Texas Governor’s Small Business Summit brings entrepreneurs, resources to Mission. What you need to know

About a year ago, Harlingen native Selina Jimenez started a small jewelry business called Pink Sylver, named after her mother, Sylvia. 

Jimenez sells sterling silver jewelry, mostly bracelets made of heart links and an array of charms, that remind her of jewelry inherited from her family. A teacher by trade, the small business owner started selling at pop-up markets a few months ago and now sells necklaces, bracelets, and rings. 

“The business is founded on love and care for people and their stories. Jewelry represents a lot of people’s stories, why they wear it and what it means to them,” Jimenez said. “It’s growing little by little, we’re taking one step at a time.” 

She plans to purchase an engraver to personalize the jewelry as her next strategic move. 

Jimenez was one of dozens of small business owners attending the Texas Governor’s Small Business Summit in Mission on Thursday. 

She said she didn’t realize how many small business support organizations there were in the Rio Grande Valley. 

Some resources include the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley Small Business Development Center, the Lower Rio Grande Valley U.S. Small Business Administration office,  the UTRGV APEX Accelerator, the statewide Go Texan program, and the UTRGV Texas Manufacturing Assistance Center. There’s even a free program from the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency so businesses can verify that their cybersecurity infrastructure is secure. 

For example, the Go Texan program falls under the state department of agriculture, but it includes all manufactured products statewide — sometimes on local store shelves and sometimes abroad. There’s a marketing grant for businesses manufacturing products made in Texas, and small businesses are encouraged to apply. 

“If you’ve got a little garage project business going on and your next step is to get into a farmers market, we can help you with that,” said Kara Smith, Go Texan field representative of South Texas, which includes more than 20 counties spanning from Brownsville to El Paso. “Then there are programs if your next step may be retail. We have a little for any place your business is at the moment. You don’t have to wait until you’re making money.” 

The Go Texan program clients span from jewelry makers to wineries and leather goods manufacturers. There are more than 4,000 business customers statewide.