Small businesses and startups invited to this year’s Dream Big: A Small Business Empowerment Forum

The future of Los Angeles's small business economy is invited to gather on Wednesday, June 18, at LA Plaza de Cultura y Artes in historic downtown Los Angeles for this year’s Dream Big: A Small Business Empowerment Forum. 

The forum looks to gather people scaling a startup, navigating policy shifts or seeking their next big partnership as a small business. In order to give small business owners the knowledge, tools, and connections they need to succeed, this half-day forum will include town halls, workshops, and networking areas. 

Los Angeles County is home to over 1.3 million small businesses, including more women-owned businesses and businesses owned by Latinos and other people of color than any county within the United States. 

Dream Big is inviting small business owners who make up part of or want to make up part of the total business landscape.

The event will begin with a networking breakfast where people can  make connections and learn from one another. Following will be a small business town hall titled "Rebuild and  Rise in Uncertain Times,” where attendees will learn about new solutions to succeed by taking on the available opportunities within government contracting and supplier diversity. 

Organizers said that with issues like the L.A. wildfires and ongoing administration policy shifts, tariffs, taxes, federal funding freezes, changes in immigration policies and small business struggles, examining new roads to move people's businesses forward is more important than ever. 

The evening will end with a workshop titled “Beyond Certification: Unlock Secrets of Winning Proposals,” where small business owners will learn from Lisa Rehurek, founder of The RFP Success Company, about writing winning bids and harnessing artificial intelligence's power in contracting and securing funding.

Guest speakers for the event will include U.S. Senator Alex Padilla, who will be sharing national insights through exclusive video remarks; Elenor Torres, executive managing director of the Port of Long Beach; Stephen Cheung, chief executive officer of the L.A. County Economic Development Corporation, who will touch on unlocking capital, contracts, and jobs across the region; Lalo Alcaraz, CALÓ News cartoonist and two-time Pulitzer Prize finalist, who will bring bold cultural commentary and humor; and Jesús Chávez, general manager and president of TelevisaUnivision, among others. 

The event will take place from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. and is free to the public. 

To RSVP and learn more about the event, click here.