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THE BEST PLACE TO GET STARTED Professional Guidance For Business Growth The Business Development Center at the Joseph Center is comprised of the Illinois Small Business Development Center Illinois APEX Accelerator and Illinois International Trade Center programs and collectively we are a vital asset for business owners as provide entrepreneurial growth in three distinct areas. We provide oneonone business advising networking opportunities training workshops and assistance to entrepreneurs looking to improve business performance productivity and profitability. Established in 2005 the Illinois Small Business Development Center SBDC at the Joseph Center was formed to provide business development services for local entrepreneurs and it was the first faithbased SBDC in the United States. In 2016 we expanded our services to include government contracting and procurement technical assistance as we launched the APEX Accelerator program formerly the Procurement Technical Assistance Center PTAC and in October of 2018 we launched our International Trade Center ITC which gives us the ability to support entrepreneurs export their products or services.