Women directors were seen as a “risk” prior to the success of the “Barbie” movie, according to Academy Award-winning actress Jodie Foster. Speaking with Variety on Friday, Foster praised the $1.4 billion success of the blockbuster film, claiming that this was “new” for female directors. “I’ve had the beauty of being able to be in … Continue reading Jodie Foster claims before 'Barbie,' women directors were a 'risk' in Hollywood
Tag: Women
Jana Kramer says ex-husband cheated with more than 13 women
Jana Kramer said this week that ex-husband Mike Caussin cheated on her with more than 13 women during their nearly six-year marriage.
“That has to be really painful,” “Red Table Talk” co-host Jada Pinkett Smith empathized in a preview clip Tuesday of Wednesday’s Facebook Watch show.
“I know we’re both in better situations,” the country star told the co-hosts through tears, “But I think about this year, my kids won’t wake up at my house Christmas Day. That one’s gonna hurt.”
The couple, who share Jolie, 6, and Jace, 3, divorced last year after marrying in 2015.
JANA KRAMER SPENDS FIRST THANKSGIVING WITHOUT KIDS AFTER DIVORCE: ‘MY HEART HURTS’
She continued, “That’s when I get like, ‘That’s not fair. You took away my dream too of what I wanted for my family. That’s not fair.'”
JANA KRAMER OPENS UP ABOUT EMOTIONAL AND PHYSICAL ABUSE IN PAST RELATIONSHIPS MONTHS AFTER DIVORCE
Last Thanksgiving, she wrote on Instagram, “My heart hurts not being with [her children] today and I have a feeling whether it’s the first holiday apart or the 30th there will always be an ache in the heart.”
A year after they were married, she and Caussin, a former NFL player, separated for a year over infidelity issues and the ex-tight end sought treatment for sex addiction.
“For me, I realized a lot of things throughout my life that sex and sexual acting out was my addictive behavior, and that’s where I went to hide my feelings, to run away from reality and that was my drug,” Caussin said in 2019.
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The couple renewed their vows in 2017 and they co-wrote the book “The Good Fight: Wanting to Leave, Choosing to Stay, and the Powerful Practice for Loving Faithfully” in 2020.
In April 2021, Kramer wrote on Instagram, “’It’s time.’ As I try to make sense of a reality that I never wanted to believe could be possible again, those words have now become a reality. I’ve fought y’all. I’ve loved hard. I’ve forgiven. I’ve put the work in. I’ve given everything I have, and now I have nothing else to give. ‘It’s time.'”
She added, “Please know that I still believe wholeheartedly in marriage, love, and rebuilding. I just can’t fight any longer. It’s time to heal. Thank you for all the love, heart, and support, in many ways you have fought on this journey alongside me, and for that I am grateful.”
Wrestler had 15 drinks a day, slept with 10,000 women, documentary reveals
How and Where to Get a Women Owned Business Grant
A grant is a great way to fund a business. It’s free money. You don’t have to pay it back. However, grants are highly competitive, so you need every advantage you can get. In addition, you need a backup plan in case you do not get it, or if it’s not enough money. Here are some tips to help increase your chances of getting a women owned business grant.
Learn business loan secrets and get money for your business.
Top Tips to Increase Your Chance of Landing A Women Owned Business Grant
All grant programs are highly competitive. Still, they are still worth the effort to apply. Truly, there really isn’t anything to lose except time and application fees, which are typically minor. A women owned business grant will rarely be enough to fully fund a business. Yet, it may supplement other funding types. Not only that, but often winners receive other support such as mentoring and networking opportunities.
5 Hacks to Increase Your Chances of Winning a Women Owned Business Grant
Of course, there are no guarantees. But, there are some things you can do to increase your chances of winning a grant.
1. Don’t Waste Your Time on the Wrong Grant
Most grant application processes take a significant amount of time and preparation. Don’t waste your time applying for every women own business grant out there. Be intentional to find those that you have the best chance at winning. For example, if you own a restaurant, don’t apply for a grant meant for tech businesses. Rather, pay attention to the requirements and only fill out applications for those that you qualify to win.
2. Do Your Research
Take the time to study up on the history of the program, past winners, and anything else you can think of to learn about the grant. There are a few ways this can help you. First, you may be able to see what past winners have in common and aim to show the decision makers you have similar qualities. It can give you direction when it comes to working on your application materials.
But also, if there is an interview, it can give you background knowledge. This can only help you.
3. Have a Complete Business Plan
Most people think of business plans more in terms of applying for a loan. However, it is vital to grant applications as well. You want to convince the award committee that your business is worth it. Honestly, having a complete, professional business plan goes a long way toward that goal.
4. Customize Your Business Plan for the Grant
There is no need to use the exact same plan, verbatim, for each grant application. You’ve done the research. You’ve seen who won each grant in the past. Now, it’s time to show what you know, and why you should be next. Make certain to include information that the grant specifically asks for. If you share any qualities of previous winners, slip that in. Show them what other funding sources you have. Tell them how you intend to spend the grant funds if you win. Put your best foot forward, this is your time to shine.
5. Don’t Let Time Run Out
Start now researching grants you may be interested in. Pay attention to when applications open and close, and don’t let something simple knock you out of the running. With competition being so fierce, application acceptance after a deadline is virtually unheard of. Also, some grants have more than one deadline with different aspects of the application being due at different times. Pay attention.
Where to Find a Women Owned Business Grant
Now, you need a women owned business grant, or a few, to apply for. Start with these, but the buck doesn’t stop here. There are plenty of local and state options, as well as grants that are not limited by location or type of business owner. There are minority business grants that you may qualify for as well.
SBA Women’s Business Centers
In addition to helping with loans, the SBA Women’s Business Centers also help women entrepreneurs get access to other types of funding. Some lend money or award grants directly, while others help connect women entrepreneurs with financial institutions. Take a look at their website to find out more on how to apply for women owned business grants through this network.
Eileen Fisher Women Owned Business Grant
The clothing brand Eileen Fisher hands out $100,000 per year to 10 women-owned businesses. To qualify, a woman must have at least 51% ownership, and the business must be in operation for at least three years. Also, it must bring in less than $1 million per year in revenue and have a focus on environmental or social change.
Amber Grant
The Amber Grant awards $500 to $1,000 per month to a woman-owned business. One of the recipients also receives an additional $10,000 grant at the end of the year. Applicants only need to tell their story and turn it in with a $15 application fee.
Cartier Women’s Initiative Award
The Cartier Women’s Initiative Award is $100,000 for first place and $30,000 for second place. They award the grant to 18 female business owners from around the world each year. Women business owners who are just getting started may qualify.
All of the finalists get to attend the INSEAD Social Entrepreneurship 6-Day Executive Program (ISEP). They will also have the opportunity to participate in workshops on entrepreneurship and business coaching seminars, as well as be exposed to networking opportunities.
