Business Assistance Program

As a small business owner –- or a prospective business owner -– there is nothing more common than feeling alone … no supervisor to turn to for guidance, no colleague to ask for an opinion.

But being in business for yourself doesn’t have to mean that you’re in business by yourself!  There is a place you can go for guidance and support … the Oldsmar/Upper Tampa Bay Business Assistance Program (BAP).  A jointly funded partnership of the Upper Tampa Bay Regional Chamber, the City of Oldsmar and Pinellas County Economic Development, the BAP was designed with three primary goals in mind:

1)      To give existing Oldsmar area businesses the help they need to stay in business and turn a profit;

2)      To give companies that are in a position to grow the assistance they need to successfully expand their operation; and

3)      To help start-up business owners get their “ducks in a row,” and give them the best possible chance for success in today’s increasingly competitive economy.

The Oldsmar BAP provides many different types of assistance to local businesses, including:

n       Business Plan development

n       Identifying your financing options

n       Permitting information

n       Eliminating bureaucratic “red tape”

n       Marketing Plan development

n       Demographic surveys

n       Customized employee training programs

n       Finding (and keeping) employees

n       Governmental liaison services

n       Start-up assistance

n       And much, much more!

Oldsmar’s Business Assistance Specialist acts as a conduit to link businesses with solutions to their problems, in an effort to resolve issues that are hampering their profitability.  He also works pro-actively to identify and monitor “at risk” and growth-postured businesses, to isolate their needs and assist in their efforts to prosper and grow.

The BAP Specialist also surveys dozens of local businesses each month, to track the attitudes, opinions and concerns of employers on issues such as permitting, training, health insurance, workers’ comp, governmental regulations and financing.  Whenever a “red flag” pops up, the partnership between the Chamber, City and County springs into action, to make sure their combined resources –- and those of state and national organizations -- go to work to resolve the issue as quickly as possible.

Best of all, the services of the Oldsmar Business Assistance program are provided to all businesses in the Upper Tampa Bay area -– Chamber members and non-members alike –- at absolutely no charge!!

For more information on the Oldsmar BAP -- or to put the Chamber’s resources to work for your business –- email President/CEO Jerry Custin for additional information.