The PennWest Clarion Small Business Development Center, in partnership with Ben Franklin Technology Partners, is hosting a powerful new speaker series led by entrepreneur and investor Brian Slawin. This monthly series runs through March 2026, offering real-world insights, hard-earned lessons, and actionable strategies for small business owners, entrepreneurs, and innovators. Each session—ranging from topics like challenging industry norms, raising capital, and scaling innovation to lessons learned from the startup journey—is filled with practical tools and interactive discussions.

Each event is scheduled as a one-hour webinar, except for the final networking-focused master class taking place in person on March 19, 2026, from 12:00–1:30 p.m. in Oil City, Venango County. 

In this Real Talk Series for Small Business on Commercializing Ideas for Growth, we will discuss How to Hook Investors to WIN: 

This session is an overview of the traditional and non-traditional methods for financing companies. 

• It all starts with knowing the capital needs and finding the right fit for each possibility; from loans, to factoring, to equity investments.
• How the type of financing can be matched to the stage, goals and risk tolerance of the company.
• The most effective methods to approach investors, what their goals are by providing capital to a company and how to best network to those investors.
• The importance of relationship building over time and not just when there’s an emergency need for capital.

Future sessions include: 

Thursday, February 26, 2026 – Don’t Quit Your Daydream (Webinar)

Thursday, March 19, 2026 – NETWORKING (In person – Oil City, PA)