About Lynchburg's Business Development Center (BDC)
The Business Development Centre, Inc. has been providing development services to existing and prospective small business owners in the economic area known as Region 2000 since 1989. The organization is a 501-c-3, non-profit corporation, which is governed by a volunteer, 16 member Board of Directors.
The Centre has three primary services:
- The business incubator, a 42,000 square foot facility, provides space for start-up and emerging businesses, giving them the opportunity to reach a maturity level, which will help to ensure long-term success for the operation. The incubator offers a variety of different types and sizes of space as well as a full-range of services.
- Provides existing and prospective business owners throughout the Region 2000 area with in-depth counseling and business-related training classes, seminars and workshops.
- Provides direct financing to small business owners with a variety of loan programs and gap financing.
All three services of the BDC are in sync with the needs of the typical entrepreneur. As a result, we often serve as a “one-stop-shop” resource for entrepreneurs who are seeking assistance in the development of their projects. We serve the Region 2000 economic area which includes the City of Lynchburg, the Counties of Amherst, Appomattox, Bedford, and Campbell including the Towns of Altavista, Amherst, Appomattox, Bedford and Brookneal. With a regional population of 240,000, the BDC is the only service-center of this type, which provides services and products at a low cost to small businesses. The governmental bodies that make up Region 2000 fully support the Centre in its efforts to serve their population.
The Business Development Centre’s, Inc. mission is to connect the entrepreneurial initiative with effective planning and execution to maximize opportunities in the marketplace.
To accomplish this, the BDC provides new and existing small business with management assistance, cost effective space, counseling, training, funding and a synergistic environment to support the development of local, small business which can:
- Contribute to the general economic health of Region 2000 of Central Virginia.
- Increase and create job opportunities.
- Develop and add to the variety of products and services available to area business and industry.