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Question
How do I find money in this down market?  Does anyone want to lend money now?

The dreaded money subject is often such a buzz kill.  Unless you have  Daddy Warbucks backing you up, you are most likely in the same situation as most Entreprenettes starting out.  Now is the time to take a hard look at how BIG you want your company to be or how SMALL.  This is all relevant to manufacturing as you will need to determine where to manufacture and how to meet your bottom line – as in profitability.    Knowing what size business you are up to handling and what vision you have for it are integral to the process of “how much do you need”.   There are plenty of places still out there to look for money.  You need to be concise and precise about what you need and see if the fit it there.   There are also lots of grants available to women.  Explore the links below and see what works for you.

Finding money – grants, loans and contests.  There are lots of resources out there for new start up grants and loans. Likewise, a lot of big corporations sponsor contests for the best business idea – some giving up to $25,000.  Here is a list of various places you can explore for different options.

Small Business
Business grant contest from intuit.

Raise Capital
RaiseCapital.com is an online community where entrepreneurs can showcase their business ideas and capital needs, posting a text description, pictures and/or a video presentation of your venture, Investors can find dynamic, local, regional or nationwide investment opportunities with ease,  angel financing, Angel investor, private financing, start up capital, venture capital

Angel Capital Association
This fast-growing association brings together many of the 330 angel organizations in the United States and Canada to share best practices, network, and help develop data about the field of angel investing.

Business Owners Idea Cafe
IdeaCafe.com – Small Business Ideas for starting a business, marketing, financing, grants, work at home & internet ecommerce. Network with others who KNOW what you’re going through.

Make Mine a Million
Start Your Business. Grow Your Business. Secure Your Family’s Future. Join the M3 RACE for expert advice, resources, coaching and community.

SBA.gov
Programs and services to help you start, grow and succeed.

Women-21
Organization that is etermined to promote policies and programs that remove roadblocks to growth and ensure the long-term viability of women in business.

Ideablob
Where ideas grow.

Do you have a million dollar idea but don’t know what to do next? Product Launching expert Sarah Shaw will teach you everything you need to know to turn your idea into a bankable product!

Sarah Shaw is an information “junkie” and the ultimate go-to girl for everything — from which stores are the best to approach first, to how to calculate your margins, to best manufacturer. Translating ideas into
action is her strength, and she lends her wisdom willingly to those who have brilliant ideas and want to turn them into gold!

In 1998 Sarah launched a uniquely fashioned pinked felt bag, and wore it everywhere she went. Soon, people were clamoring for them, and her handbag business Sarah Shaw was born. Within a year Sarah Shaw Handbags could be found on the pages of Instyle, Oprah, People, Lucky and Marie Claire magazines and in Anthropogie stores nationwide.
Over the next five year the business grew quickly selling to over 1200 boutiques and major dept stores nation wide.

Your friends will be amazed at how fast your “little idea” turned into a big reality with Sarah Shaw on the case. Don’t let this opportunity pass you by – the time is NOW to put your dreams into action.

Get more information about the Entreprenette and the courses she offers.

Guess what? Sarah from the Entreprenette, has agreed to offer a Q&A for BizzieMommy.com readers. If you have a questions related to the retail business, email 411 (at) bizziemommy (dot) com with “Ask the Entreprenette” in the subject line and your questions might be next.

Tagged as: momprenette, Product Development, retail