Lansdale Small Business Conference Spotlight: BucksMont BizCon

LANSDALE, PA — There’s a story lurking behind the glass pane of every shop, and there’s oftentimes an innovative individual whose entrepreneurial spirit is helping to shape the town.

While our spotlight typically shines a light on local small business owners, this week we're looking at a small business conference that aims to help get entreprenuers off the ground.

Name: BucksMont BizCon

Location: The Fuge, 780 Falcon Circle, Warminster

Date: October 20, 2016

What business are you in or what is the nature of your charity?

"The conference is entitled BucksMont BizCon and it’s an annual, all-day marketing summit for local small business owners and entrepreneurs. It’s a fantastic networking opportunity for those just starting out, and is all about marketing best practices for smaller businesses. Marketing can be so overwhelming - there are so many choices. From Search Engine Optimization, to Pay Per Click, PR, Social Media, and more, it can be incredibly overwhelming for someone who is just starting out (and who may have limited funds) to even know where to start. That’s where BMBC comes in - we have been where these business owners are, which is why we created an opportunity for them to come together, network, learn from each other’s successes and mistakes, and hear from some of the best marketing minds in the area — all in one place."

How did you come up with the name?

BucksMont is a nod to the area we’re serving (Bucks and Montgomery Counties) and BizCon is short for Business Conference.

Why start a business in this town?

"There's a plethora of marketing conventions and events in the Philadelphia and New York areas, but nothing for the many businesses in between. We certainly encourage those from the city to come and learn from what we’re offering, but the conference is really geared towards the entrepreneur who doesn’t have time to carve out a half day or even a few hours for travel."

What’s the most difficult challenge you’ve faced as a business owner?

"Cutting through the clutter of other expos out there, and getting the word out about our summit. We’re just in our second year so we’re still very much focused on spreading awareness about the event. The people who come get so much out of it, it’s just getting new folks to know about it and sign up."

What’s been your proudest achievement since opening?

"Seeing the winner of last year’s competition (Katie Robbins of “Taste of Tuscany") thrive, and expand her pasta sauce business as a result of receiving the $5K prize."

How does your business give back to the community?

"This year, we decided to make the entire conference completely free to any student with a valid ID. We were students once, and we know sometimes even buying a pizza can be financially challenging! We didn’t want anything to stand in the way of a student excited about his/her business idea, which is why the free tickets."

Know of a small local business deserving of the spotlight? Email justin.heinze@patch.com.

Image courtesy Bucks Mont BizCon.