Supporting Veteran-Owned Businesses

Header image: U.S. Air Force photo by Airman Aidan Martinez

Quick Answer

Supporting veteran-owned businesses means deliberately sourcing from certified SDVOSBs and VOSBs, whether you are a federal contracting officer meeting the government's 5% SDVOSB contracting goal, a prime contractor building your subcontracting plan, or a private sector buyer who wants to put procurement dollars behind the people who served. The SBA VetCert database lets you verify any firm's certification before award. The economic case is straightforward: spending with veteran-owned businesses keeps money in the hands of people with demonstrated leadership skills and a track record of executing under pressure.

Why Veteran-Owned Businesses Deserve Deliberate Support

Veterans who start businesses bring the same traits they carried in uniform: mission focus, responsibility for outcomes, comfort with complex logistics, and the ability to build and lead teams. Those traits produce businesses that execute. They deliver on time, communicate clearly, and own problems instead of deflecting them.

But veteran business owners also face structural disadvantages. They often separate from service with less civilian professional network than their peers who started careers at 22. They may have fewer years of commercial revenue history when they apply for credit. And the federal contracting system, while designed to support them, is complex enough that many certified SDVOSBs struggle to compete effectively for the contracts that should be theirs.

The policy response to those disadvantages is the SDVOSB set-aside system. But policy alone is not enough. Deliberate buying decisions by contracting officers, prime contractors, and private sector buyers are what actually move the needle.

The Federal Framework For Supporting Veteran-Owned Businesses

The federal government's primary mechanism for supporting veteran-owned businesses is the SDVOSB set-aside and sole-source contract program, governed by FAR Subpart 19.14. The government sets an annual goal of awarding 5% of all prime contracting dollars to SDVOSBs, per SBA contracting program guidelines. The VA goes further, giving mandatory priority to SDVOSBs and VOSBs for VA contracts under the Vets First Contracting Program.

Certification is administered through the SBA VetCert program, which transferred from the VA to the SBA on January 1, 2023, under the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021. All SDVOSBs competing for set-aside or sole-source contracts must now be certified by SBA and designated in SAM.gov.

How Federal Buyers Can Support Veteran-Owned Businesses

Contracting officers. The FAR requires contracting officers to consider SDVOSB set-asides before opening competition to the general small business market. Following this sequence consistently, rather than defaulting to full and open competition, is the most direct way federal contracting officers fulfill the government's SDVOSB commitment. Market research should include a specific check of the VetCert database to identify certified firms before the solicitation is posted.

Prime contractors. Large prime contractors on federal contracts above $900,000 (or $2 million for construction) are required to maintain small business subcontracting plans with specific SDVOSB targets. Actively sourcing PPE, supplies, and services from certified SDVOSBs like BDG Safety is one of the most direct and auditable ways to meet those goals. See Federal procurement set-asides for details on subcontracting plan requirements.

Purchase card holders. Government employees with purchase cards (P-cards) can support veteran-owned businesses on purchases below the micro-purchase threshold by sourcing from certified SDVOSBs when the market supports it. The preference is not mandatory at the micro-purchase level but is strongly encouraged.

How Private Sector Buyers Can Support Veteran-Owned Businesses

Private sector companies are not bound by the FAR's set-aside requirements, but deliberate supplier diversity programs frequently include a veteran-owned business category. Major corporations including large general contractors, energy companies, and industrial manufacturers increasingly require or prefer certified SDVOSB or veteran-owned suppliers as part of their supply chain diversity commitments.

For private sector safety managers and procurement teams, choosing an SDVOSB distributor for PPE is both a values decision and a quality decision. Veteran-owned safety companies tend to bring operational discipline to their supply chains. They understand the consequence of equipment failure because many of them have worked in hazardous environments themselves.

Veteran-Owned Businesses In The Construction Supply Chain

Construction is one of the industries with the strongest concentration of veteran business owners, partly because of programs like Helmets to Hardhats and the UBC Military Veterans Program that create clear on-ramps from military service to trade careers. Veterans who enter the trades as apprentices often eventually start contracting or supplier businesses of their own.

BDG Safety is a direct example of this path. Founded by Navy veterans in 2021, BDG distributes premium safety PPE to federal contractors, general contractors, and industrial employers. BDG holds GSA MAS contract 47QSMS24D0046 and serves the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and other federal customers. About 70% of BDG's revenue comes from government contracts.

How To Find And Verify Certified Veteran-Owned Businesses

Any buyer can verify a firm's SDVOSB or VOSB certification in two ways: the SBA VetCert search database and the firm's entity record in SAM.gov. The VetCert database is publicly searchable by firm name, state, NAICS code, and UEI number. For federal procurement, always verify certification status before award and document the verification in the contract file.

Veteran-Owned Business Key Statistics

5% of all federal prime contracting dollars are targeted for SDVOSBs annually, per SBA contracting goals.

3.5% was the veteran unemployment rate in 2025 (all veterans), per the BLS Employment Situation of Veterans report. Supporting veteran-owned businesses creates jobs for other veterans.

January 1, 2023: the date SDVOSB certification authority transferred from the VA to the SBA, creating a single certification system for the entire federal government.

PPE From A Veteran-Owned Business

Studson SHK-1 safety helmets - purchase from a certified SDVOSB and satisfy your subcontracting goals.

Hardknock Resolve FullBrim safety helmets - federal-grade head protection from a veteran-owned supplier.

Related Veteran Business Resources

What is an SDVOSB? - the full breakdown of certification requirements, VetCert, and what SDVOSB status means for buyers and sellers.

Federal procurement set-asides - how set-aside contracts work and how buyers use them to support veteran-owned suppliers.

FAR requirements explained - the regulatory framework that mandates SDVOSB consideration and subcontracting plan requirements.

Transitioning from military to skilled trades - how service members enter the workforce and build the businesses buyers should be sourcing from.

UBC Military Veterans Program - the union program that builds the veteran workforce feeding the construction industry.

Frequently Asked Questions About Supporting Veteran-Owned Businesses

Q: Is buying from a veteran-owned business required outside of federal procurement?

A: No legal requirement applies to private sector buyers. However, many large corporations include veteran-owned business sourcing in their supplier diversity programs and annual reporting, and some customers and agencies may evaluate supplier diversity as part of prequalification.

Q: How do I know if a company is really veteran-owned?

A: For government purposes, verify through the SBA VetCert database or SAM.gov. For private sector purposes, look for SBA VetCert certification or ask the company for its certification documentation. Self-reported veteran-owned claims without certification are not verifiable.

Q: Does buying from an SDVOSB count toward my company's small business subcontracting goals?

A: Yes, on federal contracts with subcontracting plans. Purchases from certified SDVOSBs count toward the SDVOSB subcategory goal and also toward the overall small business goal in your subcontracting plan.

Q: What is the difference between supporting veteran-owned businesses and buying from the VA?

A: These are separate concepts. The VA Vets First program prioritizes SDVOSB and VOSB firms for VA contracts. Buying from veteran-owned businesses generally means sourcing from any certified SDVOSB or VOSB firm, not just those selling to or through the VA.

Source Your PPE From A Veteran-Owned Business

BDG Safety is a Navy veteran-founded, SBA-certified SDVOSB. Every helmet, vest, and piece of hearing protection we sell carries the mission we built the company on: protecting the people who build America. Federal buyers, prime contractors, and private sector safety managers can source compliant PPE directly from BDG. Contact BDG Safety at (619) 992-7621 or info@bulldoggroup.net to request a quote or place a GSA Schedule order.

Explore more guides in the BDG Safety Resource Center.