Oakland entrepreneurs will have access to a week of free workshops, panels and networking events beginning May 3, as the city’s Economic & Workforce Development Department rolls out its annual small business programming through May 9.
The seven free virtual workshops, offered in partnership with the East Bay Small Business Development Center, cover topics including planning and start-up; permits, structures and licenses; funding; using social media and AI. Sessions run daily Monday through Friday via Zoom, and registration is available online.
On Wednesday, May 7, Oakland’s multi-ethnic chambers of commerce will hold a free networking mixer at Scott’s Seafood on the waterfront at Jack London Square, from 5 to 7:30 p.m. The event gives business owners a chance to connect with peers and local business organizations. Registration is available through the Oakland Chamber of Commerce website.
This year’s Small Business Week theme — “This Is Town Business” — is a nod to the small businesses that define Oakland’s neighborhoods and drive its economy every day.
The launch of the “This Is Town Business” digital marketing campaign will be May 5 at Kissel Uptown Hotel, a public effort to highlight the owners behind Oakland’s storefronts, restaurants and service businesses. The event features the reveal of the first round of businesses nominated by civic and business leaders and the campaign runs through the rest of the year.
“Oakland runs on small business,” Mayor Barbara Lee said in a statement. “This week, we celebrate the people who show up every day and make this city what it is.”
The full schedule and registration links are available online.
The East Bay Small Business Development Center, hosted by Cal State East Bay, provides free, confidential advising and training to small businesses throughout Alameda County. East Bay SBDC is funded in part through a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Small Business Administration and the California Office of the Small Business Advocate.
