Raise a Pint, Brew a Dream

Posted on May 3, 2013 by lyothers

Gretchen Ertl for The New York Times

Carlene O’Garro grew up in an inner city Boston neighborhood. After college, Carlene opted for an office job while she found her true path, but remained frustrated that she wasn’t building anything for herself that would ultimately “be hers.” Listening to her inner voice and passion for baking, she enrolled in the newly created Pastry Chef program at the Cambridge School of Culinary Education.

After graduating, Carlene combined her artistic ability with her professional French pastry techniques to create some of the most decadent desserts around. She started her business, Delectable Desires, by delivering freshly baked pastries to cafés, hospitality inns and hotels in the mornings, also baking tasty cakes and pies for local grocery stores throughout Boston. In starting her business, Carlene used high interest credit cards to finance her endeavor. Although she knew it was a dangerous, short-term solution, she did not know where else to get the financing she needed for her business.

It was at this time that Carlene heard about a brand new program starting up – the Samuel Adams Brewing the American Dream program. Carlene became the first participant after receiving a loan from Accion East and Online. Since the Brewing the American Dream program began in 2008, more than 230 loans totaling over $2 million have been made to small businesses across the country.

The Boston Beer Company, our partner in the Brewing the American Dream program, has just announced its latest promotion – Raise a Pint, Brew a Dream. The promotion, being offered from April 15 to May 31, 2013, will support small businesses by raising funds for the Brewing the American Dream program. For every Samuel Adams Boston Lager draft purchased from a participating location, The Boston Beer Company will contribute $.05 to our Samuel Adams Brewing the American Dream loan fund.

There are over 10,000 participating bars and restaurants across the United States. Grab a Boston Lager and raise your glass to support business owners like Carlene!

Accion Loves Boston – Thank you

Posted on April 24, 2013 by Aeriel Emig

Boston has received an overwhelming amount of support this past week. On behalf of the staff here in Boston, we want to say thank you to all Accion chapters across the globe.

Philadelphia loves Boston

Colombia loves Boston

China loves Boston

San Antonio, TX loves Boston

Alejandra, NYC, loves Boston

Elenor, NYC, loves Boston

Miami loves Boston

DC loves Boston

San Francisco loves Boston

Erica, NYC, loves Boston

Lauren, NYC, loves Boston

Ashley, NYC, loves Boston

Samir, NYC, loves Boston

Kevin and Marco, NYC, love Boston

Maria and Debra, NYC, love Boston

William, NYC, loves Boston

Shaolee and Laura, NYC, love Boston

Katherine, NYC, loves Boston

Jane, NYC, loves Boston

Chicago loves Boston

Libby, Preyeel and Liz, NYC, love Boston

Brazil loves Boston

Jessie and David Announced Finalists of Social Innovation Forum

Posted on April 22, 2013 by Aeriel Emig

Accion clients Jessie Banhazl, founder of Green City Growers, and David Warner, owner of City Feed and Supply, were nominated as two of the four Impact Entrepreneur finalists for Root Cause’s 2013 Social Innovation Forum Showcase. Jessie and David have been working closely with their consulting coaches to come up with a clearly defined mission on how their business will help solve social problems in the Greater Boston Area. Months later, it is now time to present their ideas.

Jessie, David and the other two finalists will pitch their business models to a panel of social issue experts and funders at the forum, held this Wednesday, April 24 in Boston.

Jessie Banhazl began Green City Growers, an organization that takes an urban spin on farming, in 2008. Realizing the need for local and affordable food options, Jessie put aside her career in reality television production to pursue her passion for the local food market and sustainable living. Jessie’s business designs, installs and maintains personal vegetable gardens; her clientele includes restaurants, hotels, schools, and medical facilities throughout the Greater Boston Area.

David Warner is the owner of City Feed and Supply, a neighborhood grocery and deli that stocks their shelves with over 200 local products and produce from over 50 local farms. He now has two locations in Jamaica Plains, Boston and is taking on catering orders and managing an online store.

