Helping Orange County Businesses
In November 2021, Orange County announced the launch of BizLink Orange, an online one-stop shop of multiple resources to aid small businesses. The County also announced Cenfluence, a “clustering” initiative to strengthen Central Florida’s economy and spur job creation beyond the hospitality and tourism industry in four technology industry clusters: Energy and Environmental Sciences; Gaming, Entertainment and eSports; Life Sciences; and Learning Sciences & Human Performance. Both BizLink Orange and Cenfluence will provide huge benefits to local and regional business owners as they look for ways to grow their presence in our community and elsewhere.
BizLink Orange is funded by Orange County and managed by the National Entrepreneur Center.
Cenfluence is partially funded by Orange County and managed by the Florida High Tech Corridor.
BizLink Orange
Small businesses now have multiple new resources available to them for free thanks to BizLink Orange, a new program managed by the National Entrepreneur Center in partnership with Orange County Government.
“Orange County is home to the most innovative and hard-working business owners in the world,” said Orange County Mayor Jerry L. Demings. “This new tool provides the next logical step for connecting business owners to the resources that will support their growth, which benefits our entire region.”
BizLink Orange’s network of Resource Partners provides one-on-one business coaching and a wide range of business training topics, including planning, loans/financing, marketing/sales, licenses/permits, startup assistance, product development, training classes, government contracting, operations, human resources, accounting and international trade.
BizLink Orange is designed to help the small business community resolve issues by providing much-needed assistance and help them be well-positioned for long-term success.
Learn all about BizLink Orange here.
Cenfluence
Cenfluence is a new initiative to strengthen Central Florida’s economy and spur job creation beyond hospitality and tourism. Launched by the Florida High Tech Corridor and Orange County Government, the program’s mission is to unite cluster members and propel them beyond the local region to energize national and international partnerships and commerce.
The name Cenfluence is a combination of “confluence” and “Central Florida” and was formerly known as the Orange County Cluster Initiative, established in February 2021.
Currently, 50 businesses have joined Cenfluence and more than 160 companies have been identified as prospective members of the Cenfluence cluster. The four clusters include:
- Energy and Environmental Sciences
- Gaming, Entertainment and eSports
- Life Sciences
- Learning Sciences & Human Performance
The goal of Cenfluence is to harness the energy of the four clusters and build an unparalleled ecosystem where industry, academia and support organizations converge. According to the U.S. Small Business Administration, members of a formal cluster structure benefit from revenue gains, increased integration with industry supply chains, support for technology development, and collaboration activities with other members and stakeholders.
The Cenfluence initiative puts Orange County on the map as a premier destination for technology research and innovation. Learn more about Cenfluence here.
Orlando Economic Partnership
The Orlando Economic Partnership (the Partnership) offers a full range of services to businesses looking to locate or expand in the Orlando area with a staff of business development experts who can assist in everything from site location analysis to evaluation of financial assistance.
Learn more about the OEP here.