3 Utah success stories featured on SBA website

The U.S. Small Business Administration is giving three Utah companies and the entrepreneurs who operate them the opportunity to share their stories and showcase their thriving businesses.

Earlier this week, the SBA launched "Small Business Owners Speak," an interactive platform featuring videos from entrepreneurs across the county who have started or grown a business with the help of the SBA.

Three Utah small businesses — Kisstixx from Orem, Woodbury Technologies from Clearfield and Cafe Madrid of Salt Lake City — are featured on the new platform.

Kisstixx manufacturers a flavored lip balm with complimentary flavors that combine and react when two partners kiss.

Dallas Robinson and Mike Buonamo from Kisstixx needed funding to buy inventory to produce their product. They received assistance from the Utah Valley University Small Business Development Center to write a business plan that resulted in them obtaining an SBA-guaranteed loan.

Woodbury Technologies is a woman-owned, SBA-certified, disadvantaged business that provides services to the U.S. Air Force, Army and Defense Information System Agency in 11 states. Among things, it offers program and product management, IT infrastructure support and help-desk and call-center services.

Karen Woodbury has grown her company to the sixth-largest woman-owned business in the state in terms of revenue, the SBA said.

The SBA said Cafe Madrid's owner, Gabrielle McAfee, was forced to move her restaurant after 15 years in business. With the help of an SBA 504 loan — a program that helps businesses grow through expansion and job creation — McAfee was able to purchase an existing building and expand the structure to fit the needs of her restaurant.

The three videos, along with others from business owners across the country, can be found as www.sba.gov/stories. The page features a map of the United States that allows users to click on videos by state or by using a drop-down menu to search by topic, such as counseling, capital, federal contracting or disaster loans. —

To view online

The three Utah videos, along with others from business owners nationally, are at www.sba.gov/stories.