Does anyone know of any business support or networking for women in the Nottingham area?

I've just started in business and am looking for any support that's going. My main customers are women so it would be great to be able to link in with other business women. But any other support/networking details would be great.

Yes. You should check out some of Nottingham's women's networking events - good place to start is http://www.womengetsmart.co.uk which sponsors a lunchtime women's network and you can also put your details on the web site to promote yourself to other women, femal business owners and professional women.

Also you need to check out the Women 4 Women business support project which is running throughout Objective 2 areas of the East Midlands - http://www.employment-training-links.co.uk/w4w.htm - lots of good support through there.

Women Businesses

Women Businesses

Where can I find grants available to women-owned businesses?

Me and my sisters want to start a business but are finding it tough to find places that offer grants to women who want to start their own business. Does anyone know a REAL place (not a scam) that provides assistance?

You stand a greater chance of getting a government-guaranteed loan through the Small Business Administration http://www.sba.gov/financing than a government grant. Read the SBA Financing page to learn about criteria needed for borrowing

As a woman-owned business, you can get certified in order to better compete in the government contracting process - here's the SBA page http://www.sba.gov/GC/indexprograms-cawbo.html . Another certification you can get is from the WBENC http://www.wbenc.org/certification/index.html and WBDC http://www.wbdc.org/tools/certify/certify.asp

But NOT for grants. It is hard to find grants to start a business -- both for men and women, minorities or non minorities. Unlike the myths that some perpetuate, federal government and even private foundations hardly give grant money for a for-profit business.

Nonetheless, you can go to the Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) http://www.cfda.gov and Grants.gov http://www.grants.gov - these are two sites created by the federal government to provide transparency and information on grants. Browse through the listings and see if you can find any grant that would support a for-profit venture.

Even if you buy books on "how to get grants" or list that supposedly has information on grants -- all of them are mere rehash of what CFDA has, albeit packaged differently. But still the info is the same - hardly any grants for starting a for profit business.

Even SBA does NOT give out grants. From the SBA website http://www.sba.gov/expanding/grants.html

"The U.S. Small Business Administration does not offer grants to start or expand small businesses, although it does offer a wide variety of loan programs. (See http://www.sba.gov/financing for more information) While SBA does offer some grant programs, these are generally designed to expand and enhance organizations that provide small business management, technical, or financial assistance. These grants generally support non-profit organizations, intermediary lending institutions, and state and local governments."

Here is a listing of federal grants for small businesses. See if there is any available for individuals for starting a business -- THERE'S NONE.

http://12.46.245.173/pls/portal30/CATALOG.BROWSE_BENEF_RPT.show

Most of the federal grants are given to specific target groups with specific requirements (e.g. minority business owners involved in transportation related contracts emanating from DOT - Grant#20.905 Disadvantaged Business Enterprises Short Term Lending Program

Grants are also often given to non profit groups or organizations involved in training or other similar activities (grant 59.043 Women's Business Ownership Assistance that are given to those who will create women's business center that will train women entrepreneurs

I suggest you read the following books to get ideas of how to finance your business:

Financing Your Small Business http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1572484500/powerhomebizguid
Small Business Financing: How and Where To Get It http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0808007386/powerhomebizguid
Financing the Small Business: A Complete Guide to Obtaining Bank Loans and All Other Types of Financing http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1580626815/powerhomebizguid
The SBA Loan Book http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/158062202X/powerhomebizguid
Angel Capital : How to Raise Early-Stage Private Equity Financing http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0471690635/powerhomebizguid
Financing Your Small Business (Barron's Business Library Series) http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0764124897/powerhomebizguid

For private grants, you may want to check the Foundation Center's Foundation Grants for Individuals Online http://gtionline.fdncenter.org . It's a subscription based website ($9.95 per month) but their opening blurb only says that the database is ideal for "students, artists, academic researchers, libraries and financial aid offices." Entrepreneurs are apparently not one of them, so I take it they also don't have listings of private foundations who give grants to would-be entrepreneurs.

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