For Im
mmediate Re
elease: Octo
ober 7, 2016
6
Contact: Mary Flannery
y
2
215.937.5424
4
mary.flann
[email protected]
g
Nea
arly 500 Turn
T
Ou
ut for PH
HL Busin
ness Op
pportunity Forum
m
Work
kshops on doing
d
busin
ness at the Airport,
A
nettworking an
nd more hig
ghlight even
nt
PHIL
LADELPHIIA – City of Philade
elphia Direc
ctor of Co mmerce H
Harold T. E
Epps was among the
e
spea
akers who addressed nearly 500
0 attendees
s at the Philadelphia In
nternationa
al Airport (P
PHL) annua
al
Business Oppo
ortunity Forrum today. The
T particip
pants includ
ded represe
entatives o
of large firms and small
busiinesses, an
nd minority--, woman-owned and disadvanta
d
ged busine
ess enterpriises (DBEss) interested
d
in le
earning abo
out opportunities availa
able at the Airport. Th
he event att the Airporrt Marriott H
Hotel, which
h
culm
minated the
e City’s Min
nority Enterrprise Deve
elopment (M
MED) Wee
ek activitiess, included informative
e
workkshops and
d networking opportunities.
Partticipants in the Forum
m learned how to id
dentify and compete for consullting and p
professiona
al
servvices contrracts; crea
ate effectiv
ve strategies for co
onstruction projects; explore cconcessions
s
oppo
ortunities; and
a
becam
me knowledgeable abo
out procure
ement requ
uirements a
and respon
nsibilities for
the City of Philadelphia and the Airp
port. A Netw
working Excchange Bre
eakfast sesssion conne
ecting prime
e
conttractors and
d minority firms opene
ed the Forum
m.
The participantts heard fro
om Airport professiona
als with exp
pertise in D
DBE compliance and ccertification,
finan
nce, profes
ssional serv
vices contrracts, and engineerin g and con
nstruction; p
prime contractors and
d
DBE
E sub-contractors, an
nd representatives fro
om variouss businesss sectors iincluding the airlines
s,
conccessionarie
es, construc
ction, as we
ell as labor.
“Philadelphia In
nternationa
al Airport is
s a cornersttone of the
e regional e
economy, ccontributing
g more than
n
$14..4 billion an
nnual in eco
onomic activity,” said Epps.
E
“Thiss Forum pla
ays an integ
gral role in tthe Airport’s
s
apprroach to supporting
s
e
the region’s diverse business communityy. It’s one--stop shopping where
entrepreneurs of all types can tap intto the many
y opportunitties at PHL
L and becom
me part of tthe Airport’s
s
ant busines
ss community.”
vibra
In addition to Director
D
Epps, the spe
eakers inclu
uded Airporrt CEO Che
ellie Cameron, Americcan Airlines
s
Vice
e President of Philadellphia Hub Operations
O
Cedric Rocckamore, a
and Bonnie St. John – Paralympic
c
Ski Medalist, Fortune
F
500
0 Business
s Consultan
nt, Rhodes Scholar, F
Former White House Official and
d
d in a keynote fireside
e chat for th
he luncheon
n.
bestt-selling autthor – who participated
More
2/Forum
Attendees also
o had the opportunity to beco
ome familia
ar with the Airport’ss Job Porttal website
e,
phljo
obportal.org
g. The site is a resource for both individua
als seeking employme
ent with the
e Division of
o
Avia
ation, Airport concessions, aiirlines, car rental companiess, the Tra
ansportatio
on Security
y
Adm
ministration (TSA) and
d other fede
eral agenciies at the A
Airport as w
well as em
mployers ne
eeding to fill
posiitions.
“The
e opportunities for bus
sinesses off all sizes at a major a
airport like o
ours are substantial an
nd diverse,”
Cam
meron said.. “This Forrum is idea
al for busin
nesses and
d individualls to realizze the scop
pe of these
e
oppo
ortunities, learn how to
o participate and netw
work. This e
event is an a
annual high
hlight on ou
ur calendars
s
and we are ple
eased that it was sche
eduled to close the City’s Minoritty Enterprisse Development Week
k
this year.”
Busines
ss Opportuniity Forum Pa
articipants networked to
o explore bussiness opporrtunities at P
PHL.
Philadelph
hia International Airport
A
is owned and operated by
y the City of Phila
adelphia. The Airrport is a self-susstaining entity that operates witho
out the use of loc
cal
tax do
ollars. It is one of the largest economic engines in
n Pennsylvania, generating
g
an esstimated $14.4 b
billion in spending
g to the regional economy and
accounting for more
m
than 141,00
00 jobs.