Coweta On Track for Becoming 'Entrepreneur Friendly Community'

August 24, 2007 (Newnan, GA) — The state of Georgia is expected to designate Coweta County as an “Entrepreneur Friendly Community” on November 20, 2007. That’s one month ahead of schedule, according to Mark Fritz, Vice President, Bank of Coweta and Chairman of the Newnan-Coweta Chamber of Commerce’s Entrepreneurs THRIVE in Coweta! (ETC!) program, designed to provide entrepreneurs with the resources and support they need to succeed. Fritz and his Chamber team have completed more than 64 interviews with local business owners to determine their needs and concerns, and will present the findings from those surveys at the Chamber’s Early Bird Forum breakfast at 7:30 on Tuesday, September 24, at the Central Educational Center. ETC! continues to interview and gather feedback from business owners throughout Coweta County in an effort to develop tangible resources that fit entrepreneurs’ true needs.

“The goal of the ETC! program is to make Coweta County the preferred place in Metro Atlanta for entrepreneurs, and to provide them with all the tools and connections that will help them thrive here,” said Fritz. “Although we’re about to receive our state designation, that’s just the beginning of an ongoing process to turn Coweta into a top location for new businesses.”

In addition to the interviews, ETC! is developing a Coweta Business Owner’s Guide and a new website with resources for entrepreneurs. Several task forces have already been created, and efforts are in the works to create a business-to-business mentor program, develop the “Think Coweta First” program that encourages residents to “buy local,” create a “preferred providers” list of proven business services companies, and explore the feasibility of creating a new business incubator center in the county.

“The more we do, and the more people we talk to, the more ways we discover in which we can help foster small businesses here in Coweta,” said Fritz. “Because the vast majority of existing businesses in Coweta are small businesses, what we produce for new entrepreneurs will be an asset to others as well.”