Business Briefly | Local News

Virtual business training available

“ScaleUp: The Online COVID-19 Edition for Rural Counties” is open for registration to businesses throughout the state.

The free training will take place on 10 consecutive Wednesdays from 8:30 a.m. to noon starting Sept. 30.

The program will include virtual classroom training, roundtables, best practices and access to mentors to help businesses become more resilient and sustainable in the face of the pandemic.

The course is aimed at business owners or executives of businesses that have been in operation for two years with annual gross revenue of more than $100,000.

“ScaleUp” is a partnership between the state Department of Commerce, Thurston Economic Development Council, The Center for Business Innovation, and local economic development organizations.

Registration can be done at startup.choosewashingtonstate.com/programs/scaleup/

Virtual benefit concert to support local farms

The Washington Farmland Trust and Viva Farms are teaming up to hold “Love the Land: a virtual benefit concert for local farms” at 7 p.m. Sept. 30.

The concert will help raise funds for farmers as they confront rising land prices, climate change and a global pandemic.

Featured artists include Dave Matthews, Naomi Wachira, Luz Elena Mendoza of Y La Bamba, and Tomo Nakayama.

Tickets can be purchased at wafarmlandtrust.org

Local marketing/PR firm wins awards

Stacie Zinn Roberts, president of Mount Vernon-based What’s your Avocado? Marketing & Public Relations, recently won five national writing awards for marketing campaigns.

The awards were from the Turf & Ornamental Communicators Association and presented at a conference held virtually Sept. 11.

Roberts won a first-place award for “Fans in the Crowd” in the Writing for Display Ad category, and a first-place award for “Renovating Paradise” in the Writing a Feature Story category. She also won three merit awards for Writing a Feature Story and Writing an Editorial.