Free Seminars for Small Business

Advokate will be offering a FREE seminar on branding during the Shirt Factory’s event LocalFest: Stuff Made Here this Saturday, September 6, at 3:15 p.m. Here is more information in the press release that was just sent out. Don’t miss it!


Free Day of Business Seminars at The Shirt Factory’s LocalFest

‘LocalFest: Stuff Made Here’ festival set for Saturday, September 6, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

GLENS FALLS, NY — The Shirt Factory Arts & Healing Center plans a full day of free seminars for small businesses as a brand-new element to its third annual LocalFest: Stuff Made Here celebration of all things locally-made, set for this Saturday, September 6, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

LocalFest began as a celebration of history and continued manufacturing,” says co-organizer and Shirt Factory co-manager Kate Austin-Avon. “This year we are sharpening the focus on what makes Glens Falls so special: The creative and entrepreneurial spirit. It’s about small, independent businesses getting their start and growing and thriving for years yet to come. What better way to encourage and celebrate that than to provide them with the tools they need for success?”

The idea to incorporate a day of small business seminars into LocalFest’s festivities was hatched out of a discussion with Greg Chanese and Pam Fisher of the Adirondack Regional Chamber of Commerce, says Ms. Austin-Avon. “There are so many fields of knowledge that entrepreneurs need to tap in to in order to flourish, and a day of free seminars seemed like a great way to give them that crash course in all of these different topics.”

Here is the lineup of speakers. The seminars will take place on the second floor of The Shirt Factory, in Betty O’Brien’s Watermedia Academy in Suite 204.

10:15 a.m. Carl Cedrone, Edward Jones | Finances and Small Business (45 minutes)

11:15 a.m. Richard Sellers and Dick Burk, SCORE | How to Start a Small Business (45 minutes)

12:15 p.m. Pam Fisher, Adirondack Regional Chamber of Commerce | Chamber 101 (45 minutes)

1:15 p.m. Leza Wood and Caelynn Prylo, SUNY Adirondack | Microenterprise Assistance Program (20 min)

1:45 p.m. Patti Gray Whann, Glens Falls Collaborative | What is the Collaborative? (30 minutes)

2:30 p.m. Jeff Adams | Google Apps for Small Business (30 minutes)

3:15 p.m. Kate Austin-Avon, Advokate | Branding 101 (45 minutes)

4:15 p.m. George Normandin, Normandin Marketing | Marking for Small Business (45 minutes)

Also on tap during LocalFest: Artist demonstrations and special sales inside on the four floors of The Shirt Factory with resident artists and shops; live music all day out in the courtyard; food and craft beverages; guest artists, artisans and businesses; fun activities for kids; Shirt Factory @ 15, a Shirt Factory themed juried show inside the Shirt Factory Gallery, a benefit pop-up show from the Glens Falls citywide Paint Out to raise funds for Code Blue Emergency Shelter; history talks; area non-profits; local writers reading from their work, and new this year: A second performance stage for stage readings and demonstrations of all kinds.

More information can be found online at www.localfest.net and www.shirtfactorygf.com or by calling (518) 907-4478. The Shirt Factory is located at the corner of Lawrence and Cooper Streets in Glens Falls, New York.

This event is made possible by our generous sponsors:

PLATINUM | Adirondack Broadcasting, The Post-Star, Lawrence & Cooper, Inc.

GOLD | Mannix Marketing, Inc., Glens Falls Chronicle, Glens Falls National Bank, Kingsbury Printing Co, Inc.

SILVER | Irving Tissue, Hill Country Observer, Stewart’s Shops

BRONZE | City of Glens Falls, PJN Photography, Advokate, SensibiliTeas, Adirondack North Country Association, Glens Falls Art, LLC, Craig Murphy Photography, Rock Hill Bakehouse Cafe, Glens Falls Farmer’s Market, Lower Adirondack Regional Arts Council (LARAC), Mindful Massage @ The Lemon Tree Yoga & Healing Arts Studio, Glens Falls Area Realty, Glens Falls Collaborative, Ledge Rock Hill Winery, Davidson Brothers Restaurant & Brewery

Kate Austin-Avon
kate@advokate.net

Kate E. Austin is known for her creative advocacy. She is a regular speaker on branding and social media with educational institutions and Chambers of Commerce. She owns and operates Advokate, LLC. Currently she serves on the boards of the Glens Falls Business Improvement District, is on the World Awareness Children’s Museum’s Advisory Council, and is involved in the Jackson Heights PTA. Originally from Killington, Vermont, she studied art at Hartwick College and earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Visual Art from Empire State College. She is a mother of three.