May 7: Nepali immigrant and business owner in the USA, Raj Bhandari, has been awarded the prestigious Exporter of the Year Award for 2023 by the US government’s Small Business Administration (SBA) for his company Sciencix.

The company, which specializes in manufacturing high-performance liquid chromatography and mass spectrometry parts, was recognized for its achievements in expanding its global sales and diversifying its revenue through international trade.

Sciencix’s success in exporting has been attributed to the company’s use of SBA’s trade tools, including the State Trade Expansion Program (STEP) grant funding. With the support of North Carolina’s Small Business and Technology Development Center (SBTDC), Sciencix secured $24,000 in STEP grant funding in 2021, which was used to offset the costs of attending international trade shows, meeting overseas distributors, and website internationalization.

Sciencix’s exports now account for one-third of its total sales, representing a 10 percent increase from the previous year. Its products are used in research laboratories in over 100 countries across all continents.

The Exporter of the Year Award was presented to Bhandari and the Sciencix team during the National Small Business Week event, which took place from April 30 to May 2 in Washington, DC. The event is an annual celebration of the achievements and contributions of small businesses across the nation.

In honor of National Small Business Week, President Biden and Vice President Harris hosted small business award winners from across the country at the White House to celebrate their contributions to the economy. President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris congratulated the Sciencix team on their success.

Raj Bhandari, the owner of Sciencix, along with Operations Manager Ranjan Karki and Director of Global Marketing Lisa Bamford, were recognized for their leadership in expanding the company’s global sales and diversifying its revenue through international trade.

Administrator Isabella Casillas Guzman, head of the U.S. Small Business Administration, praised Sciencix for its innovative approach to growing its business worldwide, and for using the tools and resources available to small businesses to drive competition and innovation.

The company’s success story also highlights the importance of ongoing outreach to diaspora communities, as well as the valuable role played by the STEP grant program in supporting small businesses to start or grow their exports. --NEPYORK