The SBSH Scoop | Winter SMART Sessions Are Back - Grab Your Spot!
When winter roads get questionable, your business support shouldn’t. That’s why SMART Sessions are returning this winter—Zoom-based, one-hour, high-impact conversations with experts who can help you cut through the noise and move your business forward.
Every Tuesday morning from 9–10 am, you’ll hop onto a live session with a domain expert in finance, HR, marketing, strategy, or law… and more! These aren’t lectures. They’re working sessions where you can ask real questions, get practical direction, and walk away with clarity you can use the same day. Even better—you’ll actually get to know the experts, so when you need help later, you’ve already built trust.
We’ve opened registration for six of the ten sessions happening between January 13 and March 17, 2026. Secure your spot before winter gets in the way of… well, everything else.
And keep an eye out: a special session just for veteran-owned businesses is coming soon. Please share it widely—there’s a lot of good support coming their way.
Stay warm, stay inside, and get smarter this winter with SMART Sessions.
If there’s something missing in the lineup just email Miche and we’ll work to either have a session in the Summer (there will be 10 new sessions in the summer!) on that same topic or connect you one-on-one with an expert who can help.
Sign up for a Session or Two Here
Business Spotlight | Northern Wings - Taking Michigan’s UP to New Heights (Literally!)
What this SBSH grant funding truly represents is an opportunity for a more sustainable business.
Tucked away in Newberry, Northern Wings is quietly powering some of the biggest names in aerospace and defense—and doing it with a level of precision that would make a laser blush.
This veteran-owned small business provides procurement, manufacturing, and life-cycle support for highly specialized, low-volume aerospace parts. Think long-term contracts, tight tolerances, and customers who need to know things are exactly right. In fact, two team members just became certified quality inspectors (courtesy of an EUP SBSH grant), giving Northern Wings even more in-house expertise and a serious edge in the industry.
Their work already flies far beyond the U.P.—including parts on two Blue Origin satellites headed to Mars. No big deal. (Okay, huge deal.)
Northern Wings is also racking up recognition closer to home: they were just named Veteran-Owned Business of the Year by Michigan Works! And if you ever visit, ask for a peek at their server room—it doubles as their unofficial trophy gallery.
With rock-solid customer relationships and a push toward new product development, Northern Wings is gearing up for the next 5–10 years of growth. From Newberry to deep space, they’re proof that world-class innovation can come from the most unexpected places on the map.
SMART Workshop #3 | Business Formation & Agreements: Build It Right From the Start
Date: Wednesday, January 21, 2026
Time: 8:30 am-noon
Place: 2345 Meridian St. Sault Ste. Marie, MI
Legal structure shouldn’t be overwhelming. In this 3.5 hour in-person SMART Workshop, attorney Zach Meyer will guide you through choosing the right entity, understanding key agreements, and putting the right protections in place for your business. This is for any age or size business and especially if you are considering changing your business designation. Should you remain a sole proprietor - how protected are you now that your business is growing up?
Your Turn | How Are We Doing?
We try to deliver practical programming that helps your business—not pile more stuff on your to-do list.
If you’ve got a few seconds, tell us how we’re doing! It’s completely anonymous, and we promise not to take it personally—unless you say something nice, then we totally will.
Your feedback helps us get even better at helping you.
People in the Know | Your Local Economic Development Peeps
Here are more people you can connect with when you are looking for resources and connections.
- Bob Sawruk - Sault Tribe - RSawruk@saulttribe.net
- Chris Olson - Chippewa County - admin@chippewacountyedc.com
- Nikki Radke - City of Sault Ste Marie - nradke@saultcity.com
- Miche Rayment - EUP region at large (and Mackinac County) - Miche@HeadwatersNorth.org
- Tammy Henry - Luce County - director@lucecoedc.com
- Tara Parrish - Bay Mills Indian Community - tparrish@baymills.org