Savannah SCORE and Wells Fargo will present The 10th Annual State of Small Business in Chatham County on Wednesday, May 3, 2023. The free event will be held from 8:30 to 10:00 a.m. in the Torian Auditorium at Savannah State University, located in the Howard Jordan building of the College of Business Administration. Doors open at 8:00 a.m.

Savannah area business leaders from different sectors will each have three minutes to present a brief overview of the current state of affairs in Chatham County as it pertains to their industries. They will then offer their key insights into what this means to the future of Savannah and the small business owner.

The conference is free and open to the public.

Please RSVP with this link: score.org/savannah/event/10th-annual-state-small-business-chatham-county

The 2023 State of Small Business in Chatham County presenters are:

SPEAKER: Michael Toma, Ph.D., professor of economics, Georgia Southern University in Savannah
TOPIC: Small Business Statistical Overview

SPEAKER: Moncello Stewart, president, the Greater Savannah Black Chamber of Commerce
TOPIC: Black Business Ownership

SPEAKER: Becky Brownlee, area director, Small Business Development Center, UGA
TOPIC: 2023 Small Businesses Credit Survey

SPEAKER: Joseph Marinelli, president, Visit Savannah
TOPIC: Tourism

SPEAKER: Scott C. Scheidt, chief security officer, Seimitsu IT Services and High-Speed Broadband Fiber
TOPIC: CyberSecurity

SPEAKER: MarRonde Lumpkin-Lotson, Department of Economic Development, City of Savannah
TOPIC: Certification

SPEAKER: Paula Kreissler, executive director, Healthy Savannah
TOPIC: Productivity

SPEAKER: Victoria Saxton, COO/CFO, Small Business Assistance Corporation
TOPIC: Small Business Access to Capital in the Savannah Region

SPEAKER: Charles Bowen, corporate / entertainment attorney, The Bowen Law Group
TOPIC: Film Industry in Savannah

SPEAKER: Catalina Garcia-Quick, Business Development, Pratt Industries – Recycling Division
TOPIC: Local Strides in Sustainability

SPEAKER: Rhett Mouchet, associate broker, Colliers International Savannah
TOPIC: Commercial Real Estate Trends

SPEAKER: Jesse Dillon, Chief Operating Officer, SEDA
TOPIC: Growth in the Savannah Area

CONFIDENCE INDEX SURVEY: Phillip Scroggin, Sol Insight

Moderators for the event are the founders of The State of Small Business in Chatham County: Marjorie Young, CEO of Carriage Trade Public Relations® Inc., and Joe Marchese, owner of Joe Marchese Commercial Construction.

The presenting sponsors are Wells Fargo and Savannah SCORE.

Supporting sponsors include The University of Georgia Small Business Development Center, The City of Savannah’s Entrepreneurial Center, Savannah Area Chamber of Commerce, The Greater Savannah Black Chamber of Commerce, Buy Local Savannah, Greater Pooler Area Chamber of Commerce & Visitors Bureau, Inc., Savannah Master Calendar, The Creative Coast, Start Up Chicks, Mia Talks, Carriage Trade Public Relations Inc., Joe Marchese Construction and Sol Insights.