FLORIDA SMALL BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CENTER AT IRSC
The recently launched statewide Small Biz Florida podcast promotes business assistance programs. Here, Tom Kindred, left, interviews a presenter during the
2019 Small Business Leadership Conference.
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TCBusiness.com
PROGRAM GUESTS
With initial funding from the Coleman
Foundation, a partnership was formed
with WPSL and WSTU, and Startup Talk hit
the airwaves. Over the years the show has
featured hundreds of guests, including
business and political leaders, entrepreneurs,
business professors and students,
business authors, economic development
professionals, and small business owners
and operators. The show features many
guests who have received corporate training
and earned professional certifications
or degrees from IRSC.
Throughout the show’s history, many
of the episodes were produced live from
business events held across the Treasure
Coast and as far away as Pensacola, Florida
SBDC network headquarters. The show
has traveled to and been broadcast from
all five of IRSC’s Treasure Coast campuses,
featuring interviews with each campus
provost.
Following a natural disaster in Florida,
the Florida SBDC at IRSC serves as the
business community’s primary contact
for the Florida Small Business Emergency
Bridge Loan Program, a state disaster loan
program. After Hurricane Irma passed
through the Treasure Coast, 36 regional
businesses received $2.7 million in assistance
from the Emergency Bridge Loan
that was promoted and broadcast on
WPSL and WSTU on Startup Talk.
“The show has given the Florida SBDC
at IRSC a platform to cover and promote
Treasure Coast business events and issues,”
says Kindred. “Most importantly, the show
has allowed us to highlight Treasure Coast
Business success, share best practices and
promote the valuable business assistance
programs here at Indian River State College.”
STATEWIDE PODCAST
Entering the fifth year of broadcasting
and leveraging worldwide streaming technology,
Startup Talk has a broader reach
and worldwide coverage. So now the
world can receive news on the Treasure
Coast business community, Florida’s small
business marketplace and Aspen Award
winner IRSC. In collaboration with its
ongoing WPSL and WSTU radio program,
the Florida SBDC at IRSC recently launched
the statewide podcast Small Biz Florida, a
program designed to highlight issues and
promote business assistance resources
available throughout Florida. The program
also partners with Indian River Magazine
to produce Treasure Coast Business, a
quarterly business publication dedicated
to covering the regional marketplace.
Stay tuned to Indian River State College
and the Florida SBDC at IRSC to remain
informed about all things business along
the Treasure Coast. v
Startup Talk on WPSL and WSTU is in its fifth year
of broadcasting. From left, Mike Wetzel, Mary Jo
Tierney, both of Sunrise Ford and Sunrise Volkswagen,
chat with Tom Kindred and Greg Wyatt, the
co-hosts of the radio show.
Dr. Edwin Massey, president of Indian River State
College, makes an appearance on the Startup Talk
radio show.
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