It isn’t every day that businesses get offered free money. But on Thursday, Oct. 25 businesses in Oakdale are being offered just that. Opportunity Stanislaus, in collaboration with the City of Oakdale and the Oakdale Chamber of Commerce, are hosting Oakdale Business Boost, an event designed to promote incentives for local businesses to open their doors or grow.

Oakdale Business Boost will be held at the Gene Bianchi Center, 110 S. Second Ave., in Oakdale from 5 p.m. until 6:30 p.m. For more information, contact Mary Guardiola at 209-847-2244.

The incentives are not new but the packaging has been reinvented to provide would-be and existing entrepreneurs with an expanded toolkit for business success. Attendees will receive information about the $1,000 grants, which require submission of a short one-page application and a business plan. Oakdale Business Boost will also feature an overview of Valley Sierra Small Business Development Center services, which include no-cost consultation on everything from marketing to finance to strategic planning.

“We are very excited to offer business owners access to these resources,” said City Manager Bryan Whitemyer. “Small businesses are the lifeblood of our local economy, providing jobs and a tax base that funds infrastructure and services. Entrepreneurs deserve every advantage available as they look to open or grow. We encourage anyone who has or is interested in starting a business to attend and learn about funding avenues and expertise that can be of assistance.”

In 2017 the Valley Sierra Small Business Development Center, which is hosted by Opportunity Stanislaus, provided over 2,800 hours of consulting to business, helped 43 businesses start and helped grow small business revenue by over $15 million.

Incentive information is available online at http://www.oakdalegov.com/business. To learn more about the VSSBDC please visit https://valleysierrasbdc.com/ and www.opportunitystanislaus.com.