The city of North Las Vegas Wants to help small businesses get off the ground. It's a part of their 'Small Business Connector' initiative called 'Jumpstart 20-22', which helps connect local entrepreneurs find the resources they need.
With a specific focus on North las vegas, Jumpstart 2022 was geared towards those interested in launching a business.
Starting your own business or start-up can be intimidating, especially when you don't have access to the right information and resources.
Their goal, is to make those connections between business professionals and business owners.
Carlos Meija is the Lead Businesses Development Advisor with the Nevada Small Business Development Center.
He says it doesn't matter if your business is in the 'idea stage', or if it's an already successful business - looking to expand - the resources at North Las Vegas' City Hall can help you.
"The role that I play is, I provide technical assistance, guidance, mentorship, to the entrepreneurial/small business community in any stage that they may be in. From starting, owning, and exiting a business, I help them with all those stages and everything in between," said Meija.
So, you may be thinking, I've got this great idea, but it costs money.
Nic Steele, the Executive Director for Access Community Capital, a Loan Administrator, says they have programs that offer small businesses an alternative to the standard PPP or small business loan.
"We are a lot different than your traditional financial institution. Our loans are primarily unsecured, so an individual can come in, they can talk to us about different loan products that we have available. Our loan rates are extremely competitive over one-to-three-year terms, and those rates are simply rates that are unavailable to small business owners especially when they start in the early business stages," said Steele.
Officials at The City of North Las Vegas say small businesses are what bring in a great deal of revenue to the city and the community.
More businesses, lead to more jobs.
Mack Wiggins, is Business Services Consultant, who works to connect small businesses with strong reliable employees as they continue to grow. He says, "Employers and job seekers have a symbiotic relationship so they work together, and we want to put the right people with the right employers, to make sure we take the time to find out what the job seeker is looking for, and take the time out to find out what the employer is looking for, and be able to create that network together with the two."
The small business connector has launched several small businesses, including that of local business owner JaDee Glover.
At the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, she along with many other people found themselves out of work. She says she took a leap of faith and started her own business called, 'All Paperwork Services and Cash Back'.
''My business was born during the pandemic, so it's literally because of the pandemic, that I decided to push forward. I wanted to help people navigate what they can do and how to turn themselves into a legitimized business, so they can reach out to all these resources. A lot of people don't think of themselves as a business, they think of themselves as side hustle, or a hairstylist or a mechanic, and my job is to let them know that, no, you are a small business and let's get the paperwork behind you, to make sure of that," said Glover.
North Las Vegas Mayor John Lee and Councilwoman Pamela Goynes-Brown were guest speakers at the Small Business Connector event.
The North Las Vegas Connector began in October of 2021 and has already helped 285 small businesses, 223 of which are minority business enterprises, 157 women business enterprises, 30 veteran-owned companies, and 137 based in North Las Vegas.
