East County Economic Development Center

What East County Economic Development Center does

East County Economic Development Council (ECEDC) is a nonprofit 501(c)(6) economic development organization founded in 1984 and headquartered at 127 E. Lexington Ave., El Cajon, California, serving the East County region of San Diego. Its mission is to convene industry, education, government, and infrastructure stakeholders to expand existing business, attract new investment, and drive regional economic initiatives. Core program offerings include Connectory.com, a buyer-supplier database and supply-chain matching platform with subscription pricing tiers; the East County Small Business Development Center (SBDC), a free counseling and workshop service funded through an SBA cooperative agreement; the Slingshot workforce training and risk-free loan program; and the annual Manufacturing Expo and Resource Fair. ECEDC also operates CASCADE (defense supply chain cybersecurity) and CADENCE (defense manufacturing modernization), both statewide initiatives backed by the U.S. Department of Defense and the California Office of Planning and Research.

The organization is governed by a Board of Directors and operates with approximately seven core staff plus a Foundation parallel organization: the East County Economic Development Council Foundation, a 501(c)(3) entity established in 1998 to handle research, education, and project-specific work. Revenue is generated primarily through tiered investor memberships (City, Silver, Bronze, Standard, and Chairman's Circle levels), Connectory.com subscriptions, government and foundation grants, and pass-through grant administration such as the LEAP program ($350,000 to 35 La Mesa businesses) and the La Mesa Disaster Recovery Fund (over $200,000 distributed). Reported impact metrics include over 0.6k citizens supported and more than $0.1M in capital infused into the region.

Go-to-market is community-led rather than commercial-sales-led: ECEDC delivers services directly through in-house advisors, runs programs out of its El Cajon office, and supplements with regional events, a monthly newsletter, and a self-serve online platform. Membership-based funding and grant capture are central to unit economics — the organization is structured as a nonprofit with mission-aligned programs rather than a venture-backable commercial entity. Named Chairman's Circle investors span municipal government (Cities of El Cajon, La Mesa, Santee), major regional employers (Taylor Guitars, SDGE, Cox Communications, Sycuan), waste and infrastructure services (Waste Management, Republic Services, EDCO, San Diego County Water Authority), healthcare (Grossmont Healthcare District, Sharp Healthcare), and financial services (Wells Fargo, U.S. Bank).

Name

East County Economic Development Center

Legal name

East County Economic Development Council

Website

https://eastcountyedc.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1984

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

East County Economic Development Council is a nonprofit 501(c)(6) regional economic development organization headquartered in El Cajon, California, serving East County San Diego by convening business, government, and education stakeholders and operating the Connectory.com supply-chain platform, SBDC counseling, Slingshot workforce training, and grant programs.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

El Cajon

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Investor Memberships: The organization operates on membership/investor contributions from businesses, cities, and organizations in the East County region. Higher-level investors receive benefits including website logo placement, Connectory.com subscriptions, economic research access, and sponsorship opportunities.
2. Connectory.com Subscriptions: Online platform providing company database access to industry and technology companies with tiered pricing for small businesses and corporate partners.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

East County Economic Development Council (ECEDC) is a 501(c)(6) nonprofit economic development organization that convenes business, government, education, and industry stakeholders to expand existing businesses, attract new investment, and develop the workforce in East County San Diego. It delivers services through programs including the Connectory.com supply chain platform, Small Business Development Center (SBDC) counseling and workshops, Slingshot workforce training loans, the annual Manufacturing Expo, and grant programs such as LEAP.

Product overview

East County Economic Development Council (ECEDC) operates as a nonprofit economic development organization offering a portfolio of interconnected programs and services. The core offerings include Connectory, a supply chain database platform; the Small Business Development Center (SBDC) providing free business counseling and workshops; and the Slingshot workforce training program. Additional initiatives include the annual Manufacturing Expo event, CASCADE cybersecurity resilience program, and CADENCE defense manufacturing modernization effort. Grant programs such as LEAP provide direct financial assistance to local businesses. These programs work together to support the East County San Diego economic ecosystem through business development, workforce training, and regional economic stimulation.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Connectory: Award-winning buyer-supplier website providing collaborative online database for industry and technology companies with smart and accessible data on supply chains.
• SBDC (Small Business Development Center)
• Slingshot
• CASCADE
• CADENCE
• LEAP Program

Products and services

• Connectory

Quantifiable outcome

• $1M loan secured for Doc's Organics facility construction
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFunded in part through a cooperative agreement with the SBA. SBDC operates under this partnership.
• San Diego & Imperial SBDC NetworkcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAccredited member of the Association of Small Business Development Centers. East County SBDC is a branch of this network.
• South County Economic Development CouncilcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership between ECEDC, South County EDC, and City of San Diego for Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy (CEDS) committee.
• California Office of Planning and ResearchcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLead agency for CADENCE program - California Advanced Defense Ecosystems & National Consortia Effort, funded by DoD Defense Manufacturing Community Support program.
• La Mesa Chamber of CommercecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-managed La Mesa Disaster Recovery Fund for businesses damaged during civil unrest, distributing over $200,000.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• San Diego Regional Economic Development Corporation: Larger regional economic development organization covering broader San Diego County. Directly comparable in mission (business attraction, retention, expansion, workforce), with similar convening model across industry, education, and government stakeholders - the closest functional peer for ECEDC.
• South County Economic Development Council: Adjacent regional EDC explicitly partnering with ECEDC on the Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy (CEDS) committee. Functions as a directly comparable sub-regional EDC serving the southern portion of San Diego County with similar business outreach and convening.
• National Development Council (NDC): National nonprofit providing economic development, housing, and small business financing programs. Directly comparable to ECEDC's Slingshot workforce training loan pool and overall community development finance orientation, with overlapping target markets.
• San Diego Workforce Partnership: San Diego's regional Workforce Development Board administering publicly-funded job training and workforce programs. Highly comparable to ECEDC's Slingshot program and Manufacturing Expo workforce focus, with overlapping regional training and employer-connection mandates.
• SCORE: National nonprofit providing free small business mentoring, counseling, and workshops - a nearly identical service model to ECEDC's SBDC program. Comparable in target customer (small businesses/entrepreneurs) and core service offering (no-cost expert advisory).
• CMTC (California Manufacturing Technology Consulting): California statewide nonprofit providing manufacturing consulting, modernization, and workforce development to manufacturers. Strongly comparable to ECEDC's CADENCE defense manufacturing program and Manufacturing Expo initiatives, with similar client base and program design.

Broad incumbents

• International Economic Development Council (IEDC): National professional association serving economic development practitioners and organizations. ECEDC functions as a member/peer within this broader industry body, providing standards, training, and recognition programs for regional EDCs like ECEDC.
• America's SBDC: National network umbrella of which the East County SBDC (hosted by ECEDC) is an accredited member branch. ECEDC's SBDC delivery model is directly licensed and partially funded through this national system, making it a structural counterpart.

Others

• California Association for Local Economic Development (CALED): California statewide association representing local economic development organizations. ECEDC is a stakeholder within this peer network; the association sets policy, training, and best-practice frameworks relevant to ECEDC's operations and funding access.

Emerging players

• Thomas (Thomasnet): Established B2B industrial sourcing platform and supplier database. Most directly comparable to ECEDC's Connectory.com supply chain database business, with overlapping buyer-supplier matching functionality and global self-serve subscription access.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/EastCountyEDC
• Instagraminstagram.com/eastcountyedc
• Xx.com/ecedc
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/east-county-edc

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about East County Economic Development Center