By Chase Jordan

[email protected]

Bradshaw
https://www.clintonnc.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/web1_bradshaw-amanda.jpgBradshaw

Grissom
https://www.clintonnc.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/web1_LaNell-Grissom-mug.jpgGrissom

Local entrepreneurs may have the opportunity to receive a contract to work with federal officials.

The Small Business Center of Sampson Community College (SCC) has partnered with the North Carolina Military Business Center (NCMBC) to assist local businesses who have the potential to meet federal contracting needs. NCMBC is a business development organization which collaborates with the North Carolina Community College System. Its mission is to work with military and other federal business opportunities to expand the economy, grow jobs and improve quality in the state.

Each Thursday, LaNell Grissom, NCMBC Business Development Specialist, will be available from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. in the Small Business Center on SCC’s campus. Through the organization, she helps with the identification and bid process, at no cost to a small business owner.

Amanda Bradshaw, director of the Small Business Center, and Grissom will be researching small businesses in Sampson County to see if there’s any product or service that the military is looking for.

“If they do, we’ll go through the process of helping them get put into the federal contact system,” Bradshaw said. “Once we get them into that, the hunt for contracts will begin.”

Next, it’s up to the business owner if he or she makes a decision to go after the contract. The Department of Defense and other agencies purchase products and services across numerous industries. Some of them include construction, engineering, and manufactured goods such as food, furniture or medical supplies.

“This is not going to benefit every business,” Bradshaw said. “It just depends on what the needs of the military and what the federal government is.”

If approved, Bradshaw stressed to owners that the military contracts will not swallow up a business. It’s a concern or question which Bradshaw often answers.

“You need to take this on as an additional customer base,” Bradshaw said about explaining to people. “You don’t need to get rid of the customers that you already have.”

In addition, business owners are not required to be veterans or associated with the military to apply.

Bradshaw said the Small Business Center has worked with NCMBC before through seminars, but it’s the first time a representative from NCMBC has been on the SCC campus. Initial meetings with Grissom usually last a little over an hour.

Grissom is a Sampson County native who currently resides in Stedman. Before joining the NCMBC, she served as a government procurement counselor with the North Carolina Procurement Center at Fayetteville State University. After 36 years of civilian service, she retired from working with the federal government. That time period also included 27 years in purchasing and contracting with the Department of the Army.

For more information or to make an appointment, contact Bradshaw at 910-592-8081, ext. 2032 or by email at [email protected].

Reach Chase Jordan at 910-249-4617. Follow us on Twitter at @SampsonInd and like us on Facebook.