Good luck to Jessie and David!

Congrats to the Graduates of the 10,000 Small Businesses Program

Posted on April 5, 2013 by lyothers

Sandra (center) was one of six Accion East and Online clients who graduated from the Goldman Sach’s 10,000 Small Businesses Program.

“Conviction. Optimism. Passion for results. Innovation:

Words that describe the entrepreneurial spirit—and the 18 women who graduated Monday night in New York from the 10,000 Small Businesses program, sponsored by Goldman Sachs and the Tory Burch Foundation.

One of the graduates of the Goldman Sachs’ 10,000 Small Businesses Program was fashion designer and Accion client Sandra Nieto. Sandra moved to the United States from Colombia with the dream of running her own business. At first, Sandra took on whatever jobs she could find: babysitter, maid, and beauty salon assistant. In the back of her mind, she knew what she really wanted to do was design clothing.

Sandra began devoting all her free time to designing, cutting, and sewing her clothes. With no advice and no money to hire help, she traveled with her handmade work to trade shows, where she had some success. Her challenge was raising enough capital to take her design business to the next level.

Sandra received a microloan from Accion to rent space and host two fashion shows. With her new earnings, she continued to gradually build and expand her business. Sandra, like many other business owners, had the drive and desire, but lacked the capital and formal business education—barriers to growth and success- to grow.”

Read the entire post from Gina Harman, CEO of the Accion U.S. Network, on the Huffington Post.

Congratulations to each of the Accion East and Online clients who graduated from the Goldman Sach’s 10,000 Small Businesses Program:

Announcing our 2013 Accion Client Ambassadors!

Posted on April 2, 2013 by Katherine Lynch

Our 2013 Accion Client Ambassadors!

Last year, we launched Accion’s Client Ambassador Program as a way to provide exciting, growth-oriented opportunities to Accion clients. Throughout 2012, we provided these clients with priority access to special events and media and business development opportunities. On Thursday, we gathered the members of our first Accion Client Ambassador Program and we were thrilled to find out how these opportunities helped their businesses grow.

Daniel (left) poses with Accion East and Online CEO Paul Quintero and Jenny.

Daniel, co-founder of Brewla Bars found the program to be very helpful to his business. “Last year, we were sitting around in this same room asking other entrepreneurs how to deal with a catastrophe. One year later, Brewla Bars can be found in over 40 stores throughout the New York Metro Area, including multiple Whole Foods locations,” said Daniel.

During the same breakfast we announced our 2013 Accion Client Ambassadors. After seeing the positive impact from the 2012 Accion Client Ambassador Program, we are looking forward to watching the next generation grow.

Our 2013 Accion Client Ambassadors are:

Beatrice, owner of Brand Excitement. Brand Excitement helps solo professionals get to the next level by building an incomparable identity and marketing plan. Be sure to check out Beatrice’s blog where she provides valuable tips and insights.
Scott, owner of The Dream Dept. The Dream Dept. is a creative agency specializing in the disciplines of visual communication and content development. Take a look at Scott’s reel – it’s sure to inspire you!
Claudio, owner of Gonzales Farm. Gonzales Farm is located in upstate New York and sells produce in many of the Greenmarkets across New York City including: Parkchester, Atlas Park, Sunnyside, and Columbia. You can support Claudio’s farm by joining the New Song CSA.
Niorca, owner of Project N-400 Multiservice. Project N-400, located in Washington Heights, provides citizenship classes, tax help, and notary services to the Spanish-speaking community.
Pat, owner of Styles by Pat. Pat Sumpter Davis is a Celebrity Hairstylist, Image Consultant, Educator, and Philanthropist with more than twenty years in the beauty industry. She works one-on-one with clients to provide hairstyling and total image consulting throughout the New York City area. Check out Pat’s blog to see which celebrities she’s styled.
Melissa introduces her business.

