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Business conference brings fresh ideas to the city

The Houston business community will be able to get to learn new faces and skills this weekend at the Houston Cooperative Business Conference.

The conference will cover topics such as saving money, creating dignified jobs and building a workable economy. It will have seminars about cooperatives, including Cooperatives 101, Worker Owned Cooperative Business, Housing Cooperatives and Consumer Purchasing Cooperatives. It will also explain various types of co-ops, and will be a marketing tool for other business-minded Houstonians that want to get to know each other.

“This conference can help UH students find out how joining a co-op can save them money, and make connections that may lead to job opportunities,” said planning committee leader Megan Parks. “Students will be able to learn from the best, including former UT-Austin students who lived in a UT housing co-op and started a housing co-op in Houston.”

The conference, which is expected to have about 50 to 80 attendees, will be a great learning experience for business students and professionals in the Houston area.

“For business students, there will be training on writing a business plan, and a chance to speak one on one with experienced entrepreneurs and business people,” Parks said. “In addition to the speakers, several of the people who have registered to attend so far are small business owners in Houston and would make wonderful mentors, or possible employers, for UH business students.”

For those in Houston looking to gain business connections at home, the conference will be a great place to get to learn how to be successful in the area.

“Houston has several established cooperatives, as well as several that are just starting out,” Parks said. “In addition to existing cooperatives, there is vast potential in Houston for the growth of a cooperative economy that provides more local jobs and utilizes a more democratic form of governance.”

The conference will be from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday. There is a $20 fee for lunch and happy hour, and attendees are required to register here.

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