SAN JOSE, Calif., October 20, 2000 - Cisco Systems, Inc., the worldwide leader in networking for the Internet, the City of San Jose - Capital of the Silicon Valley - and the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) today announced the grand opening of the SBA - Cisco Systems - San Jose Entrepreneur Center. The new resource center, located in the heart of downtown San Jose, provides small and growing businesses with a single location to obtain the training and tools they need to succeed in today's Internet economy. The center is a collaborative effort between the public sector, private industry and non-profit organizations. It provides small business owners with business management advice, technology education, financial assistance, and mentoring and counseling from successful business executives in the community.
The SBA estimates that there are approximately 25 million small businesses in the United States. According to SBA findings, these businesses provide approximately 75 percent of the net new jobs added to the economy and represent 99.7 percent of all employers. In the Silicon Valley alone, thousands of small businesses could benefit from using the Entrepreneur Center. By offering resources to help these businesses grow and compete in the Internet Economy, the sponsors of the Entrepreneur Center are helping to further strengthen the local and national economy. "The Entrepreneur Center is a shining example of how the public sector can partner with non-profit organizations and private companies to benefit the community and the economy," said Mark Quinn, district director for the San Francisco office of the SBA, which covers San Jose. "By working together with the center sponsors and leading non-profit organizations, we are offering small businesses a single location where they can obtain all of the tools and resources they need to succeed in today's economy."
By delivering a breadth of services under a single roof, the center serves as a powerful resource that will help pave the way for small businesses to be successful. "We have created a unique place for Silicon Valley entrepreneurs and small business owners to get the support they need to succeed and grow in our community," said San Jose Mayor Ron Gonzales. "Our City's partnership with the SBA and corporate sponsors like Cisco Systems will contribute valuable knowledge and experience to ensure that today's small businesses will become the foundation for our continuing prosperity."
To help business leaders understand how they can benefit from the Internet, the Entrepreneur Center will include the Cisco Internet Development Center focused on providing small businesses with the knowledge and tools they need to flourish in the Internet economy. According to IDC, a Framingham, MA market research firm, the average annual revenue of a small business that uses the Internet is $3 million per year compared with an average of $1.9 million for small businesses in general. Access Markets International (AMI-Partners), a New York-based market research firm, reports that only 62 percent of small businesses have Internet connections. As the Internet becomes a requirement for conducting business, it will become imperative that all small companies incorporate technology into their business model.
"Collaborating with the SBA, the City of San Jose and the other sponsor companies to create the Entrepreneur Center is part of our ongoing commitment to helping small businesses achieve their full potential through use of the Internet," said Charles Giancarlo, senior vice president and general manager, Small/Medium Business Line of Business, Cisco Systems. "This is a chance for us to share the knowledge we have gained from working with all of our small business customers, as well as what we have learned from our own company's use of the Internet. It's also one way that we can give back to the community which is always very important to us."
"This project is a living monument to the creativity and leadership being shown by the innovators of San Jose and Silicon Valley," said Congresswoman Zoe Lofgren, 16th Congressional District of California. "Government, industry and individuals are working together to help make sure that entrepreneurs continue to have the success that is making life better for all Americans." The Entrepreneur Center is the result of the collaboration and generous support of many sponsors including the following: AllBusiness.com, Bank of America, BAAGGL (the Bay Area Association of Government Guaranteed Lenders), Greater Bay Bancorp, Chevron Corp., Cisco Systems, Fortune Small Business Magazine, IBM, MarketItRight, Milliken Carpets, Microsoft Corporation, One Workplace, the City of San Jose, Steelcase, United Parcel Service, UUNET, a WorldCom Company and Wells Fargo. For more information on the sponsors of the center, please see www.ecenteronline.org
The Entrepreneur Center is located at 84 W. Santa Clara St. in San Jose, Calif. and is open to the public Monday-Friday 9:00-5:30pm. For more information on the center, call (408) 494-2010 or visit www.ecenteronline.org. To access the Center's Grand Opening online press kit, please visit http://www.cisco.com/warp/public/146/kits/smb/sjec/index.htm.
About the U.S. Small Business Administration
The U.S. Small Business Administration, established in 1953, provides financial, technical and management assistance to help Americans start, run, and grow their businesses. With a portfolio of business loans, loan guarantees and disaster loans worth more than $45 billion, in addition to a venture capital portfolio of $13 billion, SBA is the nation's largest single financial backer of small businesses. Last year, the SBA offered management and technical assistance to more than one million small business owners.
The SBA also plays a major role in the government's disaster relief efforts by making low-interest recovery loans to both homeowners and businesses. For more information on all of SBA's programs for small businesses, call the SBA Answer Desk at 1-800-U-ASK-SBA, or visit the SBA's extensive Web site at www.sba.gov.
About the City of San Jose
The City of San Jose is the Capital of Silicon Valley and offers all the critical resources and amenities necessary for any enterprise. San Jose is consistently ranked by top business and trade publications including Forbes and Fortune as one of the best U.S. cities to live and to do business. No other location can match the depth and diversification of San Jose's corporate profile and business infrastructure. The San Jose metropolitan area receives twice as much venture capital funding as any other region and is the nation's fastest growing major export area. Perhaps more important than rankings, the term "Capital of Silicon Valley" describes not only a city and geographic region but a culture. A spirit of innovation. A symbol of opportunity and economic vitality. More information about the City of San Jose is available at www.ci.san-jose.ca.us.
