with STRIVE305, since 2021 BizHack Academy has offered free online marketing and sales classes to business owners and entrepreneurs in Miami-Dade County. During April and May, BizHack is offering seven free masterclasses for small business owners entitled "AI for Marketing and Sales," designed to be a user guide to the opportunities and challenges of artificial intelligence for the workforce of the future.
2. Access to Capital: Understanding that small businesses need access to capital to sustain and grow their operations, Miami-Dade County offers the following:
   1. RISE Fund: As a Commissioner, Mayor Levine Cava supported legislation brought by Commissioner Eileen Higgins to create the RISE Fund, a county-funded loan fund just for small businesses in Miami-Dade that lends up to $75k.
   2. BizUp Program: Provides $25k and $50k grants to small businesses. So far, 20 local business received grants totaling $1 million. A new round of grants is expected to be announced in the summer of 2023.
   3. In addition, Mayor Levine Cava is working with financial institutions, including our County's top Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs), to increase access to capital for small businesses.
3. Procurement Opportunities: Miami-Dade County is committed to providing small businesses with procurement opportunities. In 2022, Mayor Levine Cava announced important reforms to procurement, implementing a purpose-driven approach which focuses on a set of values that look to procure local, sustainable and from small businesses first, as well as to increase outreach to small businesses, simplify procurement processes, and provide technical assistance to help small businesses participate in county procurement opportunities. As part of these reforms, the mayor created a new Strategic Procurement Department that is working to create a single bidding platform for County procurement and recently introduced the Vendor Academy to provide trainings and workshops for our small and local vendors. Finally, we are working with other institutions like hospitals, government agencies, universities and large employers, to procure locally as well.
4. Support for Workforce: Small businesses are a significant source of employment in Miami-Dade County. Mayor Levine Cava is committed to supporting small businesses in creating and retaining jobs in the county and building a future-ready workforce prepared to take on jobs in the fastest-growing industries.
   1. Workforce development: The County is working to provide workforce training and development programs through STRIVE305 to help small businesses train and retain employees, and Mayor Levine Cava continues to work with CareerSource Florida to create and fund programs to support the workforce, like the apprenticeship program at Bean Automotive.
   2. Partnership with labor and Miami-Dade Public Schools: The County is working with our partners in labor, MDCPS and area businesses to provide apprenticeships working on County construction projects.
   3. Partnerships with academia: Mayor Levine Cava and the Office of Innovation and Economic Development are working with our local academic leadership to create impactful education and workforce readiness programs for the jobs of today and the future.
5. Support of Innovation and Startups: Miami-Dade County has a thriving innovation and startup ecosystem. Mayor Levine Cava is committed to supporting innovation and startups in the county by providing access to capital, technical assistance, mentorship programs, and is also working to attract and retain talent to support the growth of the innovation and startup ecosystem.
   1. Miami-Dade Innovation Authority: In January, Mayor Levine Cava announced the launch of the new Innovation Authority with seed funding of $9 million to support entrepreneurship in Miami-Dade by sourcing private-sector solutions to some of our most pressing issues.
   2. Grants: Miami-Dade College and United Way are actively working with Miami-Dade County to use their funds to connect, train and upskill our residents for careers.

To learn more about all these initiatives and all the tools available for small business, visit miamidade.gov/strive305.

In celebration of Small Business Month during May, Miami-Dade County will host the following events:

Small Business Week Kick-off Event and Mentor Protégé Program Kick-Off  
When: May 1, 2023, 10 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. 
Where: Father Gerard Jean-Juste Community Center, 690 NE 159th Street, Miami, FL 33162 
 
Construction Industry Day            
When: May 2, 2023, 10 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. 
Where: Carrie Meek Foundation Building, 4000 NW 142nd Street, Opa-Locka, FL 33054 
 
Architects & Engineering Industry Day       
When: May 3, 2023, 10 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.  
Where: Zoo Miami – Florida Room (Building next to Ticketing entrance) - 12400 SW 152nd Street, Miami, FL 33177 
 
Goods & Services Industry Day                    
When: May 4, 2023, 10 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. 
Where: Miami Dade College Wolfson Campus, 300 NE 2nd Avenue, Miami, FL 33132, Building 5, Room 8525 
 
Small Business Enterprise Awards Recognition                
When: May 5, 2023, 10 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. 
Where: Stephen P. Clark Center, 111 NW First Street, Lobby, Miami, Fl 33128 
 
Tourism Impact Small Business Pitch Night  
When: May 30, 2023, 6:30 p.m. - 9 p.m. 
Where: PS Social, 51 NW 36th Street, Miami, FL 33127