Businesses need matchmakers, too. Arizona expo connects small firms with big buyers

Arizona has emerged as a leader in aerospace and semiconductor manufacturing, according to the Small Business Administration. That’s due in part to recent expansions among household names like TSMC, Intel, Boeing, and others.

But there are thousands of smaller businesses in the state helping these companies — and the larger U.S. supply chain — run smoothly.

The SBA is a federal agency designed to connect small firms with funding and contract opportunities. On Wednesday, the agency hosted its third ever supplier matchmaking expo in Scottsdale. Prior events were held in Michigan and North Carolina.

SBA Deputy Administrator Bill Briggs says it's all part of a national effort to reshore manufacturing.

“What we unfortunately learned in the COVID era in particular, was that one supply chain interruption, one shipping delay can really freeze an industry,” Briggs said. “And so right now the focus is rebuilding the domestic capacity for many reasons.”

“There’s lower travel costs or transportation and shipping costs, but also there’s tremendous opportunity for our workforce,” he added.

The SBA estimates 99% of firms in Arizona are small businesses, representing over 700,000 companies and half of people employed in the state. SBA Arizona District Director Corey Wunderlich estimated about 64% of those firms are within the semiconductor and aerospace industries.

Briggs says that put Arizona high on the list of places for the expo to visit.

“Arizona and some of the neighboring states like New Mexico are really this emerging corridor of domestic manufacturing, aerospace engineering,” Briggs said. “A lot of innovation is taking place here in defense, logistics — all of it.”

SBA staff said around 1,000 firms signed up to attend, of which 600 were actually present. These firms could connect with aerospace and semiconductor industry leaders, like Northrop Grumman and Intel, and with federal, state and local departments seeking contracted work or specialty parts.

Anyone could attend, but over 200 companies applied for 10-minute, one-on-one interviews with buyers. These meetings were expected to bring companies closer to final deals, due to some prior matchmaking work done by the SBA and the Arizona APEX Accelerator.

“They’re matched early on with potential buyers,” Briggs said. “Sort of like speed dating, and they’re getting to know each other. And from our prior two matchmaking expos, we know there are positive outcomes.”

Wunderlich says more major industries are contracting with local businesses, because it helps insulate against global supply chain shocks. But still, it can be hard to know what’s in their backyard.

“You could drive past a small business in the state of Arizona and not even realize what their capabilities are,” Wunderlich said.

He says the whole point of the event was to allow small businesses to “get their foot in the door and say, ‘you don’t need to worry about trying to import that from a different country. We can provide that for you, too, right here.’”