Tory Burch Fellowship Program
The Tory Burch Fellowship Program offers an amazing opportunity for up to 50 winners. An applicant must be a woman-identifying entrepreneur with at least a 51% stake in a qualifying business, or the largest equal stake if it is owned 100% by women.
Applicants must also speak proficient english and be a legal U.S. resident. Nonprofits, ventures in the idea stage, and franchises or subsidiaries are not eligible.
Applications open in the fall, and winners receive a $5,000 grant in addition to a one-year fellowship that includes virtual education, workshops, and guidance.
Learn business loan secrets and get money for your business.
Women Founders Network Fast Pitch Contest
The Women Founders Network offers this unique opportunity each year to female founders. What makes it different is the leadership, coaching, and in-kind sponsorships that are included in addition to the cash prices. The contest also draws the attention of investors, which offers the opportunity to raise even more capital.
A Women Owned Business Grant is Not The Only Answer
While these programs work to meet the unique challenges faced by women business owners, sometimes it just isn’t enough. You need a backup plan. Here are
some other funding options that can supplement grant funds, or even replace them if your business isn’t chosen as a recipient.
Grameen
Grameen is one of the few lenders that offers microloans specifically for women. The loan amounts range from $2,000 to $15,000, and they also offer financial training and support.
The Credit Line Hybrid
The Credit Line Hybrid is a form of unsecured business financing. It is available to pretty much anyone for any type of business expense. You can use it for real estate, equipment, working capital, and even startup expenses. There is no down payment, and you do not have to provide income documentation. It is completely no-doc financing. A credit score of 680 or higher is necessary, and there are some other requirements. However, if you do not meet them you can take on a credit partner that does.
You can get up to $150,000, and often interest rates are as low as 0% for the first 6 to 18 months.
Learn business loan secrets and get money for your business.
SBA Enterprise Loans
You need to have collateral worth up to at least 50% of the loan amount, but you only need a FICO of 620. There also can be no bankruptcies in the past 4 years. Only for profit companies qualify, and they must have positive trends in sales growth. Generally amounts are available of up to $12 million with terms up to 25 years.
The BEST Way to Ensure You Can Always Get the Business Funding You Need
Remember, you are always going to need funding. Furthermore, grants are not going to be the answer every time. Loans, credit lines, and other financing options are likely going to be necessary throughout the life of your business.
The best way to ensure you have access to these when you need them is to make certain your business’s overall fundability is in order. The thing is, that isn’t as easy as it may seem. There are over 100 factors that affect fundability.
Unfortunately, it’s a complicated puzzle to piece together. Thankfully, you can save time and money by working with a business credit expert. They can help you evaluate your current fundability, help you improve it if necessary, and guide you toward the best funding options for your business right now. Get started with a free consultation with one of our business credit experts today.
The post How and Where to Get a Women Owned Business Grant appeared first on Credit Suite.
How to Get Funding for Women Owned Companies
Women owned companies are exploding onto the scene. In fact, you may be surprised to learn that companies such as Cisco, Liquid Paper, The Body Shop, Spanx, and Proactive are all owned by women.
What Women Owned Companies Need to Succeed
Women owned companies are definitely becoming a force in the entrepreneurial world. According to Fundera, 40% of US businesses are owned by women. If you are ready to join the ranks, here is what you need to know.
Women Owned Companies: Start Off On the Right Foot
All businesses, including women owned companies, need strong fundability. This starts with how your business is set up. The first part of this is separating the business from yourself. This starts with having separate contact information, meaning you do not use your personal address or telephone number as your business address or telephone number.
That sounds easy enough. However, many entrepreneurs, especially women, choose to start their business from their residence. It makes sense. In theory, a female business owner could better manage a home and children if running a business from home. Even a woman, or a man for that matter, without a family could find benefit in the flexibility of running their own business from home. There is no commute, you cut the cost of buying lunch out, and you can work in your pajamas.
Foundation of Fundability
While some would argue these things are not all they’re cracked up to be, one thing is for sure. It is definitely tempting to use your personal contact information as your business information if you work from home. There are two things you need to know about this.
What frustrates you the most about funding your business? Check out how our free guide can help.
Contact Information
First, regardless of where you run your business from, you do not need to use your personal contact information as your business contact information. Second, you can still run your business from your home and still have separate contact information for your business.
The phone number part is easy. You could get a separate phone, but it isn’t necessary. It is easy enough to get a number that works through the internet. You can then forward it to your regular phone, and whenever someone calls your business number it will ring to your personal phone.
An address is a little trickier, but not impossible. Whatever you do, don’t use a P.O. Box or an UPS box. Many types of funding will not accept this type of address. They want to see a physical address.
Other Setup Information
This is not the only issue with setting up your business to be fundable. But it is the first step. After that you need an EIN, you need to incorporate, and you absolutely must get a D-U-N-S number. You also have to open a dedicated business bank account.
The whole point in setting up your business to be fundable is so that you can get funding for your business. There is a huge catch 22 here, as if you are already running a business and are not yet set up to be fundable, you may need money before you can get it done. The set up is only one piece of the fundability puzzle. There are over 100 different fundability factors that lenders consider. Building business fundability takes time.
Best Funding for Women Owned Companies Right Now
The problem is, the longer you wait, the hard it gets to build fundability. Not only that, you need money now, right? How do women owned companies get the funds they need to grow and thrive, or just survive, in the meantime? We have a few suggestions.
Credit Line Hybrid
The credit line hybrid is unsecured business financing. It is available to pretty much anyone for any type of business expense. You can use it for real estate, equipment, working capital, and even startup expenses. Not only that, but there is no security required. Furthermore, there is no down payment, and you do not have to provide income documentation. It is completely no-doc financing.
You do need to have personal credit of 680 or above. Also, there cannot be any late payments in the past 12 months, there can be no open collections or bankruptcies, and there should be less than 4 inquiries in the past 6 months on your consumer credit report. There also has to be at least 2 open credit cards with a $2,000 limit or higher with 2 years of good payment history.
If you do not meet these requirements, you can take on a credit partner that does meet them. The payments will still be reported on the business’s credit report, so business credit will build whether you get the financing yourself or through a credit partner.
You can get up to $150,000, and often interest rates are as low as 0% for the first 6 to 18 months.
Business Revenue Lending
If your business has consistent revenue of $120,000 per year or more, you may qualify for this type of funding. Lenders verify revenue using bank statements. There can be no recent bankruptcies, but the minimum credit score to qualify is as low as 500.
A business must also be in operation for a year or more, and they must do over 5 small transactions each month to get business revenue financing.
What frustrates you the most about funding your business? Check out how our free guide can help.
Merchant Cash Advance
If your business accepts credit card payments and you have at least a 500 FICO, you could get up to $750,000 in a merchant cash advance. Credit rates are usually lower compared to traditional financing as well.
Your business must bring in $100,000 or more per year in credit card sales, and typically you can get approval equal to one months credit card financing volume.
