National Small Business Week 2014 to kick-off May 12

WASHINGTON, May 7, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The U.S. Small Business Administration, small business owners from across the nation and 20 co-sponsors get ready to convene online, and in four major U.S. cities, from May 12-16 to celebrate entrepreneurship and recognize the country's top small businesses.

Since 1963, the SBA has honored the accomplishments of outstanding entrepreneurs, small business owners, innovators, small business advocates and others, at an annual event that attracts thousands of participants. This year, the national celebrations will be held in four major U.S. cities: San Francisco, May 12; Kansas City, May 13; Boston, May 15; and Washington, D.C., May 15-16.  In addition, there will be numerous webinars and online sponsored events throughout the week.

National Small Business Week will feature national level speakers, expert panels on a variety of entrepreneurial subjects, from financing to business innovation, as well as networking and business matchmaking opportunities. The culmination of the event will be the presentation of the National Small Business Person of the Year award to a winner selected among candidates from all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Guam and Puerto Rico. The award ceremony will take place at the Washington, D.C. event, on May 16.

Every year, National Small Business Week is made possible thanks in part to the support of sponsors. This year, 20 major companies have joined forces with SBA to help celebrate National Small Business Week. They are:

Presenting Sponsor
Chase

Platinum Level Sponsors
U.S. Chamber of Commerce
Microsoft
Twitter
Burns & McDonnell

Gold Level Sponsors
Sam's Club
Visa

Online Sponsors
Colonial Life
Manta
Marriott International
YP
Conduit Mobile
PayPal
US Postal Service

Silver Level Sponsors
Dunn & Bradstreet Credibility Corp.
Raytheon
Facebook
ADT

Bronze Level Sponsors
Indeed
Dell

For more information about National Small Business Week, including a complete list of events and locations, how to register and view sessions live-streamed, please visit http://www.sba.gov/smallbusinesweek

Release Number: 14-23

Contact: David Hall (202) 205-6697
Internet Address: http://www.sba.gov/news

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SOURCE U.S. Small Business Administration