Asche Rider Becomes Certified Business Advisor for the Small Business Development Center at Western Washington University

Western Washington University’s Small Business Development Center (SBDC) is pleased to announce that Asche Rider has completed the Washington State SBDC Network certification process.

“Our statewide network of SBDC centers requires business advisors to complete a rigorous 6-month long certification process. Advisors work through 13 different business topical modules where knowledge and skills are assessed to show that the advisor can adequately serve the diverse needs of our small business owner communities, “ said CJ Seitz, Director of the Small Business Development Center at Western Washington University.

Asche Rider is the newest business advisor to join the SBDC.  Rider comes to the SBDC with experience in the agriculture, finance, and hospitality industries. Growing up in a rural area and a family owned ‘all-hands-on-deck’ agricultural business instilled in her a deep respect for the hard work and numerous skill sets needed to run a business. Asche has primarily worked in high-growth businesses over the past 15 years, including restaurants, wealth management, and meat fabrication. Most recently, Asche was the general manager of a local start-up meat producers’ cooperative.  With the co-op Asche utilized her strategic, operational, financial, sales, marketing, food safety, and analytical skills to launch and establish the co-op’s wholesale meat label and a USDA inspected mobile processing unit.

Asche will be heading up the new rural outreach program for the WWU SBDC which was made possible, in part, by a grant from the Northwest Business Development Association and additional federal funding of the SBDC program.

“We are grateful that with the addition of this program and Asche completing her certification process, the SBDC at Western Washington University will be able to expand its reach and capacity to serve the small businesses located in our rural communities,” said Seitz.

The SBDC at Western Washington University is part of the most comprehensive small business assistance network in the United States and its territories made up of over 1,000 SBDC programs. SBDC centers are hosted by leading universities, colleges, and state economic development agencies, and are funded in part through a partnership with the U.S. Small Business Administration. The program receives funding support from the Port of Bellingham, Whatcom County and the cities of Bellingham and Blaine.

Since 1983, the Small Business Development Center has enabled Western Washington University to give back to the business community, and has helped to shape the economic future of Whatcom County.

The SBDC provides free, confidential advising, technical assistance, and research to business owners and managers in an effort to help businesses thrive throughout Whatcom County.

To schedule an appointment with Rider, or another advisor in your area, contact SBDC@wwu.edu or 360-778-1762. For more information, visit the WWU SBDC website at https://sbdc.wwu.edu/