TNECD Offers Retail Business Seminar

Tennessee Department of Economic & Community Development (TNECD) offers a free seminar for small business owners, managers, economic development organizations, Main Street organizations, and Chambers of Commerce.

• Learn marketing strategies and techniques
• Win more customers
• Increase customer traffic and sales
• Make your business worth traveling to see!

This all day seminar (7:30a.m. to 3:30p.m.) will be held in three locations across the state. Nearest to Hickman County is Wednesday, June 11th at Fayetteville or Wednesday, June 18th at Dyersburg.

Space is limited, so reservation should be made as soon as possible by calling 1.800.872.7201.

Available Industrial Building 120,000 sq.ft.

The former YKK facility is 120,000 sq. ft. of well-maintained, masonry wall industrial and/or warehouse/distribution space. NAI Global is listing the property and it is officially on the market and available for sale. YKK Snap Fasteners produced products for the garment industry and has consolidated the Centerville operations into other facilities. This has left a quality, stable workforce with a rural work ethic and a beautiful facility waiting for someone looking for a welcoming community conveniently located near Nashville with easy access to I-40 and I-65. For more information, email vision21@hickmanco.com or call 931.729.5953.

Online Training for Small Business

Starting a new business or looking to grow your existing small business? The U.S. Small Business Administration has free, online business training. The courses are taken at your speed, but usually take an average of 30 minutes. Topics include "Starting Your Small Business", "How to Start a Business on a Shoestring Budget", "How to Find Start-up Funding", and "How to Write a Business Plan".To check out the courses, visit www.sba.gov/services/training/onlinecourses/index.html .

Tennessee earns Site Selection 2007 Competitiveness Award

Tennessee was recently recognized by Site Selection magazine with its 2007 Competitiveness Award, given for superlative job creation and new capital investment.

"I'm especially pleased and gratified by this recognition because it demonstrates Tennessee's commitment to maintaining the best business climate in the U.S. and our focus on developing partnerships between the state and local communities in the area of job creation," stated Matt Kisber, Commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development.

For more information, check out State Lauded for Job Creation, New Capital Investment - Nashville Business Journal .

Chamber of Commerce for East Hickman

There is a growing interest in establishing a chapter of the Chamber of Commerce for the East Hickman area. The next meeting will be held at the Beacon Light Tearoom on Highway 100 on Tuesday, May 6th at 6:00p.m. Bon Aqua and Lyles is a growth area for business and industry and a chamber of commerce group could be a tremendous asset in promoting commerce in East Hickman. For more information, check out www.hickmanco.org or drop me an email.

Board Member to Attend Tennessee Basic Economic Development Course

Just another example of the commitment Hickman County has to improving economic development, Rob Mitchell will be attending the Tennessee Basic Economic Development Course May 12-16 in Nashville. Rob will be representing Hickman County Economic & Community Development Association (HCECDA), the Joint Economic & Community Development Board for Hickman County. In addition to serving on the HCECDA board, Mr. Mitchell is the current president of the Hickman County Chamber of Commerce and chairman of the Hickman County Planning Commission.

The Tennessee Basic Economic Development Course is accredited by the International Economic Development Council (IEDC). The University of Tennessee Institute for Public Service is partnering with the Tennessee Leadership Center to present the second annual course. It is designed for community leaders and stakeholders who are involved in economic development at local, state and federal levels. Topics for the course include global trends, and the fundamental concepts, tools and practices needed to be successful in today's complex economic environment.

I have attended this and several other IEDC accredited courses and they are tremendously relevant to improving how we serve our community and promote a fertile environment for economic development.

Tennessee Featured in Fortune 500 Special Issue

In this year's Fortune 500 special issue of Fortune magazine in which the best of the best in business are featured, Tennessee highlights reasons it is a great place to locate a business. Yes, the more populous, lower unemployment regions featured like Nashville and Memphis are great places, but there is more in Tennessee. Hickman County is less than an hour from Nashville and about two hours from Memphis on Interstate 40.

Check out Tennessee in the Fortune 500 special issue. If you like what you see, give us a call in Hickman County. You don't have to be a Fortune 500 company or even employ 50 people to be warmly welcomed in our business community.

For more information, drop us an email at vision21@hickmanco.com .