2 new websites bring businesses, suppliers and shoppers together. Here's how they work

Two websites have launched to help Detroit businesses, nonprofits and suppliers. 

The first is the Detroit Economic Growth Corporation's BuyDetroit portal, which is a website where suppliers can find bid opportunities.

 The second is Detroit Business Center, a website to connect  the community and entrepreneurs with resources in support of small businesses. 

Both of the websites are in their early launch days. 

Here is information about them and how to start using each service. 

Bid portal connects suppliers, buyers

BuyDetroit  is a procurement initiative led by the Detroit Economic Growth Corporation and Detroit Means Business.

Detroit-based businesses expressed a need for a local portal that could connect suppliers and  buyers, said Pierre Batton, DEGC executive vice president of small business services and executive director of Detroit Means Business. After hearing the same request from many business owners during the COVID-19 pandemic, the DEGC started the process of creating the portal.

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"Businesses, at that time and as they still are, were responding to the COVID-19 pandemic," Batton said. "They bluntly told us that they just didn't have the time to search 20 or 30 websites to find out about bid opportunities, while also trying to find out about what grants or loans were available. They really needed a centralized place that they could go to to find out about procurement."

After users create a profile in the portal, buyers and sellers can reach a variety of Detroit-based suppliers that sell everything from office supplies to metal work and also post side jobs and annual reports. Suppliers in the portal are also able to respond to requests for proposals and quotes. 

Marc Crane, 34, owner of Arrow Office Supply, which has been in business for 75 years, signed up for the portal in its first days of being active, and hopes to connect with businesses to sell office, printer and janitorial supplies and furniture. 

"It's important more now than ever to support local business," Crane said. "It's so great that the Detroit Economic Growth Corporation has given us access to a free portal to find procurement opportunities that we may not have had access to before."

Crane wants people to know that there is a local option to purchase office supplies from a Detroit-based business, especially since small businesses have taken a large hit during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

And Joe Williams, CEO and lead software developer of Electronic Services Technologies, signed onto the portal during its launch as well. The company offers custom software development for companies, and provides a switch from paper to online with an electronic medical record option for independent health care workers. 

"One of the things that we have here is a dearth of having the ability to communicate business to business," said Williams. "Many times we're right next door to a business but we still can't communicate because we don't have time to maybe go knock on the door. The portal bridges a gap, or at least the opportunity to communicate with the various businesses." 

The goal of the portal is to connect small Detroit-based firms with major companies that are looking for bid opportunities. But Batton also hopes that the small businesses can use the portal to find suppliers that they need to use, as well. 

"It is a free asset for the community that we're happy to be able to provide in terms of managing anyone's bid process, be it buyer or seller on both sides," Batton said. "Businesses are already doing this on a day-to-day basis, but having a single, clean system that you can use, we think that's going to be a great benefit."

Resource hub comes to the rescue

The Detroit Business Center is set to become a hub of finding places to shop, dine and connect in the city, but also to find resources like contractors, lending, grants, loans, jobs and events. 

Andre Bartell is the owner of DigiMax Business Corporation, which specializes in custom printing and copying and has been in the community for over 25 years. He noticed that people would come into his shop and asking for advice on what local businesses to support. Soon, the copy store became a hub for this, and that's when he got the idea of starting the Detroit Business Center.

"Seventy-five percent of our customers are people who have their own business or have some type of service," Bartell said. "We get a lot of calls and people, especially senior citizens, are always looking for a referral for someone, whether they're a contractor, plumber, electrician or somebody that does real estate. They figure if someone knows somebody that's doing it, maybe a printing company would."

Since the printing company was already a business center, they decided to move their services online. So Bartell partnered with LunarX Agency, a web development and brand marketing company, and Qme Local, a branding and software solutions company, to launch the website.

There are three tiers to joining the online business marketplace.

• With a Basic membership, new businesses can list a phone number and will be able to receive business consultation and support from the community.
• The second tier is the Entrepreneur and startups, freelancers, professionals and speakers can sign up for $180 a year. Entrepreneurs will be able to upload five blog posts for $5 each, they can receive reviews, link to a website, add a phone number and have member profile analytics.
• The third tier is for the employer and community, which includes partnerships, small businesses, nonprofits, associations and organizations. This has a $480 annual fee, with access to the second tier features, along with 10 blog posts per month and member-only content access. 

Bartell hopes that the one-stop shop website will help entrepreneurs connect with trusted businesses that will help them in their entrepreneurship journey. A variety of seminars and workshops will teach entrepreneurs how to go about getting professional guidance. 

"There needs to be a trusted website that will give you the professional advice you need to make the right decisions in your field of work," Bartell said. "It's easy to get discombobulated and go everywhere, and you're not allowed to focus. It's hard, especially in this market. Everything is coming at you from Instagram to Facebook to LinkedIn. How do you maximize the stuff that's for you, to take what you need to help grow your business?"

Contact staff writer Chanel Stitt on Twitter: @ByChanelStitt. Become a subscriber or gift a subscription.