HAMPTON

The numbers were smaller.

The location was new.

But, overall, planners were pleased with the 18th annual Virginia Business Opportunity Fair, which wrapped up Tuesday at the Hampton Roads Convention Center.

The fair - a three-day event that included seminars, a trade show and a golf outing - gave minority business owners the opportunity to network with large government contractors and corporations, such as ExxonMobil and Northrop Grumman.

The chance to make important contacts brought Cynthia Graves to Hampton. Graves is a buyer in the city of Norfolk's finance department. She spent her time getting to know small-business owners and lining up potential bids on city contracts.

"There are a lot of new ideas out there that can help the city and save money," she said Tuesday as she headed to one of the fair's seminars.

Along with networking opportunities, fairgoers heard from R. Donahue Peebles, chief executive officer of The Peebles Corp., one of the largest black-owned commercial real estate development firms in the United States.

Peebles has a $4 billion portfolio of properties.

The Virginia Business Opportunity Fair had been a Richmond staple for 16 years, but planners decided to move it to Hampton Roads this year.

It was time, said Tracey Jeter, president and chief executive officer of the Virginia Minority Supplier Development Council, which sponsors the event.

The region is fertile with military and other business connections, she said.

The Richmond fair typically has drawn 1,000 to 1,500 people for the closing banquet. The event in Hampton drew 500. About 275 minority businesses were present.

Jeter said the fair could return to Hampton Roads in a few years, but it likely will move back to Richmond next year.

Jennifer Jiggetts, (757) 446-2643, jennifer.jiggetts@pilotonline.com