e3 Initiative Aims to Build Local Economy Ecosystems
- published: 2024/05/29
- contact: NBDC Communications - Nebraska Business Development Center
- phone: 402.554.6256
- email: kjefferson@unomaha.edu
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- NBDC
- Cheyenne County
- e3 Initiative
- SourceLink Nebraska
- Nebraska Business Resources
Omaha, Nebraska – This story was originally published in the Nebraska Business Development Center 2023 Annual Report.
Sarah Sinnett grew up in Sidney but left and moved to Omaha. Today, with her husband, a trooper with the Nebraska State Patrol, she’s back in Sidney – and it’s where she wants to stay. “I love it here,” she says. “But after I moved away, no one ever tried to make it cool to come back. No one ever invited me back.”
Working together through a variety of programs, organizations, and initiatives, Sinnett and others want to change all that.
The effort is a partnership linking the minds and resources of the statewide Energizing Entrepreneurial Ecosystems (e3) Initiative, a collaboration between the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, Nebraska Community Foundation, NetWork Kansas, and e2 Entrepreneurial Ecosystems; along with SourceLink Nebraska, a statewide program of the Nebraska Business Development Center, and local chambers of commerce and economic development groups.
Launched in 2021, e3 is a community-building experience designed to bolster entrepreneurial ecosystems in Valley County, Holt County, Keith County, Sidney/Cheyenne County, and Red Cloud. Sinnett is a Nebraska Community Foundation board member and serves as the e3 Community Lead for Cheyenne County.
Communities involved with the e3 project are looking toward the future by creating a more diversified, stable economy focused on assets and opportunities. In Cheyenne County, one goal is to create a source for sustainable funding to support entrepreneurs. Another long-term goal is to build a support system for young people who want to start a business.
Sinnett says the work actually began in Sidney in 2017, when Cabela’s was sold to Bass Pro Shops. The Cabela’s headquarters in Sidney closed, eliminating about 2,000 jobs in a community of about 6,500 people.
Although Sidney lost residents when Cabela’s closed, some, like Sinnett, have returned. Since 2020, Sidney has gained nearly 500 new residents – and hopes to attract more.
“Sidney has a marvelous core of people who love the town and the area,” Sinnett says. “They wanted to stay, and they did so by creating their own businesses.”
She says that since 2017, 101 new businesses have been created, ranging from retail sales and restaurants to boutiques and specialty services.
“We had built some momentum when the Nebraska Community Foundation approached and said the grant from the Kauffman Foundation presented an amazing opportunity,” she says. “We have been on an incredible journey ever since. The e3 initiative gave us the structure and the resources, and SourceLink Nebraska and the NBDC gave us the framework and the tools.”
Sidney has a marvelous core of people who love the town and the area. They wanted to stay, and they did so by creating their own businesses.
That momentum continues to build, Sinnett says. In March 2023, Alisha Juelfs was hired as the Entrepreneurial Navigator for Cheyenne County’s e3 group. In less than a year, Juelfs has recorded 100 client interactions. She says some clients don’t know what resources they need, while others aren’t aware of existing resources or how to connect with them.
“I partner with all the existing resources, but because I’m not affiliated with any of them, my informational guidance is unbiased and completely confidential,” Juelfs says. “I get to know my clients and point them in the right direction to who may be best suited to help fill their needs. I see my job as a public service, and it’s very rewarding.”
Although e3 was intended to be a three-year project, funding has been provided that will ensure the initiative and Juelfs’ position continue in Cheyenne County and Sidney. Additionally, there is a plan to hire a technical grant writer to assist budding entrepreneurs, Sinnett says.
The e3 initiative is also working to let young people know that opportunities exist in western Nebraska, and that if they move away for college, they are welcome to return and start their own businesses.
That message was underscored in the fall of 2023 when the Cheyenne County e3 chapter, Nelnet and Sidney Public Schools launched the first Youth Entrepreneurship Competition at Sidney High School. Sinnett says donations from a local community member and Nelnet, along with curriculum provided by the e2 program, allowed all high school juniors and seniors to participate in the semester-long class and competition.
In the competition, students were tasked with imagining a business or service and creating a business plan, company financials, and a marketing strategy. At the end of the semester, they pitched their business plans to a panel of judges. That was followed by a “community trade show” where the students manned booths to present their businesses and attendees voted on their favorites. The first place prize was $5,000 and an Apple MacBook Pro 13, and was awarded to a student whose company offered artificial insemination for cattle.
“It was an energetic, amazing day,” says Sinnett, who coordinated the high school program. “Hundreds of people showed up. It was so successful that now we have employers who are offering to fund it in future years, and our goal is to make it county-wide.”
Brandi O’Malley, SourceLink Nebraska Network Navigator, says she and Juelfs work together to heighten awareness and ensure access to businesses resources in western Nebraska and throughout the state. “Creating entrepreneurial ecosystems is very leading edge,” O’Malley says. “We want to do all we can to support local communities, because supporting local economies ultimately supports the entire state.”