The Bay Area boasts many great resources to help small business who are looking to start or grow. Main Street Launch is a proud member of the Bay Area Entrepreneurship Alliance, convened by the Alliance for Community Development. The Alliance for Community Development is a nonprofit dedicated to increasing access to capital for underrepresented…
CDFI Coalition is the lead organization in the United States promoting the work of community development financial institutions (CDFIs). The Coalition represents CDFIs working throughout the country and coordinates industry-wide initiatives to increase the availability of financial services to low-income communities. CDFI Coalition created a great chart to describe the different CDFIs, helping potential borrowers…
This post was written by Steve Nicastro and originally appeared on Nerdwallet on July 5, 2017. It is reposted here with permission. While some businesses may already have a strategy for hiring extra staff during the busy times, others are still figuring out their seasonal hiring needs and how to go about meeting those needs.…
This post was written by Steve Nicastro and originally appeared on Nerdwallet on August 22, 2017. It is reposted here with permission. Holiday weekends are a prime opportunity for small businesses, especially those in the restaurant, retail and hospitality industries, to boost sales. Labor Day weekend, in particular, spurred more air travel in 2016 than…
This post was written by Katie Taylor, Vice President – Marketing & Executive Projects at Main Street Launch. As your business grows, it becomes impossible to do it all yourself. Hiring can be daunting, but having a simple plan and process can make it easier. In this post we share a few of our…
Our partnerships are an important part of how we help entrepreneurs get access to the right resources at the right time. We were proud to support and sponsor the 2018 Veteran Entrepreneurship Freedom Summit at Sierra College this year. Click here to learn more about the event. Stephanie Brown, founder of the Rosie Network,…
This article was written by Steve Nicastro and originally appeared on NerdWallet on October 24, 2017. It is reshared here with permission. Picture this: You open up a bistro and enjoy some early success. Everyone wants to try the new hotspot. A few months later, two similar restaurants open nearby, and they take a deep…
The Bay Area is full of great resources for your business. Main Street Launch is proud to partner with Uptima Business Bootcamp. Our Entrepreneurs in Residence work through Uptima’s program, and many of our loan clients have completed the program in preparation for their loans. Uptima Business Bootcamp is dedicated to giving entrepreneurs…
This post was originally published on July 5, 2017. Our offices were closed yesterday, in celebration of Independence Day, July 4. We want to take a brief moment to reflect about the importance of this day. July 4th has been a federal holiday since 1941, but the celebration dates back to the American…
Chuck Bragdon, retired United States Navy Chief, founded Water Saver Solutions (WSS) in 2008. What started out as a home improvement project in Southern California to help people save money and conserve water is now so much more. Water Saver Solutions is a federally-certified Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business (SDVOSB). Chuck discovered Veteran…
