Grow as a transitive verb in a business context is usually well understood and is no more likely than any synonym to offend with perceived connotations. It could be used in pompous statements, as could expand or any other synonym. Alone, neither pomposity nor any other quality of the verb's user would make its usage wrong.

Anyone hoping to start or grow a business might benefit from carefully cultivating business and personal relationships, or so the business networking formularizers tell us.