Business Owners Can Learn How to Win City Contracts in First Small Business Week

If you own a business in Pasadena and have never bid on a city contract, the city wants to change that — starting today.

A free 90-minute virtual webinar this afternoon will walk local business owners through the mechanics of competing for city work: how to register as a vendor on the OpenGov procurement platform, how to find open solicitations, and how to submit a winning bid. The session, titled “Partner Pasadena: Navigating the Procurement Process,” is the opening public event in Pasadena’s first-ever Small Business Week, which runs May 3–9.

The Pasadena Small Business Development Center, hosted at Pasadena City College, and the city’s Finance team are co-hosting the webinar, which runs from noon to 1:30 p.m. Registration is open at Bit.ly/SBW26webinar.

“Whether it’s navigating procurement or inspiring future founders, our goal is to help every local business start, scale, and succeed,” David Klug, the city’s economic development director, said in a city press release announcing the week’s events.

The webinar will also cover procurement opportunities tied to upcoming city events, according to the city’s Economic Development Division website. Pasadena uses the OpenGov electronic procurement system for formal solicitations, and vendors certified as small or micro-businesses by the State of California receive a 5 percent preference on bids, according to the city’s Finance Department. The city uses competitive bidding for contracts of $75,000 or more, according to the Finance Department.

Small Business Week, which the U.S. Small Business Administration has held nationally for more than 60 years, is being staged locally for the first time. The city’s Economic Development Division organized the Pasadena edition, with Logix Federal Credit Union as presenting sponsor, according to the press release. Logix, chartered in 1937, has served the Pasadena community from its South Lake Avenue branch since 2002, according to the press release.

Two additional events follow the webinar. An invite-only breakfast Wednesday with Mayor Victor Gordo will focus on helping business owners expand their digital presence. On Thursday, a session called “She Builds: From Idea to Empire” — organized with the Pasadena Women’s Business Center and Altadena Girls — will pair nearly 75 female high school students with six to seven women entrepreneurs for mentorship discussions, according to the press release.

“Small businesses are the heart of Pasadena,” Carlos Alvarado, branch manager for Logix Federal Credit Union’s Pasadena location on South Lake Avenue, said in the press release.

For more information, contact project manager Christopher Page at CPage@CityOfPasadena.net or call the City Service Center at (626) 744-7311. Details are also available at CityOfPasadena.net/EconomicDevelopment/Explore-The-City/Small-Business-Week/.

The SBDC, part of the Los Angeles Regional SBDC Network and housed at Pasadena City College since 2013, offers free one-on-one business advising year-round. That door, at least, has always been open.