What is the Morrisville Means Business Program and how was it developed?

Due to the diligence of Town Council and staff, Morrisville received a $300,000 grant from the Small Business Administration (SBA) in September 2022 to develop a small business program.

The grant was written to develop a direct outreach and support program for small businesses in Town. The goal of program is to provide financial support and assistance through COVID-19 relief micro-grants and professional support services as well as Town sponsored programming such as education and training events, networking activities and marketing support. These initial funds will provide start-up resources for what is envisioned to be an ongoing Town budget-supported effort. 

Morrisville Means Business officially launched in October of 2022 and was designed for a three phased approach shown below. 

 Phases of Small Business Programming

• Future Programming

The SBA Grant Funding will sunset in August of 2024, and the Morrisville Town Council will provide direction on what the future of the Morrsiville Means Business Program should look like.

• Phase Three (September 2023-August 2024)

As a result of the relationships staff built through outreach during Phases One and Two, additional programming opportunities were identified. Phase three marked the launch of the Storefront Upfit Grant program, which allows Morrisville small businesses to apply for up to $5,000 to upgrade signage, landscaping and other public facing elements of their business.

This phase marks the launch of quarterly drop-in sessions with the Town’s Purchasing and Contracts Manager to make doing business with the Town easier. Through the Town’s new partnerships, Quickbooks Training Courses will be offered free of charge from WakeTech and financial basics courses through Truist.

• Phase Two (March-August 2023)

Phase Two built on what was learned through the small business outreach survey administered in Phase One on preferred contact methods, and business needs. The Town launched the COVID-19 relief micro-grants that allowed eligible businesses to apply for $4,500 in grant funding. 

Professional services were made available to all Morrisville small businesses, which provided up to $3,000 in services from an attorney, accountant or marketing professional. Finally, the Town launched a partnership with WakeTech to sponsor ServSafe courses in English and Spanish to help restaurants train and retain employees.  

• Phase One (November 2022-February 2023)

To understand what the Morrisville Means Business program should include, the Town surveyed all Morrisville small businesses in late 2022. The survey found that Town businesses wanted opportunities to vend at Town events, promotional development opportunities that could help reach additional customers, technical and financial assistance.

 Funded through a grant provided by the U.S. Small Business Administration