United States SBA STEP Program Awards New Jersey $700,000 to Promote Global Sales by Small Businesses

TRENTON, N.J. - New Jersey Secretary of State Tahesha Way announced small businesses across New Jersey will have access to a $700,000 export promotion program through a competitively awarded grant with the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA). The New Jersey Department of State’s successful State Trade Expansion Program (STEP) has been awarded funding for six consecutive years and has advised and assisted hundreds of businesses of the millions of dollars of export sales around the world.

“This Administration recognizes that New Jersey’s diverse small business community is a consistent engine for New Jersey’s economy,” said Secretary Way. “The SBA award will help small businesses grow in markets around the world and improve their bottom lines here at home in the Garden State.”

The STEP program is administered by the New Jersey Business Action Center’s (BAC) Office of Export Promotion and awards are drawn down competitively on a first come, first served basis over a two-year period from September 30, 2018 to September 29, 2020. The BAC is housed within the New Jersey Department of State and is the “one-stop shop” for all businesses to access a variety of free resources and support.
For the second year in a row, the STEP program ranked in the top ten awards administered by the SBA. New Jersey’s $700,000 export promotion program is the third highest amount granted among other applicants. Consistent with previous years, one-hundred percent (100%) of the New Jersey STEP program will be awarded to eligible small businesses to help cover costs related to participation in foreign trade missions, international trade shows and exhibitions, website translations, and services provided by the U.S. Department of Commerce. 

STEP awards provide export assistance to eligible small businesses and are designed to increase the number of new small business exporters, expand the value of global sales for current exporters, and increase the number of small businesses that explore significant new export opportunities. 

New Jersey currently ranks sixth in the nation in the number of small and mid-sized exporters. More than 18,500 New Jersey small businesses currently sell products in foreign markets, which contributed to New Jersey’s $34.5 billion of overall global sales in 2017.

The Office of Export Promotion is now accepting STEP applications from small businesses for fiscal year 2018. The application and related forms are found at https://www.nj.gov/state/bac/njstep.html.

For more information on how the New Jersey Business Action Center helps companies of all sizes save time and money by getting answers from government agencies, directing businesses to appropriate officials and contacts, and facilitating meetings and follow-ups from regulatory agencies, call 1-800-JERSEY-7 or visit https://www.nj.gov/njbusiness/.