Free Help for Your Business (No Questions Asked)
También puedes leer este artículo en español, Ayuda Gratis a tu Empresa (No Se Harán Preguntas).
The Arkansas Business Navigator program offers help to small businesses in need.
Those interested only have to register their data on their electronic page, which is totally confidential. Immigration status or economic situation are not asked. The services are free and for everyone, says Tania Martinez, a bilingual business consultant with the Arkansas Small Business and Technology Development Center (ASBTDC), which manages the program. She has a master's degree in business analytics and experience in banking, hospitality, and the Mexican diplomacy.
The program came about when the Small Business Administration awarded $2.5 million to help entrepreneurs from minorities, rural areas, and underserved communities. The recipient institution was the Arkansas Small Business and Technology Development Center (ASBTDC)
The program offers individual meetings with bilingual experts on how to open or expand businesses, access to a database for market research, as well as workshops where entrepreneurs are instructed and prepared to present their projects to future investors or lenders of financial institutions.
“(Minority groups) are offered tools and resources such as access to capital, business development, government contracting, marketing, operations, market research, and even the opportunity to export,” Martínez said. “Here we encourage commitment, motivation and dedication so that you can successfully excel in your business,” he says. The program covers all of Arkansas and most states. The project is expected to help more than 5,000 new and existing businesses in two years.
Collaborating organizations in the program include the Arkansas Human Development Corporation, Arkansas State Chamber of Commerce, Central Arkansas Library System, Eastern Arkansas Business Community, Phoenix Youth and Family Services, and the Cooperative Extension of the Division of Agriculture of the University of Arkansas under the coordination of ASBTDC.
Contact the ASBTDC
It is possible to speak or send a WhatsApp in Spanish or English to Tania Martínez at (501) 831-2908 or (501) 804-6771. You can also call 1-800-862-2040. You can visit the website arbusinessnavigator.com or search their pages on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and asbtdc.org