Account Receivable Financing
Outstanding account receivables can also be a source of funding for your business. Get as much as 80% of receivables advanced in less than 24 hours. You get the rest of the accounts receivable amount once you collect full payment for the invoice. Closing takes 2 weeks or less.
Receivables should be with the government or another business. Getting financing with receivables from individuals is not as easy. If you also have purchase orders, then you can get financing to have those filled. You won’t need to use your cash flow to do so.
Equipment Financing
You can secure this type of financing by using existing equipment or new equipment you want to purchase as collateral. Funding is available up to $10 million. Terms range from 5 to 60 months, and you need a minimum 550 FICO.
The equipment must be new, and most types of equipment are acceptable, including software.
You’ll need to provide details on the equipment to be financed and, depending on the loan amount and certain risk factors, you may need to show 2 years corporate and personal tax returns.
Enterprise SBA Loans
For these loans you have to have collateral worth up to at least 50% of the loan amount, but you only need a FICO of 620. There also can be no bankruptcies in the past 4 years. Only for profit companies qualify, and they must have positive trends in sales growth. Generally amounts are available of up to $12 million with terms up to 25-years.
What frustrates you the most about funding your business? Check out how our free guide can help.
Women Owned Companies Can Get the Funding They Need
While there are some women business grant opportunities out there, they are highly competitive and rarely enough to fully fund business needs. These funding options are great for immediate cash needs, and you can work on building your fundability in the meantime. Once your business has strong fundability, you can have pretty much any business funding you need.
The absolute best way to build fundability is with the help of a business credit expert. They can walk you through the complicated web of the many factors that affect fundability, including helping you find accounts that will report to your business credit profile. That is the only way to build a business credit score.
The post How to Get Funding for Women Owned Companies appeared first on Credit Suite.
How to Get Funding for Women Owned Companies
Women owned companies are exploding onto the scene. In fact, you may be surprised to learn that companies such as Cisco, Liquid Paper, The Body Shop, Spanx, and Proactive are all owned by women.
What Women Owned Companies Need to Succeed
Women owned companies are definitely becoming a force in the entrepreneurial world. According to Fundera, 40% of US businesses are owned by women. If you are ready to join the ranks, here is what you need to know.
Women Owned Companies: Start Off On the Right Foot
All businesses, including women owned companies, need strong fundability. This starts with how your business is set up. The first part of this is separating the business from yourself. This starts with having separate contact information, meaning you do not use your personal address or telephone number as your business address or telephone number.
That sounds easy enough. However, many entrepreneurs, especially women, choose to start their business from their residence. It makes sense. In theory, a female business owner could better manage a home and children if running a business from home. Even a woman, or a man for that matter, without a family could find benefit in the flexibility of running their own business from home. There is no commute, you cut the cost of buying lunch out, and you can work in your pajamas.
Foundation of Fundability
While some would argue these things are not all they’re cracked up to be, one thing is for sure. It is definitely tempting to use your personal contact information as your business information if you work from home. There are two things you need to know about this.
What frustrates you the most about funding your business? Check out how our free guide can help.
Contact Information
First, regardless of where you run your business from, you do not need to use your personal contact information as your business contact information. Second, you can still run your business from your home and still have separate contact information for your business.
The phone number part is easy. You could get a separate phone, but it isn’t necessary. It is easy enough to get a number that works through the internet. You can then forward it to your regular phone, and whenever someone calls your business number it will ring to your personal phone.
An address is a little trickier, but not impossible. Whatever you do, don’t use a P.O. Box or an UPS box. Many types of funding will not accept this type of address. They want to see a physical address.
Other Setup Information
This is not the only issue with setting up your business to be fundable. But it is the first step. After that you need an EIN, you need to incorporate, and you absolutely must get a D-U-N-S number. You also have to open a dedicated business bank account.
The whole point in setting up your business to be fundable is so that you can get funding for your business. There is a huge catch 22 here, as if you are already running a business and are not yet set up to be fundable, you may need money before you can get it done. The set up is only one piece of the fundability puzzle. There are over 100 different fundability factors that lenders consider. Building business fundability takes time.
Best Funding for Women Owned Companies Right Now
The problem is, the longer you wait, the hard it gets to build fundability. Not only that, you need money now, right? How do women owned companies get the funds they need to grow and thrive, or just survive, in the meantime? We have a few suggestions.
Credit Line Hybrid
The credit line hybrid is unsecured business financing. It is available to pretty much anyone for any type of business expense. You can use it for real estate, equipment, working capital, and even startup expenses. Not only that, but there is no security required. Furthermore, there is no down payment, and you do not have to provide income documentation. It is completely no-doc financing.
You do need to have personal credit of 680 or above. Also, there cannot be any late payments in the past 12 months, there can be no open collections or bankruptcies, and there should be less than 4 inquiries in the past 6 months on your consumer credit report. There also has to be at least 2 open credit cards with a $2,000 limit or higher with 2 years of good payment history.
If you do not meet these requirements, you can take on a credit partner that does meet them. The payments will still be reported on the business’s credit report, so business credit will build whether you get the financing yourself or through a credit partner.
You can get up to $150,000, and often interest rates are as low as 0% for the first 6 to 18 months.
Business Revenue Lending
If your business has consistent revenue of $120,000 per year or more, you may qualify for this type of funding. Lenders verify revenue using bank statements. There can be no recent bankruptcies, but the minimum credit score to qualify is as low as 500.
A business must also be in operation for a year or more, and they must do over 5 small transactions each month to get business revenue financing.
What frustrates you the most about funding your business? Check out how our free guide can help.
Merchant Cash Advance
If your business accepts credit card payments and you have at least a 500 FICO, you could get up to $750,000 in a merchant cash advance. Credit rates are usually lower compared to traditional financing as well.
Your business must bring in $100,000 or more per year in credit card sales, and typically you can get approval equal to one months credit card financing volume.
Account Receivable Financing
Outstanding account receivables can also be a source of funding for your business. Get as much as 80% of receivables advanced in less than 24 hours. You get the rest of the accounts receivable amount once you collect full payment for the invoice. Closing takes 2 weeks or less.
Receivables should be with the government or another business. Getting financing with receivables from individuals is not as easy. If you also have purchase orders, then you can get financing to have those filled. You won’t need to use your cash flow to do so.
Equipment Financing
You can secure this type of financing by using existing equipment or new equipment you want to purchase as collateral. Funding is available up to $10 million. Terms range from 5 to 60 months, and you need a minimum 550 FICO.
The equipment must be new, and most types of equipment are acceptable, including software.
You’ll need to provide details on the equipment to be financed and, depending on the loan amount and certain risk factors, you may need to show 2 years corporate and personal tax returns.
