Finding startup and growth capital, managing economic fluctuations, and learning the ropes of business management can be difficult even for seasoned entrepreneurs. SCORE is just one resource to help women entrepreneurs break through these barriers. Here’s a list of other resources you can leverage to start and grow your business.
MANAGEMENT ADVICE & SUPPORT
Black Women Enterprises
(www.blackwomenenterprises.org) offers free services and programs designed to increase a small business owner’s bottom line. Services and programs include BWE business plan workshops, MBE/WBE certification technical assistance, an entrepreneurial workshop series, and one-on-one business counseling.
Goldman Sachs 10,000 Women
(www.goldmansachs.com/citizenship/10000
women) is a five-year, $100 million global initiative to help grow local economies by providing 10,000 underserved women entrepreneurs with a business and management education, access to mentors, and links to capital.
Women’s Business Centers
(www.sba.gov/content/women’s-business-centers- directory-0), established through the SBA’s Office of Women’s Business Ownership, constitute a network of more than 100 educational centers designed to assist women in starting and growing small businesses. Through the management and technical assistance provided by the WBCs, entrepreneurs (especially women who are economically or socially disadvantaged) are offered comprehensive training and counseling on a variety of topics.
Women Veteran Entrepreneur Corps
(www.countmein.org/event/wvec/home), developed by Count Me In for Women’s Economic Independence and Capital One, is a three-year business growth initiative targeting established women small business owners who are veterans or spouses/domestic partners of veterans. Count Me In is a not-for-profit provider of business education and resources for women interested in growing their micro-businesses into million-dollar enterprises.
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