Inflation. Tariffs. AI. Four generations working under one roof, each with its own idea of what a phone is for.
If you run a small business in New Jersey, there’s a lot you can’t predict right now. The Feliciano Center for Entrepreneurship + Innovation at Montclair State University feels it can help you prepare.
The center is hosting its third annual New Jersey Small Business Summit on Wednesday at University Hall.
This year’s theme: “Future-proof Your Business.”
The idea is practical. The summit is a mix of workshop and expo, built around how to keep a business standing through economic uncertainty and fast technological change. Organizers say attendees will leave with strategies they can use, not just slides they saw.
The day includes panels, classroom sessions and a look at the economy from M&T Bank’s chief economist.
A few highlights:
- Future-proof Your Business: It is a panel on the economic and technology trends reshaping small business, and what owners can do now to get ready.
- Leading Across Generations: It looks at how a workforce that spans boomers to Gen Z can turn different communication styles and expectations into an advantage, not a headache.
- Building Your Moat: It is a classroom session on finding the edge that makes a business hard to replace.
- Customer Obsession: A Daily Practice is an interactive class on making customer focus an everyday habit.
- Sauté My Business: This may be the liveliest hour of the day. Entrepreneurs from the center’s IGNITE program pitch live and get real-time feedback from judges and the audience. Think “Shark Tank,” with fewer sharks and more neighbors.
For a lot of small-business owners, the most useful part may be the M&T Small Business Suite. M&T Bank sponsors free one-on-one consultations with experts on access to capital, budgeting, business planning, HR and hiring, sales, marketing, social media and using AI.
There’s also lunch, free professional headshots and a live podcast taping with Montclair Pod.
Ticket and sponsorship money goes toward free and low-cost classes the Feliciano Center offers entrepreneurs in the community.
Top sponsors include M&T Bank, PSE&G, Cross River Bank, Withum, Valley Bank, NJEDA, PNC Bank, Beacon Wealth Partners, North Jersey Federal Credit Union and Cornerstone Montclair.
Doors open at 9 a.m. Wednesday, on the first and seventh floors of University Hall. Programming runs from 9:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tickets are $50; register here.
