We Stand On Business!
The Small Business Week 2025 Re-Cap and Photos!
Here at the Office of Business Development, we are indeed #open4biz. If you missed out on this month’s Small Business Week 2025 celebrations, you just might have FOMO after seeing all of the photos and videos. Five days of events. Five days of love just for our small business community.
We started the week off with a How to Do Business with Amazon workshop and luncheon. Thanks again to our Amazon partners for supporting small businesses and for hosting an amazing session. Check out this beautiful note that came in from Angelic Kreations.
Next stop….The Indoor Restaurant Crawl in Harlem. Thanks to the team at Salsa Caterers & Hospitality for joining the effort to encourage schools and districts to shop local for meetings, conferences and events. We were glad to welcome our NYCPS Superintendents, school staff, parent liaisons, partners from CUNY and Chief Business Diversity Officer for NYC, Michael Garner. If you know a restaurant or caterer and would like to see how they can connect with NYCPS….send a note to open4business@schools.nyc.gov.
Two Events in One Day!
The 4th day of Small Business Week 2025 included two very special events. Small business owners started the day with a breakfast at the Tweed Courthouse with leadership and decision makers. Tweed is also known as the Head Quarters of NYCPS or the Central Office. We love that conversations and connections were made in such a very special place.
In the evening, the Jackie Robinson Museum welcomed small business owners with a special VIP reception and access to the museum floor. You might not know this but, some of Mr. Robinson’s entrepreneurial pursuits included:
First African American vice president of a Fortune 500 company, Chock Full o' Nuts
Co-founded the Freedom National Bank in Harlem, New York.
He also founded the Jackie Robinson Construction Company in 1970 to build low-income housing.
Thanks to Ivo Philbert, VP of External Relations, and Samantha Gibson, Director of Education. They made this special event possible for our small business community.
The Shark Was In The Building!
We wrapped up Small Business Week 2025 with a full day of professional development for small business owners. Thank you to all of the wonderful facilitators who came out to share knowledge and expertise. That’s what the small business community is all about. We lift as we climb!
The Incredibly Talented Mr. Daymond John, Star of ABC’s Shark Tank
As if a full day of workshops wasn’t enough of a gift, participants at our conference spent the afternoon with the one and only Daymond John. Daymond is a real New Yorker and he attended Bayside High School!
Daymond and Dr. Pate engaged in a fireside chat that included a Q & A from the audience. The conversation can only be described as inspirational and thought-provoking. Daymond spoke with many small business owners and was generous with his time and energy.
Daymond also brought author and Credit Guru, Tasha Terria with him. They signed copies of her new book, The Adventures of the Credit Quest Club and distributed prizes to raffle winners. Such a special day for our very special small business community! Shout out to the team Splexone for capturing the whole week!