Main Street News: Shop Oakland Now, Small Business Week, and more!

In this newsletter:

• Letter from Our CEO
• Introducing Shop Oakland Now
• Credit Tip
• Small Business Week(s) are coming!
• Thank You to our Funders
• Advising Corner: Succession Planning for my Family Business
• Meet our Clients: Freedom Makers
• Resource for your Business: Oakland Grown
• Get to Know Debra Peace
• Upcoming Events for Your Small Business
• Get Connected to Resources
• Welcome Our Newest Clients
• Welcome Our Newest Team Members

Introducing Shop Oakland Now

Small Business Weeks are Coming!

Thank You to our Funders

Main Street is excited to have received its second Community Economic Development (CED) program grant from HHS’s Office of Community Services. This $780,800 grant is being used to fund low interest, fixed rate loans to restaurants in Downtown Oakland that are creating full time jobs.

Advising Corner: What Happens to My Family Business When I Am Done?

Robert Lattimore is Main Street Launch’s Senior Vice President. He offers this tip to help your small business development.

The majority of family members (88%) assume that the business will stay in the family when the owners retire, but succession statistics undermine this belief.

• Only 30% of family-owned businesses survive into the second generation.
• Only 12% are still viable into the third generation.
• Only 3% continue to operate into the fourth generation and beyond.

Meet Our Clients: Freedom Makers

Freedom Makers provdies virtual assistant services to small business owners, with the services performed by military spouses. Freedom Makers is providing exceptional service to two audiences: business owners who need help managing their bookkeeping, marketing, and client communications (and more!) and military spouses who lack work opportunities that are as mobile as they are.

Resource for your business: Oakland Grown

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 and sustain a more just and vibrant Oakland economy.

• Promotes Oakland Grown members
• Provides workshops and events to support your small business
• Provides business advising and access to capital for your business
• Advocates for small businesses at a policy level
• And more!

Get to Know Debra Peace

Debra Peace, Main Street Launch’s Office Manager, has ten years in nonprofits in a variety of roles including human resources, accounting, and grant management. Click here to learn more about Debra.

“We help neighborhoods keep their culture and transform themselves. Small businesses old and new sustain communities and our services help them do that. To be able to support businesses that have faced challenges but keep going is inspiring to me.”

Upcoming Events & Opportunities

Click here to view more upcoming events to support your business this spring.

We welcome our partners and community to share upcoming events.
We post them on social media and on our website.
Send any upcoming events to katie@mainstreetlaunch.org.

Get Connected to Resources for your Business

The Alameda County SBDC provides free, one-on-one consulting and trainings to more than 2,000 small businesses in the county each year. Areas covered include raising loan and investment capital, marketing, social media, technology, operations, accounting and industries such as food, restaurant and retail. Click here to sign up at no cost to you.

BusinessAdvising.org connects free expert advisors and mentors to entrepreneurs for tailored, hands-on assistance to grow businesses and create new quality jobs in their communities. Click here to sign up at no cost to you.

Townsquared is a social network that connects neighborhood small businesses to each other. This platform fosters collaboration among businesses and offers a place to share resources and information. Click here to join at no cost to you.

Localwise connects local people to jobs at local businesses. As small businesses are ready to make their first hire or grow their team, Localwise offers a local job community focused on building talent in small businesses. Click here to post a job.

Welcome to our Newest Clients

For more information about shopping with our clients, please check out our map.

Welcome Our Newest Team Members

Main Street Launch is thrilled to welcome Diane Lewis, Joshua Marquez, and Yaowen Shi back to our team. Diane is focused on outreach and business development support in Oakland’s District 7. Joshua rejoins Veteran Launch as Program Manager, supporting our statewide initiatives working with military family-owned businesses. Yaowen is focused on outreach and business development support in San Francisco’s Chinatown. Click here to learn more about our team.