2025 November – ND Small Business Development Centers

Honoring Service, Empowering Entrepreneurs

November is National Veterans and Military Families Month, a time to honor those who have served and recognize how their skills and experiences continue to strengthen North Dakota’s communities. Last week, the nation celebrated National Veterans Small Business Week (NVSBW), which highlighted the many ways veterans and military spouses contribute to our state’s small business landscape.

We see the impact of these entrepreneurs every day. Veterans bring discipline, teamwork, and a mission-driven mindset to their businesses. Military spouses, through resilience and adaptability, often transform portable skills into successful ventures that create stability for their families and vitality for their communities. Together, they are innovators, employers, and leaders who keep local economies strong.

A Coordinated Network of Support

All three of our department’s programs, VBOC of the Dakotas, the ND SBDC, and the ND APEX Accelerator, work to ensure every veteran and spouse can access the right resources at the right time. VBOC of the Dakotas provides foundational trainings like Boots to Business and B2B Reboot, along with personalized advising to help service members and spouses explore entrepreneurship and prepare for business ownership. ND SBDC builds on that foundation by assisting entrepreneurs with startup planning, capital readiness, market research, and long-term growth strategy. When the business is ready to explore new markets, the ND APEX Accelerator guides businesses through government contracting, certifications, and bid strategy, helping them grow through public-sector opportunities. Together, these programs form a coordinated network of support that helps veteran-owned businesses start strong and thrive.

As one of our clients, Lenny Johnson of Genesis in Williston, shared, the ND SBDC “has the resources to get any business off to a great start.”

Veterans like Sergio Camacho, who completed the Boots to Business course and received one-on-one advising through VBOC of the Dakotas, exemplify the impact of this support. As he shared, working with our team helped him edit his business plan so it “looks professional and concise, and most importantly, it gets the numbers right for the lender.” He added, “I’ve had a great time learning from you, and your story shared during the Boots to Business class shows that with dedication, anything is possible.” That same spirit applies across the state, whether a founder is just starting to shape an idea or scaling to reach new markets.

Working Together to Empower Veterans

Veteran-owned businesses play a powerful role in our economy. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, veteran-owned firms made up 5.4% of employer businesses in 2021, representing more than 1.6 million companies that generated roughly $922 billion in revenue. Each year, about 200,000 service members transition to civilian life, creating a steady pipeline of talent, leadership, and potential entrepreneurs.

As we reflect on NVSBW and celebrate National Veterans and Military Families Month, we invite our partners, including lenders, chambers, EDCs, campuses, and community organizations, to continue connecting veterans and military families to our teams. By working together, we can ensure they have every opportunity to thrive as small business owners and community leaders.

Thank you for supporting North Dakota’s veteran entrepreneurs and for helping us continue this important work.

Tiffany Ford, State Director
And all the Staff of the ND Small Business Development Network