Pinellas County Business News
August 2019
Pinellas Receives $7.5 Million to Build State-of-the-Art Business Incubator in St. Petersburg
"This investment by the EDA, along with support from Pinellas County and our partners at the City of St. Petersburg, will help launch the next generation of entrepreneurs in our community," shared Commissioner Karen Seel, Chair of the 2019 Pinellas Board of County Commissioners. "We're grateful for this wonderful opportunity."

"In Pinellas, over 95% of our businesses are entrepreneurs and small businesses with 50 or fewer employees," said County Administrator Barry Burton. "This commitment by Pinellas County extends our support of local small businesses and entrepreneurship to further economic growth and job creation in our community."

Read more at  https://conta.cc/2SQeq6V.
Five Pinellas Companies Named GrowFL Florida Companies to Watch
The following Pinellas-based companies have been selected as 2019 GrowFL Florida Companies to Watch Honorees:
  • BioDerm, Inc. (Largo)
  • McCormick Stevenson (Clearwater)
  • Mother Kombucha (St. Petersburg)
  • OnMed (Clearwater)
  • WestCMR, LLC. (Clearwater)
"These Pinellas companies are among only 50 selected out of 500 nominees across Florida. We congratulate them on being acknowledged as among the best high-growth enterprises in the state," said Mike Meidel, Director of Pinellas County Economic Development. 

The 50 honorees are all second-stage companies that are expected to see significant growth over the next several years.

The 9th Annual Florida Companies to Watch awards celebration will take place on November 14 at Hard Rock Live, Universal City Walk, Orlando, FL. Learn more at https://www.growfl.com/flctw19/about-flctw/.

EFI Snapshot: High-Tech & Manufacturing
On July 25, Enterprise Florida (EFI) held its first EFI Snapshot in Pinellas County, highlighting the high-tech and manufacturing industries. EFI presenters provided information on EFI tools and programs to assist Florida businesses. Pinellas community and business leaders spoke about local efforts to encourage economic development in these sectors, as well as how EFI assistance has resulted in local success stories. Our many thanks go to Enterprise Florida, Port Tampa Bay, St. Petersburg College, S.S. White Technologies, CareerSource Pinellas, Power Design, and Infinium Medical for making this event possible! Find more photos from the event in our Facebook album
Pinellas County's Labor Force tops 500,000!

As of June 2019, Pinellas County's labor force topped half a million workers; 501,036 citizens are either employed or seeking work in Pinellas. The St. Petersburg-Clearwater-Tampa MSA had the highest annual job growth compared to all the metro areas in the state in financial activities (+3,600 jobs) in June 2019, and the third highest annual job growth compared to all the metro areas in the state in professional and business services (+7,200 jobs) and education and health services (+5,700 jobs) in June 2019.  Read the full release here: http://lmsresources.labormarketinfo.com/library/releases/arearelease_region14.pdf and visit our Data Center for more insights.

A-B-C Packaging Machine Welcomes Three AmSkills Apprentices

Pinellas County Commissioner Kathleen Peters joined Mike Meidel, Director of Pinellas County Economic Development, and the AmSkills Manufacturing Training & Apprenticeship team at A-B-C Packaging Machine Corporation in Tarpon Springs, as Michael Reichert, A-B-C's Vice President of Production, welcomed the three new apprentices to the company. Congrats to Trevor, Ronal and Manuel, and a huge thanks to A-B-C and its leadership team for creating these opportunities.  

Learn more about how AmSkills can help your manufacturing business grow with apprenticeship at: www.amskills.org/manufacturers.

New in the Data Center...
Updated Demographic and Business Summaries


Get the details you need to market your business effectively! Visit  www.pced.org/page/DemoBusiness to view updated Demographic and Business Summaries for 26 Pinellas County communities and the Tampa-St.Petersburg-Clearwater MSA.

Pinellas Manufacturers - get involved on MFG Day 2019! Oct. 4.

Join manufacturers from across the country who are hosting students and educators at their manufacturing facilities. Manufacturing Day is officially October 4th but you can plan an event or tour anytime during the month of October. Host a student tour at your manufacturing facility, sponsor student T-shirts for their tours, or donate to Manufacturing Month events. Learn more at https://www.bama-fl.org/event-3480016?CalendarViewType=1&SelectedDate=10%2F11%2F2019.

Attn: Hospitality & Customer Service  Employers - Aug. 14 Career Fair


CareerSource Pinellas will host a Hospitality & Customer Service Career Fair on Aug. 14. The event will bring together local employers and job candidates  to fill over 30 positions. Participating employers can expect to meet with an average of 19 potential, qualified job candidates. Please click here for more information on the event, including registration.

USF St. Petersburg Part-Time Opportunity Fair: Sept. 11, 11:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.

Pinellas employers: are you looking to fill part-time, full-time, or internship positions? Meet USF St. Petersburg students and alumni at the university's largest recruitment event of the fall semester. Click here to learn more and register to participate.

Waste No Food Tampa Bay

Waste No Food is a web-based and mobile marketplace allowing excess food to be donated from the food service industry to qualified charities that work with the needy. Farms, restaurants, cafeterias, hotels, and grocery stores post excess food in real time. Local charities can see what is available near them and claim the food online or on the app, then arrange transportation and food handling with the donor.  It requires no advance planning other than downloading and signing up for the app, which is free for all to use. Visit  http://networktoendhunger.org/education/wastenofood/ for details.

Pinellas News
Tampa Bay's 50 fastest-growing companies
(Tampa Bay Business Journal)

In This Issue
Quick Links
Business Workshops
The Florida Small Business Development Center at Pinellas County Economic Development hosts a number of business workshops each month. Find a full schedule of upcoming workshops at pced.org/workshops.

Pinellas County Economic Development | 727-464-7332 | econdev@pinellascounty.org | http://www.pced.org
13805 58th Street N.
Suite 1-200
Clearwater, FL 33760