It is no secret that entrepreneurs and small businesses are often the light at the end of the recession tunnel. According to USA Today, 16 of the 30 companies that make up the Dow industrial average were started during a recession or depression. Some of these include Procter & Gamble, Disney, McDonald’s, General Electric and Johnson & Johnson.

It is only fitting that the Obama administration and Goldman Sachs recently announced that they plan to make it easier for small businesses to thrive by providing a head start with various programs. Goldman Sachs is teaming up with Warren Buffett to invest $500 million which will provide thousands of small business owners across America with college scholarships and boost their access to capital. President Obama is asking Congress to give more than $100 million to a small-business loan program on top of the $375 million that the SBA already received earlier this year to support lending programs.

In line with these initiatives, Alibaba.com CEO David Wei visited with Quentin Hardy of Forbes to talk about making small business easier everywhere in the world and to create 1 million US jobs in the next few years.

Congratulations to Joel Smith of Forward Mobility for taking first place in Alibaba.com’s Newpreneur of the Year competition and the $50,000 top prize! Joel plans to use his winnings to bring his latest invention, the Freedom Leg, to injured athletes, military personnel and anyone who wants to go beyond crutches and free their mobility.

Here is a video wrap-up that ran on ABC San Francisco:

More than 300 people attended the finale event at the Bently Reserve in San Francisco. Some came to see business guru Tom Peters speak, some came to support the 13 finalists and others came because they didn’t want to cook dinner that night. All kidding aside, the event was a huge success with great food, valuable networking and a heated competition.

The finalists had 90 seconds to pitch their business idea or product to a panel of distinguished judges including; David Wei, CEO Alibaba.com; David Louie, Anchor on ABC San Francisco; Kelly Sang, GM of IBDM Alibaba.com Americas; Tom Searcy, CEO of Hunt Big Sales; and Jane Berentson, Editor of Inc. Magazine.

After the judges heard from each of the finalists and tallied up the results, Kelly Sang took the stage to lead off the announcement of the winners. But first an exciting announcement was unveiled on all of the Newpreneurs and the attendees…

Kelly said that throughout the competition Alibaba.com has been so inspired and impressed by each of the 13 finalists and how they truly embody the Newpreneur spirit and resourcefulness that Alibaba.com decided to add an additional $40k in business grants to the program! Each of the 13 finalists received at least $5k from the finale and a signed copy of The Official Alibaba.com Success Guide written by Brad and Debra Schepp. If you want a book for yourself you can get on at Amazon, Barns and Noble or Borders.

Each of the five judges announced one of the winners, accompanied by a drum roll, and each was awarded a BIG check and the satisfaction that they beat out nearly 900 applicants to become one of the Newpreneurs of the Year.

• 1^st Place, $50,000 – Joel Smith, Forward Mobility

• 2^nd Place, $25,000 – Drew Jones, DJones Tailored Collection

• 3^rd Place, $15,000 – Jonathan Ross Shriftman, Sole Bicycles

• 4^th Place, $5,000 – Imran Karim, Trophy Skin

• 5^th Place, $5,000 – Katie Shea and Susie Levitt, FUNK-tional Enterprises

Sourcing can seem intimidating or a little complicated to new entrepreneurs but it can really pay off big for your business. The best way to jump in is to get familiar with the lingo. Today’s Sourcing Tip/Term of the Day is: Delivered duty paid (DDP)

Delivered duty paid (DDP) means that the seller pays for everything, including all the import fees.

A full list of terms has been complied by The International Chamber of Commerce and is available in a brand new book by Brad and Debra Schepp called The Official Alibaba.com Success Guide available now on Amazon.com.

Our Newpreneur of the Year event series will come to an exciting conclusion this Wednesday, November 18 at the Bently Reserve in San Francisco. Thirteen Newpreneurs, who were selected in regional competitions throughout the U.S., will present their business ideas in front of hundreds of people in an attempt to take home a share of $100,000 in grant money.  To find information about the finalists and to register for the finale, visit www.inc.com/alibaba.

In addition, a special treat for anyone attending the Newpreneur finale will be a presentation from international business guru Tom Peters. Peters is one of the most influential business thinkers to date and co-wrote In Search of Excellence in 1982, which has since been dubbed one of the greatest business books of all time. He has subsequently written many international bestsellers, including his most recent success, Re-Imagine!: Business Excellence in a Disruptive Age.

Peters speaks here about how new entrepreneurs are the key to reviving the economy, tips for starting a business during the recession and how to use Alibaba.com to enter a global marketplace.

Below are a few key points from Tom’s webisode:

• 3 out of 4 Americans believe that new entrepreneurs are the key to reviving the economy
• Some of the largest corporations such as Burger King, FedEx and General Electric were all started during a recession as small companies
• A recession is a great time to start a small business and challenge the big boys
• 95% of U.S. businesses are small businesses
• Starting a business is not a walk in the park but it can pay off big when you love what you do everyday

So, if you have an idea you believe in, the motivation to work hard and a little money to invest, you can be your own boss and make a decision that will hopefully change your life and the lives of many others around the world.

Visit success.alibaba.com to learn how others took their small idea and turned it into something big.

Sourcing can seem intimidating or a little complicated to new entrepreneurs but it can really pay off big for your business. The best way to jump in is to get familiar with the lingo. Today’s Sourcing Tip/Term of the Day is: Delivered duty unpaid (DDU)

Delivered duty unpaid (DDU) means that the buyer accepts delivery of the goods, not cleared for import, not unloaded from the means of transport, but at the named destination. The buyer is responsible for all importing expenses.

A full list of terms has been complied by The International Chamber of Commerce and is available in a brand new book by Brad and Debra Schepp called The Official Alibaba.com Success Guide available now on Amazon.com.