October News & Events from the BRC
Welcome to your October news from the Eastern Sierra BRC! Below, you’ll find details about our upcoming events and other
269 N Main St., Bishop, CA
269 N Main St., Bishop, CA
Welcome to the March newsletter from the Eastern Sierra BRC!
Spring is nearly upon us, and, in the interest of cultivating the rich business and entrepreneurial soil of the Eastern Sierra, we’ve added some new resources and free trainings to the BRC website. We’ve also planned a slate of free events and workshops coming up in the next few weeks at the BRC. Read below for more details.
We’re also celebrating the resounding success of our Exceeding Customer Expectations workshop series and look forward to applying the feedback from those to further elevate future trainings and workshops in was that work for all our Eastern Sierra businesses.
As always, if you have thoughts on training or resources you’d like to see, or questions about our services, please reach out to the team at brc@sierrabusiness.org– We’d love to hear from you!
Cheers to a fruitful spring season!
Meryl Picard
Director
Eastern Sierra BRC
Continuing our series of successful Matriarch Mixers, the next event will be March 27 at 5 pm. This is an opportunity for Eastern Sierra women leaders to come together for a dynamic, guided conversation that pairs you up with other leaders to dive into various topics relevant to women in all facets of life and business.
Tell your biz bestie and join us for a motivating evening at the BRC.
Dinner will be served– RSVP now!
Our popular Empower Hour sessions continue on March 27 with a session on Introducing our new partnership with TMC Community Capital. Traditional banking systems leave new Business Owners having to lean toward high-interest loans or no loans at all. Yet with the right financial tools, entrepreneurship can break cycles of poverty and build generational wealth. We are bringing these tools to historically excluded entrepreneurs by granting approval authority to organizations already working in these neighborhoods, such as the Sierra Business Council.
Lunch will be served – Your RSVP is appreciated here.
Customer service in our region got an injection of award-winning insight on February 18th and 19th, as the Eastern Sierra BRC partnered with BWI Learning to bring a 90-minute customer service training that was named one of the top-two best seminars in the world in 2011 to the Eastern Sierra.
To view a replay of the recent session in Bridgeport, click here.
With an eye towards the staffing needs of local business, this training was presented over six sessions on two days in three locations to ensure all staff in service roles, whether with internal or external customers, could conveniently benefit from this valuable training– and, in light the spicy recent weather, the reach of the sessions was extended through last-minute inclusion of a virtual/Zoom option.
Nearly 100 service professionals attended the sessions, led by Eugene Wallace, an experienced business leader, trusted advisor, and chief operating officer of BWI Learning, who brought a fun and engaging flair to a topic that is critical to business and professional success.
The Inyo Register did a nice recap of this highly anticipated event- click here to view the article on the Inyo Register website.
Click here to view our blog post: Key Takeaways from Exceeding Customer Expectations
In addition to the recording of our recent “Exceeding Customer Expectations” training linked above, we’ve added some valuable webinar replays from our partners at the Bakersfield SBDC.
Visit the Resources page of the website to learn more about:
Mastering Digital Marketing
Creating a Business Plan
Federal Grants
Integrated Marketing
HR for Small Business
Alternative Financing
Sierra Nevada (or Sierra adjacent!) jurisdictions, non-profit organizations, land trusts, advocates, and beyond are invited to join Sierra Business Council’s FREE Sierra regional climate collaborative!
The Sierra CAMP, is a regional climate collaborative that was established in 2014. This Sierra Business Council program represents the Sierra Nevada’s climate concerns and actions at a state and regional level. Sierra CAMP is also a space for climate planning professionals to share best practices and innovation across the region.
Currently, Sierra CAMP is tracking updates to CalEnviroScreen 5.0. We will submit a comment letter to advocate for more indicators (e.g., drought, extreme heat) to represent the Sierra Nevada Region better.
After several years of being closed to non-members, Sierra CAMP is now open to the public free of charge. To join, please email eswalander@sierrabusiness.org to let him know that you’re interested in Sierra CAMP.
Before anything can grow, the ground has to be prepared. No one plants seeds in hard, unworked soil and expects a strong harvest. The same is true in business. This is the season to step back, clear what isn’t working, strengthen your foundation, and make sure the ground beneath your idea is ready to support real growth. Preparation may not always be the most visible part of the journey; but it’s often the most important.
The Acorn Project, a small business resource center providing support for Native American entrepreneurs powered by IDRS, offers free webinars designed to help you prepare your ground. Whether you’re clarifying your customer and their problems that you’re solving in Native Launchpad, strengthening your foundation in Rez Roots, putting your business to the test, or reconnecting with purpose in Building a Business That Feeds Your Spirit, each session is meant to help your business grow strong and steady. For more information, visit https://www.nativebiz.org/
Native Launchpad Webinar Series
Session #2: Identify Your Customer And The Problem You Are Solving
Tuesday, March 17th, 2026 – 1 pm PT; 2 pm MT; 3 pm CT; 4 pm ET
View a replay of Session #1 here.
Great ideas don’t build strong businesses, solving real problems does. In Session 2 of the Native Launchpad series, Identify Your Customer and the Problem You Are Solving, join the IDRS Acorn Project and facilitator Camille Koster for a focused, practical workshop that helps you move from concept to clarity. This session challenges you to look beyond assumptions and start shaping your business around genuine needs in the marketplace.
This interactive training will guide you through brainstorming, research, and real-world validation strategies so you can confidently refine your idea. Instead of guessing, you’ll begin building with purpose, ensuring your business is rooted in demand, relevance, and long-term sustainability.
In this session, you’ll learn how to:
Learn how to clearly identify the problem your business is solving for your customers
Identify the alternatives in the market
Identify your customer
Learn to have customer conversations to validate your hypothesis
If you’re ready to build a business that feels like home — without losing sight of the need to make a living — this session is for you.
Welcome to your October news from the Eastern Sierra BRC! Below, you’ll find details about our upcoming events and other
10th Annual Eastern Sierra Capital Summit Sept. 17 Local entrepreneurs looking for money to grow or start their business will have