The Women's Business Development Center (WBDC), a nationally recognized, nonprofit women's business assistance organization devoted to providing services and programs that support and accelerate women's business ownership and strengthen the impact of women on the economy, will hold its 18th annual Entrepreneurial Woman's Conference.

The goal of the conference is to help women develop, grow and succeed in business and to provide them with educational, networking and marketing opportunities

Highlights include the Women's Business & Buyers Mart with over 150 exhibitors; the Hall of Fame Awards Luncheon; the Entrepreneurial Woman’s Forum Luncheon, featuring nationally-recognized women entrepreneurs; the Women-owned Businesses Marketplace & Networking Reception; and concurrent panel discussions focusing on current entrepreneurial and industry-specific issues.

The conference will be held Wednesday, September 8, from 8:30 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. and Thursday, September 9, 2004 from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m in Navy Pier, 600 E. Grand Ave., Chicago, IL. 2,300 prospective, emerging, and established women business owners are expected to participate along with 200 corporate and government exhibitors buying from women business enterprises.

Conference co-chairs
Mary Laraia, Group Senior Vice President, LaSalle Bank.

COST
$150 pre-registration fee for women business owners before August 30, 2004 (all access conference ticket, including meals) and $200 thereafter and at door. Individual tickets to the Women’s Forum Luncheon and/or the Hall of Fame Awards Luncheon are $100 per person. Register online through our web site at www.wbdc.org  beginning May 1, 2004.

WBDC is proud to announce the early commitment of some of our longtime sponsors: Bank One; BP; Citibank, F.S.B.; ComEd; the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity; ING; LaSalle Bank, N.A.; Motorola; NBC 5 Chicago; SBC; Sears; United Airlines; UPS; the U.S. Department of Energy; and W.W. Grainger, National City