At Main Street Launch our partnerships are a critically important way we support small businesses to get the resources they need to start and grow. We’re thrilled to share our growing relationship with Hack the Hood, a tech nonprofit that trains youth to build websites. The youth participants are paired with small business owners who…
Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) may have the flexibility to create new loan products to better serve their communities. Concessionary loan capital is one such type of new loan product. Concessionary loans are loans that offer more generous terms than market rate loans. These terms may be lower interest rates, a longer pay-back period,…
This post was written by Steve Nicastro and originally appeared on NerdWallet on November 13, 2017. It is shared here with permission. Small Business Saturday has become a boon for local shops: Last year, 112 million consumers spent $15.4 million at such businesses, according to American Express, the company behind the shopping holiday founded in…
Oakland Grown is a nonprofit membership organization that services Oakland’s independent businesses, artists, and makers. They promote buying, investing, and giving locally to build a sustain a more just and vibrant Oakland economy. Oakland Grown’s members receive significant benefits (click here for their membership kit): Promote Oakland Grown members Provide workshops and events to…
This post was originally written on May 3, 2017. May is the month where we celebrate the generations of Asian and Pacific Islanders who have enriched the U.S. and who are critically important to the our country’s future success. Asian American and Native Hawaiian & Pacific Islanders have a large business ownership footprint in…
Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) support local economies by investing in under-invested areas. Main Street Launch is proud to be a CDFI serving low-to-moderate income communities in Oakland and San Francisco. The CDFI Fund identifies counties across the country that experience “persistent poverty” (defined as any county that has had 20% or more of…
Oakland Grown’s 2018 Good Money Guide is available! This year, the guide is digital as well as print, enabling you to evaluate funding options wherever you are. The Good Money Guide reviews types of funding available for your small business, the benefits and drawbacks of each type, and sources to contact to get access…
This post is part of our series about Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs). Check out our other posts What are CDFIs? and Finding your local CDFI. Community Development Financial Institutions do work that support a variety of important impacts in our communities. Some CDFIs focus on investing in affordable housing, others on investing in community…
This article was written by Jackie Zimmermann and originally appeared on Nerdwallet on January 8, 2018. It is shared here with permission. Make it count: NerdWallet is here to help you achieve your goals for the new year. Whether it’s saving for an epic vacation, ditching debt, or launching that side hustle, we’ve got the…
San Francisco has many resources to support small businesses who want to start and grow. One such organization is SFMade. SFMade is a great organization to know, whether you’re a maker or a consumer. For businesses and aspiring makers, SFMade can help you find contractors, space, and provides educational resources to start your…