Melissa, owner of Kynd ‘O’ Mello. Melissa, also known as Mello, founded Kynd ‘O’ Mello, a custom designed cake shop in December 2007. Take a look at the gallery of beautiful cakes Mello has created. (She’s even created one for Accion!)
Jenny, owner of Relish Taiwan. Relish Taiwan is a food distribution service specializing in Taiwanese cuisine and delivering products daily to businesses in the Queens community. Jenny is a recipient of our Sandy Recovery Business Loan and Grant Program. With this loan, she was able to replace her broken window and damaged equipment to recover from the storm.
Tanisha (left) talks with Beatrice (right)

Tanisha, owner of Tuff Chicks Painting. Tuff Chicks Painting provides affordable home painting solutions, and provides pictures to homeowners so they can stay updated on the progress while away for the day. Check out photos of their work on Tuff Chicks Painting’s blog.
Liz and Holly, founders of Bag the Habit. Liz and Holly wanted to change the way people shop, by using premium eco-textiles and thoughtful design details to create reusable solutions that people will want to use every day. Take a look at their custom bag designs on their website.
Josh, co-founder of Nextdoor Organics. Nextdoor Organics is an innovative Brooklyn-based CSA (community supported agriculture) program where they source the best locally grown vegetables, herbs, and flowers, and use only organic practices. Join the CSA.
Masoud, founder of Heart of Tea. Heart of Tea offers real-brewed iced tea from fresh-picked leaves. Masoud is continuing on his family’s work in the tea industry, carrying on a tradition that began with his great-grandfather. Check out Heart of Tea’s blog – it’s a fun take on life in New York City!
Pedro, founder of Psofntech. Pedro is a System Analyst/Computer Technician that has been working with computers for more than a decade and a half. Check out the services he offers.

Thanks to Capital One 360 Cafe who hosted our Accion Client Ambassador Networking Breakfast.

Our networking breakfast could not have been made possible without the support of our partners at Capital One 360 Café. (Not to mention their generosity in sharing their beautiful space). View more pictures from the event. If you have any interest in getting involved with the program, please contact Accion Communications Manager, Alejandra Boggiano.

Celebrating Being a Woman with Pat—Happy Women’s History Month

Posted on March 15, 2013 by Natalie Suero

Working as a Loan Operations Associate at Accion, I often have the opportunity to work with many women entrepreneurs who inspire me. One of these women is Pat, a celebrity hairstylist and image consultant.

Natalie (left) presents Pat (right) with an Accion loan.

Pat moved to New York in 2007 to follow her dream of being a celebrity beauty consultant. She recently approached Accion looking for a small business loan to buy materials for her hairstyling business, Styles by Pat. Pat came down to the office and brought me her documents and I briefly explained the process of how we work and how soon she could receive a response from us on her final loan decision. As I looked through her documents and spoke to her about her goals and what she was looking for, I could see the excitement she had that someone was looking at her work. Pat left that day hoping I would give her some good news.

I started going through Pat’s application, looking at pictures demonstrating her talent, and reading about all of the wonderful people she had worked with. Clearly her talent and ambition is the reason she has ended up serving such high end clientele. I thought to myself, “wow, this woman really is something.”

A few days later, I called Pat in to the office to tell her that we were able to provide her with a loan. As I handed her the check, I mentioned the Tory Burch Foundation Microloan and the potential career development opportunities available by joining the program.

Pat gets her “Golden Opportunity” meeting Tory Burch at the Tory Burch Foundation Mentoring Event

That is when she amazed me the most. Pat said, “Natalie, to me this is worth more than the money, the opportunity to get my idea out there and build relationships with these great organizations.” Pat thanked me over and over again for Accion’s help and for providing her with this “Golden Opportunity.”

Since that moment, Pat has continued to inspire me. She has created Vanity Mane Showroom, a line of luxury hair extensions, wigs and accessories for women with hair loss due to cancer and other illnesses. She’s launched a Kickstarter project to raise money for her new line.

