Henderson Small Business Expo Boosts Local Economy, Opens New Doors

An exciting small business expo was held this week at Lee's Family Forum by the Henderson Chamber of Commerce, and it was a great chance to network and connect. With more than 100 local shops and start-ups, the event was designed to engage the local community and promote what a small business means in our community.

The event, designed as a free public event that began at 3 p.m., centered on the importance of small business vitality to local economies. Small businesses typically do not have the same backing that larger organizations enjoy and therefore need community support to survive and thrive.

"That's what the community thrives off of is small business, and a lot of time they don't have a lot of money to compete with the larger conglomerates," a representative said.

Daelyn Woods, owner of Woods Family Sandwiches, attended her first expo and expressed excitement about sharing her business with the community. "I think of us like the Cheers of sandwich shops; we know everyone's name," she said. "We slice everything fresh here," she said. "I still don't think our prices are higher than the big-name sandwich shops, where I don't even want to compare us."

Woods shared her journey of starting her company without borrowing money or dipping into savings, bringing light to challenges that many small business owners face. "I went in here with nothing. I didn't take a loan, I didn't have any money. It was very, very tough throughout the way," she said. "It's very difficult as a small business, but without them, I couldn't do it."

According to Woods, the expo has already proved worthwhile in terms of networking and generating new orders and connections. It also served as a resource for future entrepreneurs learning how to start and build a new venture within their community.

The expo brought together business owners and community residents to emphasize the importance of supporting small local businesses equally, if not more than, larger organizations, and how this approach fosters economic development and growth in Henderson.