CTSBDC

News related to the Connecticut Small Business Development Center

Cricket Press Taps UConn Students to Explore AI-Driven Growth Strategies

Posted on by Theresa Cramer

CTSBDC – Sometimes all it takes is a fresh perspective to unlock new growth. Through a recent collaboration between the UConn School of Business and the Connecticut Small Business Development Center (CTSBDC), Cricket Press—a West Hartford staple since 1971—gained valuable insights from some of UConn’s top business students, opening the door to new opportunities and ideas.

As part of its Honors Program, the UConn School of Business offers a Case Competition which gives students a chance to work directly with real-world businesses to address a challenge. In years past, students have worked with larger enterprises, but during the Spring 2026 semester, students worked with CTSBDC’s client, Greg Confessore, owner of Cricket Press. For Confessore, working with the students was about continuing a legacy of being forward-thinking and using new technology—and the knowledge of others—to allow his small business to operate at a higher level.

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Connecticut Small Business Development Center Has Been Integral in Pandemic Assistance

Posted on by Claire Hall
Jim Jackson, CTSBDC Business Advisor and Kelley and Derrik Kennedy at Sip Wine Bar.
Left to Right: Jim Jackson, CTSBDC Business Advisor and Kelley and Derrik Kennedy, Sip Wine Bar (Contributed Photo)

Today we celebrate the Connecticut Small Business Development Center (CTSBDC) which, in the last year, has helped support more than 9,000 Connecticut small businesses through the pandemic.

“This past year has shown the resiliency of our small businesses,” said CTSBDC State Director Joe Ercolano. “Our advisers have worked with more than double the number of businesses compared to the previous year and supported them in ways that were totally new to us.”Continue Reading

Joe Ercolano Named State Director of CTSBDC

Posted on by Claire Hall

Portrait of Joseph Ercolano.
Joe Ercolano (above) will lead a team of business advisors dedicated to small business growth in Connecticut as the Director of CTSBDC (Photo Courtesy of CTSBDC)

Joe Ercolano has been named the State Director of the Connecticut Small Business Development Center (CTSBDC), effective immediately. Ercolano, a former executive at Pitney Bowes, most recently served as the CTSBDC’s Acting State Director.Continue Reading

Family Businesses: ‘Your Name is On It!’

Posted on by Claire Hall
Cal Miller-Stevens (left) and her niece Capri Frank pose inside Miller Foods, Inc., a fourth-generation family-owned food business in Avon, Connecticut. Behind them is a 1960s photo of family matriarch Margaret ‘Oma’ Miller with her daughters Sandi Trudeau and Cal Miller-Stevens in the same location.
Cal Miller-Stevens, left, and her niece Capri Frank pose for a photo inside the store at Miller Foods, Inc., a fourth-generation, family owned and operated food business located in Avon, Conn. Behind them is a photo taken in the early 1960s, in the same location. From left is family matriarch Margaret “Oma” Miller and her two daughters, Sandi Trudeau (Frank’s mother) and Miller-Stevens. (Nathan Oldham / UConn School of Business)

UConn Revamps Family Business Program, Offers Bootcamp, Summer Internship Program to Help Multi-Generational Companies Thrive

Ask Julie Paine-Miller, vice president of Paine’s Inc. Recycling and Rubbish Removal, what it is like to be employed in a family-owned business, and she will share that some of her fondest childhood memories involve riding in her family’s garbage trucks.

“I have a deep-seated love for trash!,” Paine-Miller said with a laugh. “I have memories of being around the trucks from the time I was a little girl.”Continue Reading

xCITE Conference Fosters Camaraderie Among Women Entrepreneurs

Posted on by Claire Hall
Camaraderie and networking among women innovators highlighted UConn's xCITE conference on May 23rd.
Camaraderie and networking among women innovators highlighted UConn’s xCITE conference on May 23rd. (Zack Wussow/Zack Wussow Media)

Senior Elizabeth Gallucci ’19 already has a long list of achievements on her resume, including working as an undergraduate teaching assistant, volunteering at a startup that serves underprivileged children, and studying in London. Continue Reading

Nearly 1,300 Businesses Thrive with CTSBDC Free Help

Posted on by Claire Hall, Kristen Mozian
The Pastyrnaks of Counter Weight Brewing Co., just one of 1,284 businesses the CTSBDC helped in 2017 alone.
The Pastyrnaks of Counter Weight Brewing Co., just one of 1,284 businesses the CTSBDC helped in 2017 alone. (Connecticut Small Business Development Center)

Entrepreneur Bill Pastyrnak had an extensive business background, and he and his son had a passion for brewing beer, but without a helping hand, they knew their dream of creating Counter Weight Brewing Co. in Hamden, Conn., wouldn’t come true. Continue Reading

Entrepreneurship, Wings to Fly

Posted on by Guanwei Tao
From left: Guanwei Tao and project mentors Michelle Cote, and Caroline Dealy.
From left: Guanwei Tao and project mentors Michelle Cote and Caroline Dealy. (Guanwei Tao)

My Experience with the Connecticut Center for Entrepreneurship & Innovation (CCEI)

I worked for multinational corporations for 10 years. My career grew from sales to marketing. As a product marketing professional, I have launched 10 products in the last 6 years. However, I can’t stop asking myself, “What else can I do to contribute more to my career? Where is the next step to lead to a meaningful life?” Continue Reading

‘We Can Actually Do This!’

Posted on by Claire Hall
Portrait of Benjamin Grosse.
Benjamin Grosse ’21 (Nathan Oldham/UConn School of Business)

Ben Grosse, UConn Freshman and Business Owner, to Advise New Werth Institute

It isn’t easy running a $100,000-a-year, innovative, premium-performance earbud company while balancing the demands of academics and college activities, but freshman Ben Grosse doesn’t shy away from a challenge. Continue Reading