How Government Contracting Fits into Economic Development
16 Jul 2026
Business, Contracting, Washington APEX Accelerator
Economic development is often framed around big-picture goals: comprehensive planning, attracting employers, creating jobs, growing the tax base, enhancing workforce development pipelines, all with the goal of keeping communities resilient. These are all vital functions of the field. However, the engine that drives all of this development is revenue.
Business owners generally have three revenue pipelines available to them: B2C (selling to consumers), B2B (selling to other businesses), and B2G (selling to government). Most employers are fluent in the first two and unfamiliar with the third, which does two things:
- Limits their ability to build in resilience through diversification
- Cuts them off from a potential growth pathway
Even if budgets tighten and the economy shrinks, governments need to procure. The purchases range from portable toilets to advanced technologies. There is room for almost every good or service in almost every industry. As with every other business development strategy you need to do your research and validate the use case.
This is where Washington APEX Accelerator comes in. Designated by the Department of War as the lead government procurement technical assistance provider, APEX offers no-cost advising to help businesses navigate a market that is genuinely complicated at all levels – federal, state, and local. In FY25, APEX clients won over $829 million in contracts, with the team serving 2,300 Washington businesses and hosting over 180 trainings.
For economic developers, B2G plugs directly into Business Retention and Expansion (BRE) and public works planning. When a BRE conversation reveals stagnant revenue growth, referring them to APEX can help open the door to a new market. At the same time, every community comp plan eventually produces capital projects that go out to bid. Helping local vendors compete for those contracts keeps public dollars and jobs right in the community. In FY25 Washington APEX Accelerator contributed to more than 5,500 jobs created or retained here in Washington.
For local business owners looking to stabilize and expand their revenue, they do not have to figure out this complex marketplace on their own. The resource to help them capture it is available at no cost. Take the first step toward diversifying your sales portfolio by connecting with the Washington APEX Accelerator team right here at Economic Alliance Snohomish County to map out strategy, research target government buyers, and start winning public contracts.
-Mark Johnson is a Government Contracting Advisor at Washington APEX Accelerator at Economic Alliance Snohomish County
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