(Oregon Women’s Business Center Ribbon Cutting October 2, 2024 | Photo by Tais Fedorov tais.photo)
Livelihood NW, the business support organization for entrepreneurs from marginalized communities across the Northwest, has today announced its official launch as the home of the Oregon Women’s Business Center (OWBC), in partnership with the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA). The designation enables Livelihood NW to expand its capacity, visibility, and virtual support services to a greater population of diverse small businesses across Oregon.
This March, Livelihood NW was chosen by the SBA as one of 17 new national Women’s Business Centers. It is the only center of its kind in Oregon. The Women’s Business Center (WBC) Program was established by the SBA to help women overcome barriers to success and there are now WBCs in almost every state.
“Women’s Business Centers open doors for women entrepreneurs who need access to training and practical assistance to grow their small businesses,” said Christina Hale, Assistant Administrator, Office of Women’s Business Ownership, U.S. Small Business Administration, in Washington, D.C. “Livelihood NW is the perfect name for an organization that, with the SBA’s assistance, provides economic opportunities to women, their families and the communities they live in.”
The OWBC designation is awarded across a 5-year term with an annual funding award of $150k. The additional funding will broaden the statewide expansion of Livelihood NW, strengthen its service offerings, and increase its current staff of twelve by adding two additional full-time equivalent positions.
The official launch is being marked today with a Grand Opening Ceremony in Portland, Oregon attended by SBA officials, small businesses, and community members (see media alert).
Livelihood NW served over 600 entrepreneurs from diverse backgrounds across Oregon in 2023. The OWBC designation now broadens the organization’s capacity to serve an additional 200 businesses in Oregon within the first year, scaling to 275 businesses in the second year, and further to 300 businesses annually from years three through five.
“Livelihood NW was founded with the purpose of fostering business sustainability and growth for historically underserved entrepreneurs within local communities and it is an honor to achieve this designation from the SBA to help us further that vision,” said Lara Damon, Executive Director, Livelihood NW & OWBC. “As the new Oregon Women’s Business Center, we will empower an even greater number of diverse entrepreneurs in support of wealth creation for themselves, their employees, and their community, driving towards an equitable economy.”
Livelihood NW provides business development support services to promote lifelong learning, empowerment, and positive economic impact. Core offerings include one-on-one advising, long term support, bookkeeping support, workshops & classes, access to capital & markets.
“As a self-funded startup founder, constantly juggling many roles, the value of having Livelihood NW as a caring business advisor, with access to experts I otherwise couldn’t afford, has been priceless”, said Kyikyi Yeshi-Men, Founder, Himalayan Dumplings by Kyiki. “The organization has been crucial in helping me navigate the uniquely layered barriers to developing the first Tibetan CPG dumpling brand in the U.S. on a bootstrapped budget”.
More information about the service offerings available from Livelihood NW and the Oregon Women’s Business Center can be found at livelihoodnw.org/owbc.
About Livelihood NW:
Livelihood NW provides free and low-cost professional business support services throughout Oregon and SW Washington to promote lifelong learning, empowerment, and positive economic impact. Supporting Oregon small businesses since 1994, the organization offers a continuum of support services to cross-sector businesses at all stages and is focused on breaking down barriers and addressing the wealth gap for underserved populations to include low-to-moderate income individuals, BIPOC, women, and the LGBTQ+ community, amongst other historically marginalized communities. Livelihood NW is supported by the federal government as well as private and public partners including JP Morgan Chase, Prosper Portland, and Business Oregon. To learn more, visit livelihoodnw.org
About the Office of Women’s Business Ownership (OWBO):
The Office of Women’s Business Ownership (OWBO) mission is to enable and empower women entrepreneurs through advocacy, outreach, education, and support. Since it was established in response to an Executive Order in 1979, OWBO has provided training, counseling, technical assistance, access to credit and capital, as well as marketing opportunities to women.
To learn more about SBA’s programs and services for women entrepreneurs, visit sba.gov/women.
About the U.S. Small Business Administration:
The U.S. Small Business Administration helps power the American dream of business ownership. As the only go-to resource and voice for small businesses backed by the strength of the federal government, the SBA empowers entrepreneurs and small business owners with the resources and support they need to start, grow, or expand their businesses, or recover from a declared disaster. It delivers services through an extensive network of SBA field offices and partnerships with public and private organizations. To learn more, visit sba.gov.