Enterprise SBA Loans
For these loans you have to have collateral worth up to at least 50% of the loan amount, but you only need a FICO of 620. There also can be no bankruptcies in the past 4 years. Only for profit companies qualify, and they must have positive trends in sales growth. Generally amounts are available of up to $12 million with terms up to 25-years.
What frustrates you the most about funding your business? Check out how our free guide can help.
Women Owned Companies Can Get the Funding They Need
While there are some women business grant opportunities out there, they are highly competitive and rarely enough to fully fund business needs. These funding options are great for immediate cash needs, and you can work on building your fundability in the meantime. Once your business has strong fundability, you can have pretty much any business funding you need.
The absolute best way to build fundability is with the help of a business credit expert. They can walk you through the complicated web of the many factors that affect fundability, including helping you find accounts that will report to your business credit profile. That is the only way to build a business credit score.
The post How to Get Funding for Women Owned Companies appeared first on Credit Suite.
The post How to Get Funding for Women Owned Companies appeared first on Automation For Your Email Marketing Sales Funnel.
The post How to Get Funding for Women Owned Companies appeared first on Buy It At A Bargain – Deals And Reviews.
Get Grants for Women Starting a Business
Grants for Women Starting a Business and So Much More
Looking for grants for women starting a business? Money is always going to be an issue. What if you could get what is essentially free money? That’s what grants are – for the most part.
Grants for Women Starting a Business
But how do you find the best options for you? How do you know if you need to be looking for grants or business loans for women? We recommend that you explore every option. This is because it will probably take a combination of funding options to fully fund your business.
Plus, there are business loans. But they are often not just for women. But there are other funding choices out there. Loans, crowdfunding, and even angel investors are all viable options. More on those later.
Grants for Women Starting a Business: The Details
The government and private organizations want to GIVE you money! They’re highly competitive and rarely enough to fund a business on their own. Still, grants are a great way to supplement other business funding. And they are still worth the effort to apply. There really isn’t anything to lose except time – it’s free money. Here are a few you can start with.
Amber Grant
The Amber Grant awards one prize of $10,000 per month to a woman-owned business. One of the recipients also gets an additional $25,000 grant at the end of the year. Applicants only need to tell their story and turn it in with a $15 application fee. See ambergrantsforwomen.com/get-an-amber-grant/apply-now.
Cartier Women’s Initiative Award
Cartier has a lot of grants for women starting a business or keeping a company going. The Cartier Women’s Initiative Award has a regional category award and a science and technology award. And the regional award is $100,000 for first place. With $30,000 for second and third place.
The award goes to three women from each of seven international regions. This award is a grant to 21 female business owners from around the world each year. But women business owners who are just getting started may qualify. Look over the complete application for more information. See cartierwomensinitiative.com/about-us.
Find out why so many companies use our proven methods to get business loans.
Cartier Science and Technology Pioneer Award
The Cartier Science and Technology Pioneer award is new as of 2021. Now three more women impact entrepreneurs at the forefront of scientific and technological innovation can get a new thematic award.
Open to women entrepreneurs from any country and sector. This award will highlight disruptive solutions built around unique, protected, or hard-to-reproduce technological or scientific advances. The laureate will get a $100,000 grant. Each of the two remaining finalists will get a $30,000 grant.
Cartier Women’s Fellowship
Cartier also offers a fellowship program. The fellowship is an educational program geared towards the 24 fellows selected each year. This fellowship program aims to equip the fellows with the necessary skills to grow their business.
It isn’t exactly a grant. But while it’s not a monetary award, the mentoring and networking opportunities could be worthwhile to apply for. Hence, see cartierwomensinitiative.com/fellowship-programme.
First Nations Development Institute Grants
The mission of this group is to offer grants that help Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians, and Native Americans. These are not just grants for women starting a business. They are meant for any gender, so you would be competing against Native Hawaiian, Alaskan, and Native American men. They help in the application process in addition to funds.
First Nations also helps point individuals to appropriate grants offered by other organizations, including the US government. This includes help with writing grant proposals. Therefore, see firstnations.org/grantmaking.
National Black MBA Association Scale-Up Pitch Challenge
Also known as NBMBAA, the Scale-Up Pitch Challenge has cash prizes of $1,000 to $50,000. The association states its purpose is to help newer businesses with an African American ownership. This is a pitch competition for startup businesses. See nbmbaa.org/scale-up-pitch-challenge.
The Native American Business Development Institute (NABDI) Grant
The NABDI Grant is funded by the US Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Indian Affairs. It is not just for women. It provides funding to business owners of Native American or Alaskan Native descent. In 2019, the program provided more than $727,000 to 21 indigenous tribes. It was to support economic feasibility studies for specific economic development projects or business startups.
For 2020, NABDI planned to award 20-25 grants. There is no minimum or maximum amount of funding that can be requested. But most awards run from $25,000 to $75,000. They only fund projects for one year at a time, which is when they expect projects to be completed. To apply for a NABDI grant for your proposed economic development feasibility study, go to bia.gov/service/grants/tedc/apply-nabdi-grant.
Find out why so many companies use our proven methods to get business loans.
Indian Affairs
There is more available via the Bureau of Indian Affairs. Businesses owned by Native Americans can get financing from the federal government through the Indian Affairs branch. These are not just for women. An individual can fill out an application for up to $500,000. But business entities and tribal enterprises may apply for more.
Potential borrowers can apply with any lending institution, they just have to use the application for Indian Affairs. Additional requirements are in place if the funds are used for construction, renovation, or refinancing. In general, a list of collateral, a credit report, and an analysis of business operations are required. See bia.gov/as-ia/ieed/loan-guaranty-insurance-and-interest-subsidy-program.
The Minority Business Development Agency
The Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA) is operated by the US Department of Commerce. It is dedicated to helping minority-owned businesses access the resources they need to grow and succeed. The MBDA is not just for women. But not: grant competitions are regularly changing.
Visit the MBDA’s website for information on all current opportunities. Currently, the MBDA helps its members apply for grants via Grants.gov. This involves help with how to apply for government grants. See mbda.gov/grants.
The MBDA oversees the Enterprising Women of Color (EWOC) Initiative. The initiative works to focus on the fast-expanding minority women entrepreneur population. This population is often a revenue generator for families, communities, and the nation. Minority women are the fastest growing population of entrepreneurs. While many women are making tremendous strides in the business world, they still face obstacles as entrepreneurs.
MBDA serves as an advocate for women’s economic empowerment. They support efforts to advance women’s equality and promote women economic advancement programming. The vision of EWOC is to ensure women worldwide to reach their economic potential. See mbda.gov.
Find out why so many companies use our proven methods to get business loans.
The Verizon Small Business Recovery Fund
The Verizon Small Business Recovery Fund is new. It serves as a response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The fund offers $10,000 to successful applicants. The fund is specifically for providing grants to business owners of color, women-owned businesses, and other underrepresented entrepreneurs. See lisc.org/covid-19/small-business-assistance/small-business-relief-grants/verizon-small-business-recovery-fund.