Pat’s Vanity Mane project will only be funded if at least $5,000 is pledged by Sunday March 17. Visit Pat’s fundraising site and help raise money for her philanthropic project.

In True NYC Spirit, DeRobertis’ Stands Strong Despite Sandy

Posted on March 11, 2013 by Will Lanier

Growing up in NYC, I spent a lot of time in the East Village. I went there to eat Indian food, see the Rocky Horror Picture Show, and pass the time with my friends. It was there that I bought my first guitar and had a run-in with the Hell’s Angels—they told me to get off their bench. I sought excuses to spend as much time as possible in the East Village; it felt more like “New York” than Tribeca, my quiet, family-oriented neighborhood. Part of that feeling comes from the well-preserved history of the neighborhood. Even after a thorough gentrification, the East Village retains its older architecture and style.

And then there are the Pasticcerias.

— John, owner of DeRobertis Pasticceria and Caffe in the East Village

DeRobertis’ Italian bakery in particular is a true East Village institution. Paolo DeRobertis opened the DeRobertis Pasticceria and Caffe in 1904, and it has been in the family—and the same location—ever since. When the café first opened there was no refrigeration, and milk and other perishable items were stored on ice. John and his siblings grew up in the apartment above the café, but spent their days ringing up orders and brewing coffee. A steam pipe ran through the building, and when the café got busy, John’s parents banged on the pipe, signaling that their help was needed downstairs.

Today, John DeRobertis Jr., with help from his sister and daughter, runs the café as both his father and grandfather did before him.

When Hurricane Sandy struck New York, DeRobertis lost power for four days and lost thousands of dollars in inventory right before the holidays, their busiest time of year. His business hurting and with only nominal help from New York power company ConEd, John knew he had to look elsewhere for help.

After speaking with Gina, a representative at the NYC Business Solutions Center, John was referred to Accion, where he was put in touch with Loan Operations Associate Valerie. Valerie worked with John one-on-one to collect all of the necessary documents. Shortly after completing the paperwork, Valerie and I delivered John a check for a $10,000 loan, and a $1,500 grant to help DeRobertis Pasticceria and Caffe stay on its feet.

I’m now in my late twenties and I finally live in the East Village. And I am grateful for the noise, the smells, and the characters here, and I am grateful for the Hell’s Angels, even if they still won’t let me sit on their bench. I am grateful for the Pasticceria, staying true to itself all these years, even after this devastating storm.

Remember: There are many other business owners, like John, who suffered a hit from Hurricane Sandy. Do your part to help with recovery efforts by spreading the word about our Sandy Recovery Business Loan and Grant Program. The program ends on March 31, and applications are due by March 15.

Rebuilding Coney Island After Sandy

Posted on February 27, 2013 by Isaac Roldan

Gordon, owner of Eldorado Auto Skooter in Coney Island

When I think of Coney Island, I immediately picture the Cyclone, the Wonder Wheel and the Boardwalk. However, there are so many special business owners that add to the unique culture of this area.

Every weekend night in summer, the Coney Island Amusement Park comes to a close around 11pm. The bright lights turn off, the music fades and laughter from the rides dies down. Yet, as you walk towards Nathan’s to grab a hot dog, you can still hear loud music and people shouting with excitement. You hear a DJ yell “Are you ready to go home?” The crowd roars “NOOOOO,” so you decide to walk towards the large crowd dancing outside to the music.

The commotion is coming from Eldorado Auto Skooter, an indoor, air-conditioned bumper car ride. For the last 30 years, Eldorado has been marked by bright disco lights and a vibe that can only be found in Coney Island.

Last week I went out to visit Gordon, the owner of Eldorado. Upon arriving in Coney Island, there were no bright lights, no loud music, no Nathan’s. Rather, FEMA was stationed everywhere, homes were recuperating and the post office and major banks were operating out of trailers.

