Press Release

Monday, August 28, 2006

ACCION WELead Program Targets Emerging Women Entrepreneurs

New Program Forges Partnerships between Emerging and Established Business Women ACCION New Mexico has launched a new initiative to boost success among the nonprofit lender’s emerging women entrepreneurs by connecting these up-and-coming business leaders with mentorship opportunities and support. The ACCION Women's Entrepreneurial Leadership Program (WELead) aims to forge partnerships between ACCION clients and established business women and generate support for ACCION's efforts to break down barriers to capital for women entrepreneurs. "Our goal is to create vibrant partnerships between ACCION’s women clients and successful business women in the community through this new initiative," ACCION WELead Chairwoman Laura Hueter Bass said. Bass, a highly sought-after community leader and the former executive director of the Albuquerque Community Foundation, said she chose to spearhead WELead because of ACCION’s strong reputation and her belief in the transformative power of entrepreneurship among women. Women play a critical role in New Mexico’s business community at all levels. Recent U.S. Census Bureau statistics rank New Mexico second in the nation for the number of women-owned businesses, tied with Maryland. The Census figures showed the number of women-owned businesses in New Mexico climbed from 9 percent in 1997 to 31 percent in 2002. The national rate increased by 20 percent over the same period. Bass led ACCION leaders Monday during a kick-off luncheon at ACCION client Dagmar's Delectables. More than 50 business owners, community leaders, ACCION clients and others were on hand for the WELead inaugural event. Restaurant owner Dagmar Mondragon told those on hand than that community support has been a critical factor in her success. Mondragon has worked with ACCION for more than a decade building her dream into a local culinary favorite that has a staff of seven. She started with a $1,000 loan in 1996 and returned last May for $15,000, her sixth ACCION loan. The ACCION WELead Program has generated strong community response among those who want to support efforts to encourage partnership and greater access among women entrepreneurs. An anonymous donor has already contributed $10,000 to support ACCION's WELead efforts. Contact: Leslie Hoffman ACCION New Mexico Communications Director (505) 243-8844 ext. 238 (505) 270-0285 cell

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News Bulletin

Friday, August 25, 2006

ACCION New Mexico Among National U.S. Department of Treasury Award Recipients

U.S. Treasury Award Puts New Mexico in National Spotlight ACCION New Mexico is receiving national recognition and top funding from the U.S. Department of Treasury’s community development program for its grass-roots approach to small business financing. Federal officials traveled to Albuquerque to announce national community development awards Friday, singling out ACCION New Mexico for performance that has earned the nonprofit small business lender $585,000. It is the top level of funding any 2006 award recipient received from the Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI) Fund and is the largest grant to date for New Mexico's highest-volume microlender. "ACCION New Mexico is on the front lines of creating needed jobs and helping foster economic growth in rural and urban low-income communities," CDFI Fund Director Arthur A. Garcia said. "Through its community-based lending approach that provides much-needed capital investment for small businesses, ACCION is creating the kind of economic vitality that can transform entrepreneurs, their families and their communities." Sen. Pete Domenici, R-N.M., joined Garcia at ACCION client business Golden Crown Panadería to announce $26.4 million in awards from the CDFI Fund. The bakery is among the more than 2,145 businesses ACCION has supported statewide through small business loans. ACCION has extended two loans to the bakery totaling $50,000. Together, Golden Crown and ACCION are contributing to the revitalization of one of Albuquerque’s oldest neighborhoods. “Small businesses are the backbone of our state economy,” Domenici said. “The microloans and technical assistance offered by ACCION New Mexico all around the state give more people who have an entrepreneurial spirit a true chance of making a small business work and grow.” The CDFI Fund supports institutions that serve low-income people and communities lacking adequate access to affordable financial products and services. ACCION New Mexico was selected this year through a competitive review of 172 applications from organizations nationwide requesting more than $149 million in funding. ACCION, which has previously received $550,000 in CDFI Fund grants, was the only award recipient in New Mexico. ACCION’s mission is to break down barriers to credit for emerging entrepreneurs whose small capital needs, credit history or lack of collateral may prevent them from qualifying for bank financing. ACCION uses the loan application process to deepen applicants' financial literacy and potential for business success. Last year, ACCION New Mexico put more than $5.4 million into the hands of entrepreneurs through 479 small business loans. More than 90 percent of those loans went to low-income, minority or women entrepreneurs. Since its inception, ACCION’s lending has helped to create or sustain more than 3,400 jobs through 3,579 loans totaling more than $19 million. “This award of $585,000 will help ACCION empower even more families and expand our reach across the state, especially in New Mexico’s rural communities,” said Robert Wertheim, chairman of ACCION’s board of directors. Saul and Carmen Manriquez are among those who have used ACCION funding to create economic opportunity for their family. The immigrant couple from Juarez, Mexico, started with a modest business selling Mexican candy and other imported specialty goods at a flea market in Albuquerque’s South Valley. They came to ACCION in 1997 and started with a $500 loan. Little by little, they were able to import more goods and increase sales. With hard work and help from ACCION, they were eventually able to open their own grocery and meat market, Carnicería La Especial. Last July, the Manriquezes paid off their fifth ACCION loan of $40,000. Today, they own their own home, their store and another commercial property they hope to turn into a wholesale business. Their 16-year-old daughter Yanette has dreams of becoming an architect while her 12-year-old sister, Cynthia, already has an eye for the family business. “ACCION believed in me when no one else would,” Saul Manriquez said. Friday’s announcement is the latest in a series of national accolades for ACCION New Mexico. Earlier this year, the Aspen Institute's Microenterprise Fund for Innovation, Effectiveness, Learning and Dissemination selected ACCION among hundreds of programs nationwide to highlight in a national guide on performance. A leading national economic development entity, CFED, named ACCION a national promising practice in entrepreneurship last year for its performance and innovative approach to small business and community development. The industry group is known for its annual Development Report Card for the States, a state-by-state assessment of the economies of the 50 states. Contact: Leslie Hoffman, ACCION communications director (505) 243-8844 ext. 238 (505) 270-0285 cell Bill Luecht, U.S. Department of Treasury CDFI Fund (202) 622-8042