Inland Empire Small Business Development Center

The 2026 Southern California Contracting Conference at the Riverside Convention Center on Thursday, June 11, 2026 was a wonderful success, filled with networking, learning, and new opportunities.

We were deeply honored to have all of these distinguished Opening & Closing Speakers: Steven Robillard (Mayor Pro Tem, City of Riverside), Christapher Bess (OCIE District Director, U.S. Small Business Administration - SBA), and Clowes (Assistant Deputy Director, California Office of the Small Business Advocate - CalOSBA), Casanya Usery (CalOSBA), Samantha Poole (CA Department of General Services), Ed Salcedo (GCAP Services, Inc), Cristina Espiritu (PACE), and Aaron Montano Searles (Verizon).

A huge thank you to the agencies, organizations, and moderators across our educational tracks for providing valuable insights on contracting: CA Department of General Services (DGS), City of Riverside, City of Santa Ana, OC County, Ontario Airport, Caltrans, Clean Power Alliance, Southern California Edison (SCE), SoCalGas, Fontana Water Company, The Supplier Clearinghouse (SCH), SBA, APEX Accelerator, Metropolitan Water District (MWD), (C4C), FFB Bank, AmPac Business Capital, Banner Bank, ALKEME Insurance, Marble Bridge, CFR, PACE, Michael F***j, Wyeth Watnik, Jackie Guilfucci, Troy Small and Robert Usher!

A big thank you to all of our exhibitors who filled the showcase with energy, resources, and vital connections for our attendees! We also want to give a special shoutout to AT&T, FFB Bank, DRC LLC, and PACE for providing this year's amazing raffle items!

We're all about opening doors for small businesses and getting them in front of the right government and corporate leaders.

Great morning connecting and learning at the Lake Chamber of Commerce Roundtable!

Thank you to Rick Tobin, for the invitation to attend this morning’s session as a guest, and a shoutout to the Chamber President, Johnny Pineda, for hosting a welcoming event, and to Stan "Forever" Young, .secureservicesinc for presenting an important educational seminar on workplace safety (SB 553).

It was wonderful meeting everyone at the table today. Looking forward to staying connected!

🚜 In partnership with the Agriculture Workforce & Education (Ag WE&T) program, this workshop will introduce contractors to agricultural customers served through the Hard-to-Reach Direct Install (HTR-DI) program and the energy
efficiency measures eligible for installation. Participants will learn about new business opportunities, required licensing and eligibility criteria, and the full project workflow—from enrollment and installation through QA/QC and payment.

Recommended for Trade Allies and Contractors interested in expanding into
agricultural energy efficiency projects.

🗓️ Event Details:
When: Wednesday, June 17th at 3:00 PM PST
Where: Zoom (Virtual)
Cost: FREE
Register via the QR code or contact: Milan Haynes at [email protected]

Congratulations for completing the Contractor Academy and for taking the next step to Scaling your business!
MWD, Southern California Regional Energy Network, and Mesa Water Mesa Water district - A Huge Thank You for a great partnership!

✨ June is packed with opportunities to learn, grow, and move your business forward.

The Inland Empire Small Business Development Center is offering a full lineup of educational workshops throughout June 2026.🌟

View the full schedule and register today: https://ociesmallbusiness.org/events/
All workshops are offered at no cost to you.

A morning well-spent! We had an amazing turnout today at our in-person workshop in Temecula, "Getting Funded," hosted by the IESBDC, TVE2 in collaboration with Chase Bank.

It was a full house of entrepreneurs and small business owners! A huge thank you to everyone who joined us to learn about the various pathways to secure funding for starting, expanding, or recovering a business.

Special thanks to our speakers:
🎤 Franklin from Chase Bank, who provided incredibly valuable insights into understanding and building credit.
🎤 Jose from IESBDC, for guiding us through the wide range of business loan options and requirements.

Announcing the Patriot Pitch Competition 🎤🇺🇸

SBA is launching a national competition to highlight small businesses that represent the BEST of American innovation, with a $1 MILLON cash prize pool funded by Clover.

http://www.sba.gov/freedom250

✨ Barstow was buzzing last week! ✨

Beauty Boss is a hybrid program designed specifically for beauty professionals—whether they are in hair, barbering, nails, lashes, brows, makeup, or skincare—we help each participant feel confident to launch, scale, and own their own business.. 🚀

The energy in the room was unmatched! 🔥

Rise, Shine, and Connect!
Nothing beats the smell of fresh coffee and the energy of a room full of entrepreneurs. We had a fantastic time this morning at the Lake Elsinore Chamber of Commerce Breakfast Networking event.

Catching up with familiar faces and forging new connections within our local business community was a great start to the day.

A big thank you to the for hosting a great networking event. We’re already looking forward to the next one!