An inaugural Small Business Day celebrated the success of entrepreneurs in this State and highlight the importance of small business to the WA economy.


The celebration —  last month — was organised by the Small Enterprise Network, the Chamber of Commerce and Industry and members of the Regional Chambers network.

SEN chairwoman Nicolle Jenkins said it was created to give small business a united voice and to celebrate the diversity and employment the sector brings to WA.

And the network’s over-riding public message on their big day will be to urge the public to spend at small businesses, to ensure their continued survival in the face of big global corporations.

“The sad part is that small businesses will disappear from some sectors if we don’t make a concerted effort to support them, ” she says.

Jenkins said she supported everyone’s right to make their own purchasing decisions but urged people to think small first.

“The way we shop influences what is available to shop in, ” she says. “I know my kids will want the diversity and quality that small business offers.

“You only miss it when it’s gone.”

Jenkins says that if small businesses disappear, so will jobs. Families will be shut out from a number of sectors, much as they already have been from petrol stations.

“Remember when they used to fill up the tank and wipe the windscreen? That’s the kind of service we are losing, ” she says.

Currently, small business accounts for 46 per cent of all jobs in the State. There are 210,000 small businesses.

“It’s time we celebrate and recognise that small business is at the heart of our economy, ” she says.

Small Business Day will be include an expo in future years.

 

Picture:facebook.com/smallbusinesswa

 

© The West Australian