SBA Launches Portal to Connect Businesses With 1 Million American Suppliers

The initiative aims to reduce America’s dependence on foreign suppliers such as China.

A "Now Hiring" sign at a coffee shop in Greensboro, N.C., on Sept. 19, 2024. Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times

The Small Business Administration (SBA) has unveiled a free online tool aimed at helping small businesses identify and connect with more than a million American manufacturers and suppliers, the agency said in a May 20 statement.

The searchable Make Onshoring Great Again portal is set to “empower job creators to source domestic suppliers to support their operations—which will in turn support American jobs, reconnect our supply chain with U.S-based production, and end our nation’s concentrated dependence on foreign suppliers and adversaries like the Chinese Communist Party,” said the SBA.

The tool is expected to reduce a business’s exposure to overseas supply disruptions, strengthen operational resilience and quality control, and improve delivery times, it added.

At present, the initiative provides access to three supplier databases: IndustryNet, ThomasNet, and CONNEX.

IndustryNet lists more than 350,000 American providers of machinery, parts, services, and supplies, while ThomasNet enables businesses to connect with more than half a million U.S. manufacturers and suppliers selling more than 80,000 products and services in industries ranging from paper and textiles to aerospace and defense.

CONNEX is a database of more than 140,000 American suppliers and manufacturers that allows users to conduct in-depth searches based on multiple criteria such as production capabilities, materials, processes, and certifications.

“The SBA is proud to support President Donald J. Trump’s mission to restore America’s economic resurgence by empowering small businesses with the resources to supercharge the return of Made in America,” said SBA Administrator Kelly Loeffler.

The portal is a “decisive step toward rebuilding our nation’s strength through stronger supply chains, better products, and a renewed commitment to American industry, small business, and workers,” she said.

While the SBA ramps up its support for small businesses, there are serious concerns about the impact of import tariffs on the sector.

On April 30, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce sent a letter to federal officials, asking them to address the negative impact of tariffs by providing automatic exclusions for small-business importers and to exempt all products from such duties that cannot be produced in the United States or are not readily available in the country.

“As each day goes by, small businesses are increasingly endangered by higher costs and interrupted supply chains that will cause irreparable harm,” said Suzanne P. Clark, president of the chamber.

“We applaud the administration’s efforts to negotiate as many new trade agreements as possible that expand market access for U.S. companies and benefit American workers, but these deals take time, and many businesses simply can’t afford to wait while negotiations proceed.”

Boosting US Manufacturing

SBA’s efforts to boost the small-business sector follow Trump’s declaration of a national emergency last month to increase America’s competitive advantage, the White House said in an April 2 fact sheet.

“President Trump recognizes that increasing domestic manufacturing is critical to U.S. national security,” it said.

“In 2023, U.S. manufacturing output as a share of global manufacturing output was 17.4 percent, down from 28.4 percent in 2001.

“Increased reliance on foreign producers for goods has left the U.S. supply chain vulnerable to geopolitical disruption and supply shocks. This vulnerability was exposed during the COVID-19 pandemic, and later with Houthi attacks on Middle East shipping.”

On April 30, the White House held an “Invest in America” event to celebrate trillions of dollars in investments announced for the United States. Trump hosted several chief executive officers and industry leaders at the event.

The president said roughly $8 trillion in investments were secured in just the first 100 days of his administration. This includes investments from Apple, Nvidia, Oracle, OpenAI, and SoftBank.

“The business community is bullish on America because President Trump is back in charge,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters on April 29, while adding that the capital inflows are expected to create more than 451,000 new jobs in the country’s high-paying sectors.

During the first 90 days of the Trump administration, the SBA issued 74 percent more 7(a) loans for manufacturers than in the same period under the Biden administration.

Under the 7(a) loan program, the government provides loan guarantees to lenders, enabling them to offer credit to small businesses with special needs. Lawmakers have introduced a bill to boost the loan limit under the program from $5 million to $10 million.