CHAMBER TO AWARD SMALL BUSINESS OF THE YEAR DURING NATIONAL SMALL BUSINESS WEEK
The Rocky Mount Area Chamber of Commerce will pay tribute to outstanding local entrepreneurs and award the Small Business of the Year for 2002 during a ceremony marking the 39th National Small Business Week. The Chamber has selected Tuesday evening, June 11, as the date of the annual Small Business Awards Banquet in recognition of the contributions small business brings to the nation's economy and to acknowledge the entrepreneurial spirit of business people everywhere. The newly renovated Benvenue Country Club will be the venue for the 6:00 p.m. gala.
"We view this celebration as one of our signature events," Chamber Executive Director Eddie Baysden said. Awards will be presented to Small Business Person of the Year; Minority Small Business Person of the Year, Small Business Woman of the Year, Work First: Nash and Edgecombe Counties, and "Rookie" of the Year. This year a new award is being presented, "Entrepreneurial Success." Baysden stated, "This special award is being presented to a top entrepreneur that initially launched a small business and that has subsequently developed into a large business."
Another highlight of the evening will be keynote speaker Parker Overton, founder of Overton Sports in Greenville, North Carolina, the world's largest distributor of water sports products and boating accessories. Overton, a self-made entrepreneur, is a past Small Business of the Year award recipient at the State level. With sales in excess of $100 million, Overton's is a worldwide mailer of catalogs specializing in water sports; summer apparel; marine, personal watercraft and sport-utility accessories. The company has a call center/distribution center in Greenville, Raleigh and Charlotte. The company also owns Herter's catalog, a waterfowl and outdoor specialist book, and Dunn's catalog, which carries dog-hunting supplies.
Chamber Vice Chairman of Business Development Frank Harrison added, "The theme for this year, 'Small Business: Where America Works,' appropriately captures America's confidence in the continued success of small businesses. This week of celebration spotlights the many accomplishments of local businesses and their positive effects on our economy and our community. In the Rocky Mount metropolitan statistical area, there are 5,357 businesses with fewer than 50 employees. Small business creates over two-thirds of all new jobs, generating more than 57 percent of all sales and half of the domestic private sector output. The contributions of small business are significant; they drive the economic engine of our nation."
Corporate presenting sponsor of this year's celebration is Southern Bank; other co-sponsors include Oakley Asociates, Architects, PA; RBC Centura; Sprint; and Turn-Key Contractors. In addition to The Chamber, other annual sustaining sponsors are Edgecombe and Nash Community Colleges' Small Business Centers; the Rocky Mount-Edgecombe Community Development Corporation; and the Small Business Technology and Development Center.
Additional activities for Small Business Week include a seminar on June 13, "Traits of Successful People," and a plant tour of Honeywell on Thursday, June 13. Today's Honeywell took shape in the Fall 1999 with the merger of two global leaders, AlliedSignal and Honeywell, Inc. Honeywell can trace its roots back to 1885, when an inventor named Albert Butz patented the furnace regulator and alarm. Honeywell currently employees more than 115,000 people in nearly 100 countries. They are a Fortune 100 company with $24 billion in sales for 2001. The Rocky Mount facility will exclusively make the fuel control systems for the F119 engine, which will power the U.S. Air Force's F-22 Raptor and the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, two of the newest fighter jets made.
For additional information or to register to attend a Small Business Week activity, contact Shearin Johnson at the Rocky Mount Area Chamber of Commerce at 252-973-1212.
