Photo above: The 2017 KOSBE Award winners Photos by Linda Coffey, Coffey Shots Photography
The Kingsport Office of Small Business Development and Entrepreneurship (KOSBE) honored a dozen area businesses at the 2017 KOSBE Awards Dec. 14 at the MeadowView Marriott Conference Resort and Convention Center.
Special guests Fred Cooper and Rick Jennings of Dickinson, which recently purchased Kingsport Book, shared with attendees their journey from corporate life through entrepreneurship to selling their business.
The KOSBE Awards promote economic impact for the Tri-Cities by recognizing small businesses that are leading by example and making an extraordinary contribution to the communities they do business in. The winners exemplify leadership and excellence in overcoming adversity, and a passion for helping others succeed. Award winners serve as inspirational leaders to other local small businesses, and they model best practices that will progress the region as a whole.
Several contenders and winners also received bonuses including print and radio advertising, marketing, co-working space, memberships, financial analysis, legal aid, training, and expert coaching.
Rick Jennings, left, and Fred Cooper, right, of Dickinson Press are interviewed by Business Journal Editor Scott Robertson at the KOSBE Awards.
