Small Business Training Program Will Strengthen Pipeline of Iowa-Sourced Products with Grocery and Retail Potential

posted on 8/26/24 Des Moines, Iowa – The Iowa Center will launch a new business coaching partnership with Fareway to support small business owners who dream of placing a retail product on the grocery store shelf. Iowa small business owners with high-potential, early phase products that could be sold in the grocery store are invited to participate. “Increasing distribution of locally-sourced Iowa products is good for our economy, our environment, our food system, and our entrepreneurial ecosystem. I am thrilled that when I shop at Fareway, I can find products from great Iowa Center clients like Lola’s Hot Sauce and BLK & Bold Coffee on the shelf,” said Megan Milligan, President + CEO of The Iowa Center. “The Iowa Center’s Business Coaching partnership with Fareway will provide classes and coaching to make the understanding of grocery store distribution accessible to more of Iowa’s small business owners.” The Iowa Center will enroll a cohort of small business owners in an educational program which will launch in September 2024. Fareway’s executives will lead a series of interactive classes for small business owners to build their understanding of brand development and grocery store distribution. Classes topics will include Brand Awareness; Market Strategy and Promotion Plans; Readiness; Inventory Management and Distribution; Legal and Food Safety; and Accounting and Finance. Cohort participants will receive follow-up 1:1 coaching from Iowa Center coaches to help them apply the high value knowledge that they receive from the Fareway team to their individual business plans. Thanks to the generosity of Fareway, the program will be delivered to cohort participants at no cost. “Fareway is committed to taking care of our neighbors and investing in our local communities,” said Reynolds Cramer, CEO of Fareway. “The Iowa Center is supporting economic growth across the State of Iowa by empowering Iowans to launch and grow successful small businesses. We are thrilled to support and partner with The Iowa Center to grow the pipeline of locallysourced Iowa retail products.” The Iowa Center is an economic development organization that delivers three lines of direct services to empower entrepreneurs to launch and grow their small businesses: Business Coaching, Credit + Lending, and Tax Services. Learn more about The Iowa Center at www.TheIowaCenter.org.