National Association for the Self-Employed Awards Third Quarter Small Business Growth Grants
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Detroit, Washington, D.C. & North Carolina Small Businesses Recipients of $12k in Grants to Expand & Grow Operations
– Three small businesses have been awarded $12,000 in Growth Grants from the National Association for the Self-Employed (NASE) , the nation’s leading advocate and resource for the self-employed and micro-business community. Earlier this year, NASE announced they would be expanding their Growth Grant program to award over $48,000 in small business grants in 2015, an increase from the $20,000 awarded in 2014. Click here to visit the NASE Growth Grants page and view the third quarter and all other past award winners in 2015.
“So far this year, NASE has already awarded a total of $36,000 in Growth Grant awards to nine small businesses throughout the country,” said John Hearrell, Vice President of Membership and Affiliate Programs. “We congratulate the third quarter award winners and look forward to watching them make the critical investments needed to grow and expand their local businesses.”
Hearrell continued, “The expansion of this year’s Growth Grant program is a clear indication of our support and belief in America’s small business and self-employed community. American small businesses are providing the fuel for our country’s economic engine and creating jobs in towns across the nation. From Detroit, Michigan to Indian Trail, North Carolina, America’s small businesses are the backbone of our country’s economic security.”
The recipients of the 2015 third quarter NASE Growth Grants are:
Mainely Cupcakes, located in Indian Trail, North Carolina .Cassandra Tindell, owner of Mainely Cupcakes, became an NASE member in August 2015.Mainely Cupcakes is a home based, on-line business that has provided baked goods for customers throughout the Charlotte, North Carolina area, as well as the Southeastern United States. Mainely Cupcakes not only employees local residents, but is also active in its local community by providing cakes for Icing Smiles, a non-profit organization that provides "The Cake of a Life Time" for terminally ill children and their siblings and donating baked goods in support of the local school system.
Locals Grow Smart located in Washington, D.C. Locals, a community focused vertical aquaponics farm based out of the Washington, DC area, is owned by Nadia Robinson.Robinson became an NASE member in September 2015. Locals’ goal is to transform abandoned buildings into living technology and urban agriculture. At Locals, the company’s resource-efficient technologies demonstrate how vertical aquaponics farms can supply neighboring communities with locally grown, superior quality, and fresh produce while preserving the natural resources and building a better future.
McConnell Communications located in Detroit, Michigan. McConnell Communications, a public relations and marketing firm, is owned and operated by Darci McConnell, a veteran journalist.McConnell Communications helps people communicate in a way to get others to act, such as assisting hundreds of fast food workers to tell the public why the minimum wage isn’t enough to take care of a family.McConnell Communications celebrated its 10-year anniversary in May and the company continues to be active in helping in the rebirth and stability of the Detroit community by providing an incubator setting for high school and college students for mentoring services and volunteer opportunities.
Growth Grant program by providing small business grants. NASE’s Growth Grant program is intended for businesses planning to take the next step in their venture. It provides available capital for small businesses and sole proprietors to be able to hire and train additional employees, market their business in new and existing ways or invest in new equipment or software.
Applications for the NASE’s 2015 Growth Grant program are currently being accepted from now through December 10 th , 2015. Applications are considered on a rolling basis throughout the year and winning small businesses will be awarded $4,000 grants monthly throughout 2015. Visit the Growth Grant page for more information.
For more information on additional scholarships available from NASE, please click here.
NASE members also enjoy a comprehensive list of benefits designed to help small business owners and sole proprietors start and grow their business. A complete listing of benefits available to NASE members is available, here . NASE members are offered a host of resources designed to help support entrepreneurs and small employers including access to professional “Ask the Experts” services in tax, health care and marketing, a navigational assistant health care portal , scholarships and grants, discounts on shipping rates and affordable email marketing systems and webhosting services. NASE’s newest member benefits continue the tradition of providing real-world, bottom-line assistance to small business owners. To become a member of NASE, apply online here.
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The National Association for the Self-Employed (NASE) is the nation's leading resource for the self-employed and micro-businesses, bringing a broad range of benefits to help entrepreneurs succeed and to drive the continued growth of this vital segment of the American economy. The NASE Small Business Locator helps identify and connect our nation’s smallest businesses. In addition, NASE’s new health care portal helps small business owners navigate the nation’s health care marketplace. The NASE is a 501(c)