ACEnet provides services to small businesses, including start-ups, primarily in the food, agriculture, artisan and wood sectors, giving priority to those who are lower income and residing in Appalachian Ohio.
ACEnet has taken a multi-faceted approach in supporting small business development and expansion. Many of the services provided by ACEnet are outlined below:
- Office, light manufacturing, and warehouse spaces for rent at competitive market rates
- Business incubation services
- Entrepreneurship and technology training
- Workshops, papers, books and training materials
- Consulting
- Collaboration with regional art, wood and food businesses
- E-commerce site to promote and sell local and regional products
- Commercial kitchen facilities for small food businesses
- Business counseling
- Recipe and product development assistance
- Product design and labeling
- Supervision and expertise of a food scientist
- Marketing assistance
- Food We Love -- a regional branding marketing and distribution program
- Financing assistance or identification of other sources of capital financing
- Research and policy development
- Speakers bureau services
- Software and toolkit to enable communities and organizations to map social networks