Small, Women and Minority-Owned Businesses

The SWaM procurement initiative was established to enhance business opportunities for Small, Women and Minority-Owned Businesses (SWaM) and to ensure a level playing field for all SWaM businesses in the Commonwealth of Virginia. A SWaM vendor is a business that has been certified by the Virginia Department of Minority Business Enterprise (DMBE) and is listed in the SWaM Vendor Directory. Radford University is commited to increasing supplier diversity in our vendor community.    

The following links can assist with locating resources to increase participation with SWaM businesses and can assist vendors with locating resources to expand SWaM business opportunities. For university departments, a SWaM quote is required for purchases between $0 - $5,000.

For the first time since 2019, SWaMfest, the Commonwealth’s premier networking, educational, and professional development event for small, women-owned, and minority-owned businesses, will return to an in-person format. Hosted by the Virginia Association of State College & University Purchasing Professionals, SWaMfest 2022 takes place October 26-27 in Richmond’s historic Shockhoe Bottom district at  Renaissance Revival style Main Street Station.

This year’s theme is “Verses – Unleash Untapped Potential.” From the multiverse to the metaverse, we’ve entered a new era of business. The past two years have greeted the world with shifting dynamics that have torn the fabric of how business has traditionally been done. Organizations of all sizes have had to reassess and refocus on how they operate. We now have the unique opportunity to create an alternate reality. Let's embrace it.

VASCUPP takes pride in drawing together a diverse community of businesses and business leaders – the innovators and doers who power our economic engine – at SWaMfest®. With the forging of strong, dependable, and reliable relationships with strategic partner sponsors, SWaMfest® has become a watershed event for many of the small and diverse businesses that serve as the backbone of our economic landscape and the cornerstone of our communities. The purposeful gathering has become known for the enthusiastic interactions among VASCUPP institutions, prime contractors, corporations, State agencies, nonprofits, and the small, women-owned, and minority-owned business community

Thank you to all who attended this year!