The South Asian Arts Resiliency Fund
If your business is in the arts, and you’re of South Asian descent, then check out this fund. The India Center Foundation runs the fund. It works to support US-based South Asian arts workers impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The fund will disburse grants up to $2,000, depending on financial need to US-based arts workers of South Asian descent. This includes those in the performing arts, film, visual arts, and literature. You must have heritage from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. Initial funding for the program is $20,000. But the India Center Foundation is soliciting donations to expand the grant program.
To be eligible, applicants must be of South Asian descent. Plus they must work in the arts and demonstrate loss of income due to COVID-19. Additionally, applicants must be at least 21 years old. They cannot be enrolled in a degree program. And they must be able to receive taxable income in the US. Grant funding could be put toward any artistic project. But the project must be developed, created, and presented within four to six weeks of receiving funding. See theindiacenter.us/artsfund.
Grants.gov
The federal government’s Grants.gov is a running list of more than 1,000 available government grants, including minority business grants. The website compiles grants from over two dozen government agencies, like the SBA, the USDA, and the Department of Commerce. To find a grant that’s right for your business, use the Search Grants tool on the website. You can sort through the list of grants by keyword or opportunity number.
Once you find the grant you wish to apply for, click the hyperlinked opportunity number for more detail. There, you will find more info about the specific grant as well as any associated documentation you might need. To apply for a grant through Grants.gov, you must first register. Then, you can download an application package for the grant want to get. But be ready for a lengthy process. See grants.gov.
Crowdfunding
If you would rather not rely on grants so much to start and run your business, try crowdfunding. But not everyone with a campaign on a crowdfunding site is successful. More unique products and services tend to do better. Kickstarter and Indiegogo are two of the most popular crowdfunding platforms to use. Some platforms may have higher success rates for women than others.
Angel Investors
Angel investors are informal investors. Essentially, you are selling a part of your business to them. They tend to not want a huge percentage of your business. Plus they won’t pass by more conventional businesses, like happens with crowdfunding and venture capital. Hence they can be another supplement or replacement for grants.
Business Center for New Americans
If grants aren’t an option, loans might work for you. If you’re an immigrant, try the Business Center for New Americans. They offer a pilot program for microloans up to $75,000. They work with immigrants, refugees, women, and other minority entrepreneurs. The goal is to help minority business owners who have not been able to get traditional financing. Terms are 3% interest, and your loan repayment term goes up to a year. So see accompanycapital.org.
Grants for Women Starting a Business: Takeaways
There are several options for grants for women starting a business. Apply for whichever grants you feel you are most likely to get. Other options for funding include crowdfunding, angel investors, and loans. Credit Suite can help you get the funding you need.
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Business Grants for Minority Women
Business Grants for Minority Women and So Much More
Are you a minority woman in business? Or are you starting a business? Money is always going to be an issue. What if you could get what is essentially free money? That’s what grants are – for the most part. So it would behoove you to look into business grants for minority women.
Business Grants for Minority Women and More Funding for Minority Businesswomen
How do you find the best options for you? How do you know if you need to be looking for grants or business loans for minority women? We recommend that you explore every option. This is because it will probably take a combination of funding options to fully fund your business.
There are business loans for minority women. But they’re often not for them exclusively. But there are other funding choices out there. Loans, crowdfunding, and even angel investors are all viable options. More on those later.
Business Grants for Minority Women
The government and private organizations want to GIVE you money! They’re highly competitive and rarely enough to fund a business on their own. Still, grants are a great way to supplement other business funding. And they are still worth the effort to apply. There really isn’t anything to lose except time – it’s free money. Here are a few you can start with.
Amber Grant
The Amber Grant awards one prize of $10,000 per month to a woman-owned business. One of the recipients also receives an additional $25,000 grant at the end of the year. Applicants only need to tell their story and turn it in with a $15 application fee. See ambergrantsforwomen.com/get-an-amber-grant/apply-now.
Cartier Women’s Initiative Award
This award is for women but there’s no specification that a woman be a member of a minority group. The Cartier Women’s Initiative Award has a regional category award and a science and technology award. The regional award is $100,000 for first place, and $30,000 for second and third place.
The award goes to three women from each of seven international regions. This award is a grant to 21 female business owners from around the world each year. Women business owners who are just getting started may qualify. Look over the complete application for more information. See cartierwomensinitiative.com/about-us.
The Cartier Science and Technology Pioneer Award
The Cartier Science and Technology Pioneer award is new as of 2021. With this award, three more women impact entrepreneurs at the forefront of scientific and technological innovation will get recognition. Open to women entrepreneurs from any country and sector. This award will highlight disruptive solutions built around unique, protected, or hard-to-reproduce technological or scientific advances. The laureate will get a $100,000 grant. Each of the two remaining finalists will get a $30,000 grant.
Cartier Fellowships
Cartier also offers a fellowship program. The fellowship is an educational program geared towards the 24 fellows selected each year. The fellowship program aims to equip the fellows with necessary skills to grow their business. And it helps them to build their leadership capacity. It does so by drawing upon the experience and expertise of many academics, practitioners, industry experts, and entrepreneurs.
The fellowship isn’t exactly a grant. But while it’s not a monetary award, the mentoring and networking opportunities could be worthwhile to apply for. See cartierwomensinitiative.com/fellowship-programme.
Demolish your funding problems with 27 killer ways to get cash for your business.
Business Grants for Minority Women – Black Women
National Black MBA Association Scale-Up Pitch Challenge
Also known as NBMBAA, the Scale-Up Pitch Challenge has cash prizes from $1,000 to $50,000. The association’s purpose is to help newer businesses with African American ownership. This is a pitch competition for startup businesses. See nbmbaa.org/scale-up-pitch-challenge.
The Minority Business Development Agency
The US Department of Commerce runs the Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA). It works to help minority-owned businesses get the resources they need to grow and succeed. The MBDA is not just for women. Grant competitions are regularly changing.
Visit the MBDA’s website for info on all current opportunities. Currently, the MBDA helps its members apply for grants via Grants.gov. This involves help with how to apply for government grants. See mbda.gov/grants.
The MBDA oversees the Enterprising Women of Color (EWOC) Initiative. The initiative focuses on the fast-expanding minority women entrepreneur population as a revenue generators for families, communities, and the nation. Minority women are the fastest growing population of entrepreneurs. While many women are making tremendous strides in the business world, they still face obstacles as entrepreneurs
MBDA is an advocate for women’s economic empowerment. They support efforts to advance women’s equality and promote women economic advancement programming. The vision of EWOC is to ensure women worldwide reach their economic potential. See mbda.gov.
The Verizon Small Business Recovery Fund
The Verizon Small Business Recovery Fund is new. It is in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The fund offers $10,000 to successful applicants. The fund specifically focuses on providing grants to business owners of color, women-owned businesses, and other underrepresented entrepreneurs. See lisc.org/covid-19/small-business-assistance/small-business-relief-grants/verizon-small-business-recovery-fund.
