WHAT
IS THE CENTER?
The Southeast Women’s Business Center is designed to be a
resource for women entrepreneurs to assist with the unique issues
they face in starting and growing a business. We are here to assist
with all aspects of starting and growing a successful business.
WHEN WAS IT ESTABLISHED?
The center technically started providing limited services in July
2001, though our grand opening was not until September 17, 2001.
HOW IS THE CENTER IMPORTANT TO THE COMMUNITY?
Our primary focus is to provide services to rural areas located
throughout the Tennessee River Valley region, including northern
Georgia and southwest North Carolina. There are many women in
these rural areas who have various talents and skills that are
marketable, but they may not know how to go about starting a business
or marketing their products and services.
WHAT SERVICES ARE PROVIDED?
The Southeast Women’s Business Center provides a large range
of services. We provide both individual counseling and group training,
as well as having access to U.S. Small Business Administration
programs such as lending. Our resource room is full of publications
on various topics such as marketing, management, taxes and lending
programs. We also have a computer with internet access that is
available to clients of our center.
WHERE IS THE OFFICE?
We are located in downtown Chattanooga on the corner of 6th and
Chestnut Street. My office and the resource room are located on
the 3rd floor.
WHO PROVIDES THE FUNDING?
The U.S. Small Business Administration (or the SBA) awarded us
a 5-year grant to operate the Women’s Business Center. One
of the requirements of the grant is a matching contribution. The
Southeast Industrial Development Association provides the matching
funds for our center.
WHAT IS THE COST TO YOUR CLIENTS?
Because we are awarded a grant from the SBA and receive additional
funding from SEIDA, the majority of our services are free. There
will be no charge for individual counseling or regularly scheduled
group training sessions. Special sessions may have a nominal fee
associated with them, depending on our costs. For example, if
we hold a session during lunch hours and provide the meal, there
would be a small fee.
WHAT IS YOUR SERVICE AREA?
Our coverage area consists of 13 counties in southeast Tennessee,
10 counties in northern Georgia and 2 counties in southwest North
Carolina. These are counties that are serviced by members of the
Southeast Industrial Development Association.
- Counties
in Tennessee include Pickett, Fentress, Cumberland, Bledsoe,
McMinn, Meigs, Bradley, Hamilton, Polk, Sequatchie, Grundy,
Marion, and Rhea.
- Counties
in Georgia are Catoosa, Chattooga, Dade, Walker, Whitfield,
Gordon, Murray, Fannin, Union, and Towns.
-
Clay and Cherokee counties in North Carolina are also part of
our service area.
Depending on the size of a state, the SBA normally opens one center
per state. There are centers currently in operation in Atlanta,
GA, Nashville, TN, Fayetteville, NC, and Durham, NC. However,
because the majority of the counties we cover are predominantly
rural, and most are 100 miles or more from an existing center,
the SBA awarded our center with the understanding that it is a
rural outreach program.
We
do not expect our clients to travel to Chattanooga to benefit
from our services! We will be teaching our sessions in each region
of our coverage area. We will also utilize teleconferencing at
some of the Southeast Tennessee Career Centers, also under the
umbrella of Southeast Local Development Corporation. We will also
schedule individual counseling days at various locations to meet
demand in those areas.
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