WBDC Silver Anniversary Celebration

A quarter of a century of helping women launch and expand their businesses

"A simply amazing resource."

That’s how Dee Robinson Reid, a certified Women’s Business Enterprise (WBE) and one of Chicago’s most successful entrepreneurs, describes the Women’s Business Development Center (WBDC), which celebrates the quarter-century mark this year.

Like most WBDC clients, Ms. Robinson Reid is simply amazing herself. She left the corporate world to start the Robinson Hill Hospitality Group, where she oversees a growing empire of franchises and joint venture partnerships, including Ben & Jerry’s at Midway Airport and Navy Pier, Cheeburger Cheeburger and UFood Grill at Cleveland’s Hopkins Airport, and Hudson News, which owns more than 25 locations at O’Hare Airport and other high traffic spots.

Ms. Robinson Reid recalls the early days of business ownership when she didn’t hesitate to roll-up her sleeves to work side-by-side with her employees to scoop ice cream or do whatever it took to serve customers and grow her enterprise. When she needed minority partners, vendors and suppliers for her airport concessions, she knew she could turn to the WBDC for recommendations. When we needed an inspiring speaker for our Entrepreneurial Woman’s Conference and other events, we knew we could turn to Ms. Robinson Reid.

Today, Ms. Robinson Reid is still very hands-on with the business, but she’s equally involved in impacting public policy and finding a way to give back by supporting the WBDC and other women. Along with many other successful WBDC clients, she considers creating jobs one of her greatest joys, which, in turn, is helping to rebuild our economy.

Ms. Robinson Reid and scores of others like her are what propel WBDC co-founder and co-president, Carol Dougal, and me to enthusiastically continue with our organization’s mission: to help start and grow successful women-owned businesses. We established the very first women’s business assistance center in the country in 1986 and went on to help more than 65,000 clients gain the tools and support they need to become, and continue to be, successful entrepreneurs. Now, there are more than 100 other similar centers, many of which are modeled after ours.

Among our greatest accomplishments was the establishment of the nation’s first third-party Women’s Business Enterprise (WBE) certification program for women business owners in 1991, and becoming a founding partner of the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC) in 1997, the leading national WBE certification for women business owners in the world. Today, the WBDC is the largest regional partner organization of WBENC, serving women business enterprises throughout its nine-state Midwestern region.

Certification is a cornerstone of what we do. It helps women win corporate and government contracts. Once a woman business owner is certified, she can take advantage of our role as matchmakers, ultimately increasing her capacity and growing her business to the next level. Since 1986, our clients have been awarded close to a billion dollars in government and corporate contracts.

The WBDC and our staff of 25 provide high-quality programs, including one-on-one business counseling, entrepreneurial training and financial and procurement assistance for women business owners at all levels. Our Latina program provides business counseling, training and financial assistance, in Spanish, to Chicagoland’s growing Hispanic population.

We also partner with major corporations to offer a number of business competitions throughout the year that reward winners with contracts, support and services. Recently, we began offering Connection Points, an ongoing series of networking and learning events for women business owners in related fields.
Perhaps we are most proud of our annual Entrepreneurial Woman’s Conference, Women’s Business & Buyers Mart, which attracts over 2,300 attendees annually. This year, the 25th Anniversary Entrepreneurial Woman’s Conference and 25th Anniversary Celebration will be held on Wednesday, September 14, at Chicago’s McCormick Place-West.

The conference provides an excellent opportunity for women to develop new marketing opportunities with corporations and government agencies, as well as learn and share critical business information through workshops, panel discussions and networking. Other Conference highlights are the Women’s Forum Breakfast, featuring nationally renowned women entrepreneurs, and the 25th Anniversary Hall of Fame Awards Luncheon, honoring successful female entrepreneurs and supporters of women’s economic development.

Over the years, the WBDC has been at the forefront of public policy strengthening and accelerating the growth of women-owned businesses. It has been an advocate, both locally and nationally, on legislative and governmental issues to help level the playing field for women-owned businesses, and internationally as a role model and advisor on women’s business issues.

When all is said and done, the WBDC is about empowerment – empowering women to achieve financial independence, security and self-confidence through business ownership. We are truly about women and for women. That will never change.

To learn more about the 25th Anniversary Entrepreneurial Woman’s Conference and 25th Anniversary Celebration or to purchase tickets, visit www.wbdc.org.

Tagged as: Women’s Business Development Center, WBDC, Women's Business Enterprise National Council, WBENC and women business owners