Start Strong: Small Business Best Practices

Nema Etheridge

Nema Etheridge is the area director of the UGA SBDC in Albany. She joined the UGA SBDC with more than 15 years experience working with Georgia small businesses. Prior to joining the SBDC, she served as the marketing director for a Georgia-based coffee company that serves customers in wholesale, e-commerce and brick-and-mortar settings. She has worked in a variety of roles in small business, gaining experience in branding, communications, digital marketing, restaurant hospitality and management, sales, and strategic planning. She is a member of Les Dames d’Escoffier Atlanta, is fluent in French and speaks conversational Spanish.

Tonita McKnight

Tonita McKnight is a Georgia native with roots in North and Southwest GA. She has a Bachelor of Arts from Spelman College with a major in Theater. She has held various positions in personal banking, property management, program management, grant administration and economic development.  

She has worked with Albany Community Together, Inc. for the last nine years, where she helped entrepreneurs in Southwest Georgia with coaching, connections and access to capital. She is a certified Economic Development Finance Professional through NDC and a certified Business Incubator Manager through InBIA.