Having attended the annual NJAWBO (New Jersey Association of Women Business) conference in May, I was inspired to write this article to help the women reading this article understand what NJAWBO can do for them and their business. For the past four years I have attended the annual conference and each year I leave feeling excited and inspired. I have built relationships with women from all over the state and grew my business with there’s. In many ways NJAWBO is an extension of my business. Each year I go back looking forward to networking with women around the state and understanding that the issues and concerns are all the same.

One of my goals this year as Southern Region President is to start a Cumberland-Salem Chapter and to grow member­ship in South Jersey. At our annual NJAWBO board meet­ing in May, I reported to the state board that the Southern Region Counties of New Jersey had the ability to grow chap­ters larger then our biggest chapters, which are currently Monmouth-Ocean and Bergen. Currently we are providing monthly breakfast meeting in Gloucester County, monthly dinner meetings in Atlantic County and we have started a bi-monthly networking lunch in Cumberland County. Each meeting always provides a guest speaker and networking oppor­tunities.

To build a successful business you need more then just client so NJAWBO has the WBC (Women’s Business Center). The WBC provides courses to help you build your business and we are interested in offering our courses in Atlantic and Cape May Counties. The WBC provides advanced expertise in starting and growing a business in NJ.

Their vision is:

...Positioning women business owners for success through 

  • Education
  • Consulting
  • Resources
  • Entrepreneurial training                                          

...Providing a full spectrum of programs to

  • Maximize business growth and profitability
  • Learn management methods
  • Improve business skills
  • Obtain a support, referral, and resource network

Once a year they award the S.E.E.D. grant which is a grant to help women starting businesses to get the support, education and money that they need to get their project off the ground. We want to make sure more southern region coun­ties are aware of this program and take advantage of it. In 2008, one of the winners of the S.E.E.D. grant was Carolyn Descar, from Egg Harbor Township.

With my goal to start grow­ing members in South Jersey, I need your help. We are looking for people that are interested in supporting our local chapters. We are also looking for local business owners that are inter­ested in sponsoring our meet­ings, speaking and offering loca­tions. Feel free to reach out me directly with any questions or ideas you might have. We love to hear from you.

Sincerely,
Gwen Faulkner