Demolish your funding problems with 27 killer ways to get cash for your business.
Business Grants for Minority Women – Native Americans
First Nations Development Institute Grants
The mission of this group is to offer grants that help Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians, and Native Americans. These grants are for any gender. So you would be competing against Native Hawaiian, Alaskan, and Native American men. They help in the application process in addition to funds.
First Nations also helps point individuals to appropriate grants offered by other organizations, including the US government. This includes help with writing grant proposals. See firstnations.org/grantmaking.
The Native American Business Development Institute (NABDI) Grant
The NABDI Grant is funded by the US Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Indian Affairs. It is not just for women. It provides funding to business owners of Native American or Alaskan Native descent. In 2019, the program provided more than $727,000 to 21 indigenous tribes. So this was to support economic feasibility studies for specific economic development projects or business startups.
For 2020, NABDI planned to award 20-25 grants. There is no minimum or maximum amount of funding you can request. But most awards range $25,000 to $75,000. They only fund projects for one year at a time, which is when they expect projects to be completed. To apply for a NABDI grant for your proposed economic development feasibility study, go to bia.gov/service/grants/tedc/apply-nabdi-grant.
Indian Affairs
There is more available via the Bureau of Indian Affairs. Businesses owned by Native Americans can get financing from the federal government through the Indian Affairs branch. These are not just for women. An individual can fill out an application for up to $500,000. But business entities and tribal enterprises may apply for more.
Potential borrowers can apply with any lending institution, they just have to use the application for Indian Affairs. Additional requirements are in place if the funds are used for construction, renovation, or refinancing. In general, you must supply a list of collateral, a credit report, and an analysis of business operations. See bia.gov/as-ia/ieed/loan-guaranty-insurance-and-interest-subsidy-program
Business Grants for Minority Women – Asian Woman
The South Asian Arts Resiliency Fund
If your business is in the arts, and you’re of South Asian descent, then check out this fund. The fund is operated by the India Center Foundation. It is designed to support US-based South Asian arts workers impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic
The fund will disburse grants up to $2,000, depending on financial need to US-based arts workers of South Asian descent. This includes those in the performing arts, film, visual arts, and literature. It’s for people with heritage from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. Initial funding for the program is $20,000. But the India Center Foundation is soliciting donations to expand the grant program.
Applicants must be of South Asian descent, work in the arts and demonstrate loss of income due to COVID-19. Additionally, applicants must be at least 21 years old. You can’t be enrolled in a degree program. Plus they must be able to receive taxable income in the US. Grant funding can go toward any artistic project you can develop, create, and present within 4-6 weeks of getting funding. See theindiacenter.us/artsfund.
Demolish your funding problems with 27 killer ways to get cash for your business.
Business Grants for Minority Women – Grants for All
Grants.gov
The federal government gives out grants to all genders and all races. Grants.gov is a running list of over 1,000 available government grants. So this includes minority business grants. The website compiles grants from more than two dozen government agencies. These are agencies like the SBA, USDA, and the US Department of Commerce. To find grants right for your business, use the Search Grants tool on the site. Sort the list of grants by keyword or opportunity number.
Once you have located the grant you wish to apply for, click the hyperlinked opportunity number for more detail. There, you will find more information about the specific grant as well as any associated documentation you might need. To apply for a grant through Grants.gov, you must first register. Then, you will be able to download an application package for the grant you want. Be ready for a lengthy process. See grants.gov.
More Types of Funding
Crowdfunding
If you’d rather not rely on grants so much to start and run your business, crowdfunding is a viable option. Still, not everyone with a campaign on a crowdfunding site is successful. This is because more unique products and services tend to do better. Kickstarter and Indiegogo are two of the most popular crowdfunding platforms to use. Some platforms may have higher success rates for women than others.
Angel Investors
Angel investors are informal investors. So essentially, you are selling a part of your business to them. They tend to not want a huge percentage of your business. And they won’t pass by more conventional businesses, like with crowdfunding and venture capital. Hence they can be another supplement or replacement for grants.
Business Center for New Americans
If grants aren’t an option, loans might work. So if you’re an immigrant, try the Business Center for New Americans. They offer a pilot program for microloans up to $75,000. They work with immigrants, refugees, women, and other minority entrepreneurs. The goal is to help minority business owners who have not been able to get traditional financing. Terms are 3% interest. Loan repayment term goes up to a year. See accompanycapital.org.
Business Grants for Minority Women: Takeaways
So there are several options for grants for minorities and for women. Minority women should apply for grants they feel they are most likely to get. Other options for funding include crowdfunding, angel investors, and loans. Credit Suite can help you get the funding you need.
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7 Types of Small Business Loans for Women with Bad Credit
If you have bad credit, it can be hard to find small business loans regardless of gender. If you are a female business owner, with bad credit, it may help to look for lenders that offer certain types of loans, rather than small business loans for women with bad credit specifically.
What’s Best As Far as Small Business Loans for Women With Bad Credit
There are certain types of funding that work well for all business owners with bad credit, including women.
Small Business Loans for Women with Bad Credit: Credit Line Hybrid
The credit line hybrid is unsecured business financing. It is available to pretty much anyone for any type of business expense. You can use it for real estate, equipment, working capital, and even startup expenses. Not only that, but there is no security required. Furthermore, there is no down payment, and you do not have to provide income documentation. It is completely no-doc financing.
Now, you do have to have strong personal credit. A credit score of 680+ is necessary. Also, there cannot be any late payments in the past 12 months, there can be no open collections or bankruptcies, and there should be less than 4 inquiries in the past 6 months on your consumer credit report. There also has to be at least 2 open credit cards with a $2,000 limit or higher with 2 years of good payment history.
Where does the part about bad credit come into play? Here it is. If you do not meet these requirements, you can take on a credit partner that does meet them. The payments will still be reported on the business’s credit report, so business credit will build whether you get the financing yourself or through a credit partner.
The best part is, amounts can range up to $150,000, and often interest rates are as low as 0% for the first 6 to 18 months.
Find out why so many companies use our proven methods to get business loans.
Small Business Loans for Women with Bad Credit: Business Revenue Lending
If your business has consistent revenue of $120,000 per year or more, you may qualify for this type of funding. Lenders verify revenue using bank statements. There can be no recent bankruptcies, but the minimum credit score to qualify is as low as 500.
A business must also be in operation for a year or more, and they must do over 5 small transactions each month to get business revenue financing.
Small Business Loans for Women with Bad Credit: Merchant Cash Advance
If your business accepts credit card payments and you have at least a 500 FICO, you could get up to $750,000 in a merchant cash advance. Credit rates are usually lower compared to traditional financing as well.
Your business must bring in $100,000 or more per year in credit card sales, and typically you can get approval equal to one months credit card financing volume.
