The Richland County Office of Small Business Opportunity is holding an all-day networking event for local businesses.

Connecting Small Businesses to Financing and Contracting Opportunities will be 9 am – 3 pm this Wednesday, September 11 at Richland School District 2’s Institute of Innovation (R2i2) and is part of the County’s Engage Richland series.

Small businesses can network and learn about available opportunities through various segments at the event. These include:

• Lender Expert Panel: Banking representatives share information on lending opportunities for small businesses.

• Vendor Village: Small-business leaders can go table-to-table to network with representatives of various municipalities and agencies.

• “Power Up” Pitch Competition: Owners of small-business start-ups can pitch their ideas for a chance to win up to $1,000.

• Matchmaking with Richland County: Businesses are matched with County departments that can use their services; they are then given time to meet with those departments.

Visit engagerichland.eventbrite.com to register online. On-site registration starts at 8:30 am.