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Thursday, Mar 28, 2024

Valley Organizations Putting on Largest Business Expo

It’s official. The U.S. is in a recession, according to the National Bureau of Economic Research. Locally, the Economic Alliance of the San Fernando Valley hopes to help businesses weather the economic storm by organizing the Valley Business Expo. Said to be the largest business to business event in this area, the expo will be held Feb. 5 at the Pickwick Gardens Conference Center in Burbank. “This is the first time this has ever been done out here,” said Bruce Ackerman, head of the economic alliance. “No one has done a business expo like we’re talking about doing.” The purpose of the expo is to assemble businesses seeking to expand, network and market their services to businesses interested in doing the same. North Los Angeles County has never hosted such an event of this size, according to the economic alliance. “We came up with this idea basically to do a home improvement show or boat show or RV show for business,” Ackerman explained. Via the expo, Ackerman hopes to reach out to businesses in need of guidance, financially and otherwise. “That’s the one unique thing,” he said. “In the economy we’re in right now, not only are consumers having a tough time but businesses are really struggling.” Each hour of the expo, to be held from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., there will be workshops on financing, operations, products and other matters. In addition, there will be a “Green Pavilion” that will highlight cost-saving strategies businesses can use while being environmentally friendly. “We’re also going to have a procurement session,” Ackerman said. “Imagine you’re a small businessperson, and you’re able to walk in and have a scheduled appointment with Disney, Universal Studios, Galpin Motors or the County of Los Angeles. You’re able to walk in and have 10 to 15 minute appointments.” Pitching services The meetings will allow an opportunity for participating businesses to explain why the services they offer are of use to a number of enterprises. The economic alliance isn’t the sole force behind the different facets of the expo. Helping in the planning process are the Valley Industry and Commerce Association (VICA) and the United Chambers of Commerce (UCC), as well as the Valley Economic Development Center, the Los Angeles Convention and Visitors’ Bureau and the International Trade Association. According to Ackerman, this marks the first time the organizations have planned an event together on this scale. Jessica Yasukochi, vice president of VICA, said that the group is excited about the upcoming expo. “We’re all coming together to bring this expo to a wider range of businesses,” she said. Mega mixer UCC will leave its mark on the expo by hosting a mega mixer from 5 to 8 p.m. The mixer will serve as a route by which sponsors and exhibitors can gain additional exposure for their businesses. More than 500 attendees are expected to participate in the mixer. “It’s really going to be phenomenal,” UCC President and CEO Debi Schultze said of the event. “We’re really excited. We normally hold a mega mixer once a year.” However, when UCC heard that the economic alliance wanted to organize a business expo, the group decided to hold its annual mega mixer at the expo. “I think the one uniqueness of it is that it is Valley wide,” Schultze said of the mixer. “A lot of times, in different parts of the Valley, there might be a business expo or some type of mixer or networking event. I think because it’s Valley wide, it really gives business a better chance for networking.” Schultze not only has high hopes for the mixer but for the expo altogether. It will be a “whole day to really do business, to network, to learn and to prosper and go forward,” Schultze said. “This will be a great event for the Valley and the surrounding region.”

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