When I entered Eldorado, Gordon showed me the line where five feet of water had entered into his business.

You can see how high the water was by the line in the window.

“I tried to save as much as I could in my truck, but within three minutes I had water rise from my ankle to my knee”, explained Gordon. He was barely able to get his truck out of the area. One month after Sandy had left the area, Gordon still was unsure whether or not he would ever be able to reopen Eldorado.

Through our strategic partnership with the SBA, Gordon learned about Accion’s Sandy Recovery Business Loan and Grant Program. Gordon received a $20,000 loan and $3,000 grant to help him rebuild Eldorado and open in time for Easter. As a native Brooklynite, I am proud to say that our team pulled together and made every effort possible to meet the challenges of this application and help such an important part of our community. Thanks to the help of Accion’s Sandy program, Eldorado will continue to be one of Coney Island’s “greatest hot spots.”

Many businesses like Eldorado still need your help. Please spread the word about our Sandy Recovery Business Loan and Grant Program. The program is ending on March 31^st.

Isaac Roldan is the Business Development Manager and a loan consultant for Accion East and Online.

Vote to create jobs across the country.

Posted on February 25, 2013 by Elizabeth Haffa

As a student about to graduate and enter “the real world” in a couple months, the question I most dread hearing is, “So what are you going to do after graduation?” I’m sure you can relate, especially considering the tough economy and job market we are about to enter.

I have been working as an intern at Accion East and Online over the past month. Accion is a nonprofit microlender that is driving job creation all across the United States, making this question that students all across the country are asking themselves a little less scary.

This story of one of Accion’s borrowers really touched me in particular. Meet Sarah.

Sarah of Grey’s Fabrics & Notions

After finishing grad school, Sarah struggled to find an academic job related to what she had studied. In Sarah’s words, “In this economy, it just wasn’t going to happen.” For Sarah, sewing was a creative outlet, and her husband suggested she open her own sewing store. She decided to give it a try, and opened Grey’s Fabrics & Notions in the artsy Sowa district of Boston.

After two years of paying for inventory out of pocket, Sarah wanted to expand the store but were having trouble securing financing. “We could tell right away that we didn’t have strong enough credit,” explained Sarah.

Then Sarah found Accion. She was approved for a $15,000 loan, which she used to invest in more inventory and products for her store. Sarah was also able to hire an employee to help her teach sewing classes, craft designs and run the store.

Sarah is just one of the many entrepreneurs that Accion helps to access the capital and support they need to grow their businesses, but can’t find elsewhere. Not only are these self-starters creating their own employment opportunities, but they are improving the employment outlook for others in their communities as well. In 2012, Accion businesses created and supported an average of 4.4 jobs each. …Did you know that “micro” businesses represent 80% of all businesses in the U.S? If just one in three microenterprises hired a single employee, the US would be at full employment.

For those of you who don’t know about the Give-It-Away Campaign, JPMorgan decided not to hand out stickers and other freebies across college campuses this year (that, let’s be honest, would inevitably end up in the trash anyway). Instead, they are going to donate that money ($25,000!!) to organizations that are making a difference in their communities all across the globe and they are letting us vote on which ones. I’m voting for Accion, and I hope you will join me in making our job searches a little less grim this spring!

Cast your vote for Accion today!

Accion’s work in the United States

Posted on February 22, 2013 by lyothers

Since 1991, we’re proud to say we’ve made over 20,000 loans across the country so individuals like Helen Saavendra, who offers free mobile ultrasounds in New York, can continue to do what they love.

We’re proud to be joined by four other Accion members to make the Accion U.S. Network—the only national microlending organization in the country. Together we ensure the success of the smallest businesses in the country—from New York to New Mexico, Chicago to San Diego and everywhere in between.

We just released a brand new video featuring the stories of our clients, told in their own words. See their faces and hear about their journeys.