Scale to Grow Business Accelerator Program

Description

A Free, 7-Week Hybrid Program for Florida Keys Entrepreneurs built for everyone from "I have an idea" to "I need to take this to the next level." The Scale to Grow Business Accelerator brings together aspiring entrepreneurs, new business owners, and established operators for seven weeks of hands-on training, expert coaching, and real business planning. This isn't a lecture series—you'll build, refine, and deliver a working action plan tailored to your business. What You'll Cover: 

Week 1 -- Customer Journey Strategies: understand how customers find you, choose you, and stay with you 

Week 2 -- Business Financial Health: learn to read your numbers, assess cash flow, and position for financing 

Week 3 -- AI Tools Workshop: get hands-on with practical AI tools that save time and cut costs 

Week 4 -- Operations & Productivity: find the bottlenecks draining your profit and fix them 

Week 5 -- Branding Development: build a brand identity and marketing strategy that commands your value 

Week 6 -- Pitch Preparation: pull everything together into a compelling action plan with personalized coaching 

Week 7 -- Pitches & Graduation: present your plan to industry professionals, celebrate your progress, and walk away with a roadmap to scale 

What You Walk Away With: 

A business action plan you built, refined, and delivered -- not a theoretical exercise Personalized feedback from industry professionals Free, ongoing one-on-one consulting with SBDC market growth specialists. Your growth doesn't stop at graduation. 

Dates: Tuesdays, September 1-October 13, 2026 Time: 9:30-11:00 AM (Week 7 extended to 1:00 PM) 

Format: Hybrid -- In-Person at Key Largo Public Library + Virtual sessions 

Location: Key Largo Public Library Auditorium, 101485 Overseas Hwy, Key Largo, FL 33037 

Cost: Free 

Apply: go.fiu.edu/accelerator Questions? 

Contact Bonnie Barnes at 904.463.0513 or Nancy Hull at 954.816.4084 

Presented by Florida SBDC at FIU, College of Business