[nfbmi-talk] blast

[Larry Posont]

    This is going to be a great conference for blind vendors and
entrepreneurs. We are working on getting a group from Michigan to
attend.





BLAST +:
The National Association of Blind Merchants (NABM) announces a new
partnership with the National Federation of the Blind Jernigan
Institute that will blast beyond the confines of the Randolph Sheppard
Program. In collaboration with Tennessee Services for the
Blind, NABM's BLAST + will be held in Nashville, Tennessee, from
Wednesday, September 21, through Saturday morning, September 24,
2011. Over the past decade Business Leadership and Superior Training
(BLAST), has become the most authoritative and innovative
conference for blind entrepreneurs.  BLAST + will be the most
significant conference ever held to encourage, inform, and inspire the
blind and vision-impaired embarking on or currently engaged in
building profitable small businesses. BLAST has always had training
elements easy to apply to any business venture. BLAST + expands that
curriculum to include even more education and networking
targeted to blind people seeking employment through entrepreneurship
outside of or in addition to the traditional Randolph Sheppard
Vending Program model.

Nicky Gacos, NABM president, said, "As successful as BLAST has been
over the past decade, it is time to reach out to everyone
interested in creating quality job opportunities through
entrepreneurship. A partnership with the NFB Jernigan Institute just
made
sense for this expansion. If the backbone of our economy is small
business, the blind must be a part of it."

Announcing this collaboration with the nation's leading association of
blind business owner advocates, Mark Riccobono, executive
director of the NFB Jernigan Institute, said, "The National Federation
of the Blind Jernigan Institute leads the quest to understand
the real problems of blindness and to develop innovative education to
help the world's blind achieve independence. A central concern
of the Institute is increasing employment opportunities for the blind.
 This collaboration with NABM and other partners will improve
the prospects for many blind people who want to be self-employed."

In addition to the program items BLAST participants have come to
expect, BLAST + will add a number of training sessions, symposia,
and a luncheon which will focus on government contracting, business
ethics, team building, network marketing opportunities, the
access technology industry, free or low-cost resources, franchises,
business loans, and business and financial planning. For years
BLAST has had a robust trade show, featuring access technology,
vending, and food service suppliers. Now it will be adding agencies,
companies, and organizations which cater to different segments of
small business operations.

Rooms can be booked now. Simply write or call the Nashville Airport
Marriott, 600 Marriott Drive, Nashville, Tennessee 37214; (615)
889-9300. Tell them that you are booking for the National Association
of Blind Merchants BLAST +. Rooms are available at the
unbelievably low rate of $113 per night plus applicable taxes. These
rates are effective from Monday, September 19, through
Saturday, September 24, 2011. Music City is beautiful in the fall, and
as always, space is at a premium. Act quickly to enjoy the
party and promise of BLAST +.  The entire conference will be an event
from which everyone involved in blind entrepreneurship will
benefit. BLAST + registration, which includes all activities and
training materials, will cost $200 with a $50 discount for
registrations made before August 15, 2011. The registration fee may
exclude some tours and events held outside the hotel conference
center. Please register at <www.blindmerchants.org> or by calling
(866) 543-6808, ext. 10