Backing Small Business

A Q&A WITH CJ BELL, DIRECTOR OF THE DELAWARE DIVISION OF SMALL BUSINESS

Nominated earlier this year by Gov. Meyer, Christopher “CJ” Bell now leads the Delaware Division of Small Business (DSB). He previously worked with U.S. Sen. Tom Carper and founded the statewide young professionals network The Connect, bringing both policy experience and entrepreneurial energy to the role. We sat down with him to discuss his vision for supporting Delaware’s small businesses.

Data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that nearly half of all small businesses fail within the first five years. Recognizing this reality, what role can your office play in helping Delaware’s small businesses not only survive but thrive?

I am a big believer that small businesses need more than just funding to grow and scale. Sometimes, funding is just a temporary bandage to cover what the real issue is – capacity, knowledge and tools to succeed. That’s why we are weaving in supportive services to some of our programs. For instance, we’ve expanded the EDGE grant program so that finalists as well as awardees get in-kind services such as accounting or marketing, free organization memberships, expedited paths to additional funding, and winners also receive networking opportunities with prior EDGE winners to form a support group.

Another example is a bonding pilot program that our Office of Supplier Diversity (OSD) launched at the start of the summer. The program is designed to support small and diverse contractors in securing the bonding capacity needed to grow and compete for larger construction opportunities, something that has been challenging for them to date. OSD is sponsoring up to 30 qualified contractors to participate in a structured program that delivers both education and practical bonding support.

OSD has partnered with two companies – one to provide expert review and guidance to help firms achieve bonding eligibility and long-term financial sustainability, and the other to deliver a customized curriculum focused on building the companies’ operational and financial readiness. Businesses will receive no-cost access to training, technical assistance, and a pathway to bond-readiness-key components in winning public and private construction work across Delaware and beyond. Those that successfully complete the program also receive $1M in surety bonding.

Our goal is to do more than fund businesses — it’s to empower them with the resources and resilience to grow, compete, and succeed for years to come.

Small businesses often don’t have the in-house capacity to navigate complex permitting requirements, meaning they must hire outside firms to manage the process. This can be a disproportionate burden compared to larger companies. How is your department ensuring that small business voices are included in conversations about permitting?

The Division of Small Business (DSB) has Regional Business Managers (RBMs) who work one-on-one with owners to help them with a variety of challenges, one of those being navigating state permitting processes and regulations.  State permitting and licensing processes can be complex. 

Our RBMs serve as liaisons between owners and state agencies, providing feedback, guidance on next steps, and connecting them with individuals within agencies who can get business owners answers they are looking for. As an example, sometimes restaurant owners may get inspection reports that they don’t understand or have been experiencing delays in receiving inspections to open. Our RBMs will meet with the owners and review reports providing them with more detailed explanations.

They have facilitated and participated in meetings between the owner and state inspectors. They have also engaged directly with inspectors to identify any roadblocks to receiving initial inspections for permitting and helped both parties address them. With their contacts in various state agencies, our RBMs are vital sources of support for small business owners in the regulatory and permitting process.

Gov. Meyer has emphasized the importance of building Delaware’s entrepreneurship culture. How does your office support and incubate this culture, and what more can be done to strengthen the ecosystem for startups and small businesses?

We deeply appreciate and are supportive of the Governor’s vision for an innovation-driven economy and focus on entrepreneurship. In the Division over the last 6 months, we have been making internal changes and expanding, as well as spotlighting, programs that support startups and small businesses at every stage of their journey.

Referring again to the EDGE Grant Program, one key change was offering up post pitch, and post award supports I mentioned earlier. Additionally, though, we wanted to shake up the structure. In our application process, additional points were awarded for businesses that operate in the Governor’s areas of focus. We also changed how, and how many awards we offered. Now, we are providing potentially larger awards to companies with the best proposals and the best pitch, instead of tying our own hands by making a specific number of awards. This offers flexibility to our expert panels of outside judges who live in this ecosystem daily to call on their experience as a predictor of success.

We relaunched out State Small Business Credit Initiative (SSBCI) program in April and have been providing consistent updates on our Race to $14M initiative, aimed at getting that amount of funding out the door for small business owners before Dec. 31. By spotlighting the available funds and need to spend them, we’ve created a sense of interest and urgency that has triggered an influx of applications to both the loan and direct investment programs.  The loans have been as small as $50thousand for renovations and upgrades, to as large as $600 thousand for building an entire facility. Through the Delaware Accelerator & Seed Capital Program, the state is doing something unheard of. We are making direct investments in high-growth, high-impact small businesses. Many of these companies are driving innovation in the state. Through SSBCI we are supporting all levels of small businesses in various stages of growth.

We’ve also restructured how our RBMs operate, from a strictly county-based structure to an industry-based structure. This allows them to focus on industries and sectors they are most passionate about and become the experts in them.

When it comes to what more can be done to strengthen the ecosystem we are focusing on:

• Expanding Access to Capital: Ensuring that startups and small businesses have access to the necessary funding to scale and succeed.

• Building on Strategic Partnerships: Collaborating with organizations such as the Delaware Prosperity Partnership and the Delaware Black Chamber of Commerce to provide mentorship, networking, and business development resources.

• Promoting Inclusive Entrepreneurship: Prioritizing support for Minority, Women, and Veteran-owned small businesses to ensure equitable opportunities for all entrepreneurs, especially when it comes to state contracts.

Through these initiatives, we aim to create a thriving ecosystem where innovation is celebrated, and businesses have the tools and support they need to succeed.

Workforce challenges remain a consistent issue for small businesses, especially when they don’t need full-time staff but still require skilled support. Is your department open to collaborating with the Department of Labor or other partners on models— such as shared staffing resources or untapped talent pools—that could better serve these businesses?

Absolutely. Workforce challenges are among the most persistent hurdles for small businesses. Our office is very engaged and involved in workforce development issues. We engage frequently with the Department of Labor and participate actively on various workforce development committees at the state and local levels. DSB is very open to collaboration with the Department of Labor and other partners to explore innovative solutions to pressing workforce development issues. By connecting small businesses with flexible, skilled labor resources, we can help them grow and compete without the burden of hiring full-time staff for every need.

Was there a small business you grew up around or interacted with that shaped how you think about entrepreneurship today?

My perspective on entrepreneurship comes from two places: the values I was raised with and my own experience starting The ConnectDE Inc. Growing up, I was taught that there is always room for improvement — no matter how successful something appears, you can find ways to make it stronger, more efficient, or more impactful. That mindset has carried into everything I do.

When I launched The Connect, I experienced firsthand what it means to build something from scratch: developing a service people would believe in, navigating the maze of licenses and compliance, and managing the uncertainty that comes with risk. It was both humbling and rewarding. That journey reinforced for me that entrepreneurship is as much about resilience and continuous learning as it is about ideas or funding.

Those lessons are what I bring with me into my role at the Division of Small Business. I understand not only the technical hurdles entrepreneurs face, but also the emotional ones — the doubts, the risks, and the constant push to keep going. That personal perspective drives me to ensure our programs don’t just exist but actually meet business owners where they are and help them move forward with confidence.