Small Business Loans for Women with Bad Credit: Account Receivable Financing
Outstanding account receivables can also be a source of funding for your business. Get as much as 80% of receivables advanced in less than 24 hours. You get the rest of the accounts receivable amount once you collect full payment for the invoice. Closing takes 2 weeks or less.
Receivables should be with the government or another business. Getting financing with receivables from individuals is not as easy. If you also have purchase orders, then you can get financing to have those filled. You won’t need to use your cash flow to do so.
Small Business Loans for Women with Bad Credit: Equipment Financing
You can secure this type of financing by using existing equipment or new equipment you want to purchase as collateral. Funding is available up to $10 million. Terms range from 5 to 60 months, and you need a minimum 550 FICO.
The equipment must be new, and most types of equipment are acceptable, including software.
You’ll need to provide details on the equipment to be financed and, depending on the loan amount and certain risk factors, you may need to show 2 years corporate and personal tax returns.
Find out why so many companies use our proven methods to get business loans.
Small Business Loans for Women with Bad Credit: Enterprise SBA Loans
For these loans you have to have collateral worth up to at least 50% of the loan amount, but you only need a FICO of 620. There also can be no bankruptcies in the past 4 years. Only for profit companies qualify, and they must have positive trends in sales growth. Generally amounts are available of up to $12 million with terms up to 25-years.
Small Business Loans for Women with Bad Credit: Real Estate Financing
Likewise, you probably will not be financing real estate with business credit cards, even if it is 0 interest. You can get real estate financing in amounts up to $10 million with terms from 6 to 60 months and interest rates as low as 6%. You will need a 500 minimum credit score, and there are a few other requirements.
How to Decide Which Option is Best for You
If you are looking for business loans for women with bad credit, it’s fair to say you aren’t that confident in your credit score. A business credit expert can help you not only determine which of these options is best for your business, but also help you build fundability so you don’t have to worry about finding funding for your business. If your business is fundable, you can get all the business financing you will ever need.
Grants for Women Business Owners
One area where you will find funding specifically for women, and credit isn’t an issue, it grants.
Find out why so many companies use our proven methods to get business loans.
SBA Women’s Business Centers
In addition to helping with loans, the SBA Women’s Business Centers also help women entrepreneurs get access to other types of funding. Some lend money or award grants directly, while others help connect women entrepreneurs with financial institutions. Take a look at their website to find out more on how to apply for women owned business grants through this network.
Eileen Fisher Women Owned Business Grants
The clothing brand Eileen Fisher hands out $100,000 per year to 10 women-owned businesses. To qualify, a woman must have at least 51% ownership, and the business must be in operation for at least three years. Also, it must bring in less than $1 million per year in revenue and have a focus on environmental or social change.
Amber Grant
The Amber Grant awards $500 to $1,000 per month to a woman-owned business. One of the recipients also receives an additional $10,000 grant at the end of the year. Applicants only need to tell their story and turn it in with a $15 application fee.
#GIRLBOSS Foundation Grant
Specifically for woman-owned businesses in fashion, music, and art, the #GIRLBOSS small business grant awards $15,000. They also offer exposure via the Girlboss website and social media platforms. Judges rate those applying on creativity, business savvy, planning, innovation in the field, need, and where they plan to work.
Cartier Women’s Initiative Award
The Cartier Women’s Initiative Award is $100,000 for first place and $30,000 for second place. They award the grant to 18 female business owners from around the world each year. Women business owners who are just getting started may qualify.
Business Loans For Women With Bad Credit Do Exist
They really do. They just aren’t necessarily for women exclusively. Still, if you find something that will work with bad credit, you’ve found gold. It’s even better if it can be used to build business credit at the same time.
It does no good to find funding for bad credit once. You need to work on the bad credit so you can eventually get the best terms and rates. This is where a business credit expert can be exceptionally helpful.
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Women and Finances: Secrets from the Battleground
The relationship between women and finances has always been shaky at best. At most, it is definitely misunderstood. To some, women will never live up to men in this area. However, history is full of real life examples of the fact that this is, indeed, not true.
Since ancient times women have contributed to the incomes of their homes. Whether by selling goods, investing, or offering a service. These were the first women-owned businesses.
Women today run multi-million dollar companies and support other women in doing the same.
Learn About Women and Finances from the 2020 Cartier Women’s Initiative Winner
According to Fundera, the United States alone has 12.3 million businesses owned by women. These businesses generate $1.8 trillion a year. In fact, 40% of businesses in the US have female owners. That’s just the United States. Worldwide the numbers are even bigger, and growing daily. What’s changing? What’s causing the increase, and where are they getting the money to open these businesses?
There are many answers, but the two main ones relate to education and financial support. Women are more educated now than they have ever been. Not only that, but they are training each other to do better. In fact, many grant opportunities have popped up in recent years. Most of them not only help women finance their businesses, but they also offer training and support along the way.
Credit Line Hybrid Financing: Get up to $150,000 in financing so your business can thrive.
No one does this better than the Cartier Women’s Initiative. Since its creation in 2006, the program has helped more than 240 businesses owned by women entrepreneurs. These ladies come from 56 different countries and their businesses have created more than 7,000 jobs. During this time, the CWI has granted more than $3 million in funding. This makes it one of the largest and most generous female-focused entrepreneurial competitions in the world.
It is our delight to get the opportunity to interview one of this year’s winners, Anna-Sophie Hartvigsen from Denmark, about women and finances. Her business, Female Invest, is a women and finances double whammy. Not only does it have female owners, but it’s main purpose is to help women with investing. Here’s what she has to say.
Women and Finances: Inspiration
Credit Suite: Where did your inspiration come from for both starting your own business and the business you chose?
Anna-Sophie: Growing up, I didn’t know any entrepreneurs, so I never thought about becoming one myself. I also didn’t know any women who actively invested, but I always had a fascination with money, so I taught myself to invest at the age of 19. I quickly fell in love with it, but as none of my friends shared my passion, it became a lonely love affair.
Puzzled by this lack of female investors, I started researching the topic. I learned that women are falling financially behind. They earn less, save less and fail to invest their money. Among the key drivers of this problem is widespread financial illiteracy and a lack of targeted offers and role models.
I didn’t know how to solve this problem, until I started university and met my Co-Founder Emma Bitz. She shared my passion for investing and had been working as a certified stockbroker since the age of 20. We immediately bonded, and the idea to start Female Invest arose in our first-ever conversation.
When we started Female Invest, we initially thought it would be a hobby project, uniting a smaller group of women with an interest in investing. However, we quickly realized that the demand was much larger than anyone could have anticipated. We then decided to take the leap, found a company and become full-time entrepreneurs. The rest is history. Today, Female Invest is Northern Europe’s leading financial educator targeting women. We have helped more than 25,000 women across 33 countries get started investing.
Women and Finances: Influences
Credit Suite: Who were the female influences in your life and how did they help you in your business endeavors?
Anna-Sophie: While I may not know many female entrepreneurs or investors, I know many women who are fierce and inspirational in different ways. Emma, Camilla and I often talk about how we find inspiration in different people at different points in time, depending on the challenges we are facing. We also use each other as role models within different areas, and I highly value that.
https://mail.google.com/mail/u/1/#all/FMfcgxwHNqCSLBRGqrPxDdZTsgkPffMV?projector=1
Women and Finances: Balance
Credit Suite: What are your tips for work life balance?
Anna- Sophie: My best tip is to find a job you love, so you don’t live your life waiting for the weekend. The term “work-life” balance insinuates that work should be a separate entity. But in my experience, being truly passionate about your work makes it possible to build a harmonic life where work is not something to escape. In our team, we are living for the mission to financially empower women and that passion doesn’t stop when the workday does.
Women and Finances: Challenges
Credit Suite: What are the specific challenges women face when trying to get funding versus men?
Anna- Sophie: Today, female founders receive less than 2% of venture capital funding. That is despite performing better over time following funding. Research shows this might be because female founders are often held to different standards. This is seen as female founders are more likely to be asked about risks and to be judged on current achievements. Male founders are more likely to be asked about and judged upon their potential. At the same time, the venture capital world is heavily dominated by middle aged men, who may struggle to recognize the potential in products outside their own target group.
Credit Suite: There are aspects of our culture, certainly in America, where negotiating is the norm and not the exception. In the US, that’s particularly true for buying a house or a car, new or used, and for starting a new job or asking for a raise. At the same time, a lot of women aren’t taught to question prices. What sort of tips would you give to women who want to learn how to effectively negotiate?
Anna- Sophie: Women face a unique set of challenges when negotiating. Firstly, women are not taught to question prices/wages in the same way as men. Secondly, research shows that women are perceived differently when they do. This is a societal problem that women cannot solve alone. However, when navigating this unfortunate reality, my best advice is to base negotiations on facts rather than feelings.
Credit Line Hybrid Financing: Get up to $150,000 in financing so your business can thrive.
Women and Finances: Lessons to Future Generations
Credit Suite: What sorts of financial lessons should we be imparting to our daughters and granddaughters? How do we help them become financially literate?
Anna- Sophie: We need to break the stereotypes around women and money and teach our girls that they are fully capable of handling their money. In order to do this, we need to change the way we communicate about money to girls.
Following extensive linguistic research, money and personal finance is communicated very differently to men and women. Communication aimed at women tend to define them as “spenders” who need to limit their outgoings in order to save.
By contrast, communication targeting men tends to portray them as skillful investors, highlighting the financial landscape as packed with opportunity rather than risk. Therefore, the first step to increase financial literacy among women is to give them confidence and make them feel capable. Because they are. In fact, female investors achieve higher average returns than male investors.
Women and Finances: More About Female Invest
Female Invest is run by co-founders Emma Bitz, Anna-Sophie Hartvigsen , and Camilla Falkenbert. They share the work equally and have a team of employees. More than 25,000 women have physically attended their educational events. In order to scale faster, they have now transitioned into a subscription platform with members in 33 countries.
Women and Finances: Funding
Anna-Sophie and the team at Female Invest got a great jump on funding and support with the Cartier Women’s Initiative. However, grants of any sort are rarely enough for completely funding a business. Often, there is a need to combine with financing and even other grants, crowdfunding, or investors to fully get the job done. Let’s explore some of these options.
Other Grants for Women Business Owners
It’s no secret that grant programs are highly competitive. Still, they are usually worth the effort to apply. You really do not have anything to lose except time, and maybe an application fee. If you win, it’s free money. Still, as I said above, grants are rarely enough to fully fund a business. They are a fabulous option to supplement other funding types however. Here are a few more to check out.
SBA Women’s Business Centers
The SBA Women’s Business Centers not only help with loans. They also help women entrepreneurs access other business funding options. Some lend money or award grants directly. Others help connect women entrepreneurs with lenders. Their website offers many resources and opportunities to find out more.
Eileen Fisher Women Owned Business Grants
Eileen Fisher hands out $100,000 per year to 10 businesses owned by women. A woman must have at least 51% ownership. Also, the business must be in operation for at least three years. Lastly, it must bring in less than $1 million per year in revenue and have a focus on environmental or social change.
Amber Grant
The Amber Grant awards $500 to $1,000 per month to a business owned by a female. One of the recipients also receives an additional $10,000 grant at the end of the year. Applicants only need to tell their story and turn it in with a $15 application fee.
Crowdfunding
One way to reduce the amount of loans you need to start and run your business is crowdfunding. It gives today’s business owners a new way to build a successful business. Of course, not everyone with a campaign on a crowdfunding site is successful. Funding a business with crowdfunding doesn’t happen without a lot of hard work and a fair amount of luck. Unfortunately, it often doesn’t happen at all. To succeed at crowdfunding, you have to research what works, what doesn’t, and then cross your fingers. Truthfully, it may work, and it may not.
If you decide to go for it, make sure you have incentives ready. This can be what makes or breaks a campaign.
Kickstarter and Indiegogo are two of the most popular crowdfunding platforms to use. Some work better for specific types of businesses than others. In addition, some may have higher success rates for women than others. Research is key.
The Small Business Administration
Female business owners in the United States can benefit from the help of the Small Business Administration. Though not specifically for women alone, the SBA offers government backed loan programs.
7(a) Loans
This program offers term loans up to $5 million. You can use them for expansion, purchasing equipment, working capital and more. Financial institutions in partnership with the SBA process these loans and give out the funds.
504 Loans
These loans are also available up to $5 million. They can buy machinery, facilities, or land. Generally, borrowers use them for expansion. Private sector lenders or nonprofits process and disburse the funds, and they work especially well for commercial real estate purchases.
Credit Line Hybrid Financing: Get up to $150,000 in financing so your business can thrive.
Microloans
Microloans are available in amounts up to $50,000. They work well for startup, equipment purchases, inventory purchases, or for working capital. Community based nonprofits handle microloan programs as intermediaries. Unlike other SBA programs, financing comes directly from the Small Business Administration.
Angel Investors
These are informal investors. They generally invest in the start of a company, typically in exchange for equity.
The best way to find these kinds of investors is to ask. Try an angel investors website or an angel investors network. Also check out Gust, which used to be Angel Soft. They keep a database of investors, companies, and programs.
To land an angel investor, you are going to need an awesome pitch deck. Do not just jump into a project like that. Take the time to research what a pitch project involves. It has to pop.
Women and Finances: You Can Survive the Battleground
Anna-Sophie is a warrior. She saw a need, seized and opportunity, and made it happen. She didn’t do it alone however. It took the help of her partners. It also took here willingness to seek out and go after the funding necessary to run and grow her business. You can be just as successful. Find the help and support you need, find the business funding necessary, and make your dreams come true.
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