Covington Small Business Program

The Business or Commercialization Planning assistance micro-grant can reimburse up to $5000, spent on hiring an approved, independent, third party to write a comprehensive business or commercialization plan for a Wisconsin business. Typically awardees are pursuing a Phase II SBIR/STTR grant in which a detailed commercialization plan is required. The program is limited to businesses in certain industries.

Main Street Iowa offers the Open 4 Business program to encourage business development in designated Main Street districts. The Open 4 Business contest launched in 2015, is an opportunity for businesses located within the Main Street district, to compete for a chance to win grant funds to assist with a business development or expansion project that will help you grow your business. Businesses will be required to complete an online application and submit a short video (3-minute maximum time limit) outlining your business idea and how it will benefit the local economic climate in our community. A 25% cash match is required. Businesses must have been in operation for at least 1 year to apply. The grant funds are administered by the Iowa Economic Development Authority’s Downtown Resource Center and Main Street Iowa program.

The Small Business Incentive Program offers up to $5,000 for Santa Ana Businesses with 5 or less employees (including the owners) during the first three years in business. Funds are granted as a reimbursement for eligible business expenses. Businesses must be able to provide proof (receipts) for those expenses.

The Geneva Microenterprise Assistance Program (GMAP) provides Geneva, New York small businesses, start-ups, and entrepreneurs with grants of $5,000 to $30,000 to support business start-up and growth. Administered by the City of Geneva's Grant Coordinator (with additional program delivery support from a training consultant) and funded by the New York State Office of Community Renewal through the federal Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Microenterprise Assistance Program, the program has $150,000 in total grant funding available. The GMAP is designed to meet the CDBG National Objective of benefiting low- and moderate-income (LMI) persons through LMI job creation and LMI microenterprise assistance, and aims to help launch or grow at least seven small businesses (including at least four owned by LMI persons) and create at least three new LMI-qualifying jobs. To qualify, applicants must be a private for-profit business (sole proprietorship, partnership, LLC, or corporation) with an existing or planned business location within the City of Geneva, currently have five or fewer employees (including the owner), and be up to date on all local, state, and federal taxes and obligations. Applicants must either have majority ownership held by LMI individuals or commit to creating at least one new full-time equivalent (FTE) job for an LMI individual. Businesses that received prior MAP funding will be required to create at least one new LMI job regardless of owner LMI status. If more than one FTE job is created as a result of GMAP funding, at least 50 percent of the jobs created must be made available to or taken by LMI individuals. Applicants must also commit to a 10 percent equity (cash) match of the awarded grant amount and complete an OCR-approved entrepreneurial training program (either the Fast Track to Business Start-up offered by the Onondaga Small Business Development Center, the Business Startup Program offered by an Ibero Business Center, or the customized training program offered at no cost by the City of Geneva) before incurring any grant-related costs. Grant funds may be used for working capital for equipment, furniture, inventory, operations, salaries, and hardware and software directly related to business operations. Funds may not be used to pay off existing debt, for lobbying, religious, or political activities, to purchase real estate, for short-term rental properties or private recreational facilities, or for construction-related activities. Grants are disbursed on a reimbursement basis: expenditures must be paid by the awardee and submitted to City staff for reimbursement with relevant invoices and receipts as proof of payment. The equity match must be documented on a pro rata basis before any grant disbursements will be processed, and no disbursements will be issued until the awardee submits a certificate of completion for the required entrepreneurial training program (or receives an approved waiver based on completion within the prior 24 months). Applications are reviewed by a Grant Review Committee that scores each eligible application across ten criteria (out of 40 total points), including LMI ownership, minority/woman/veteran ownership, start-up status (less than 6 months in operation), whether the project will fill a vacant, street-level storefront in downtown or a neighborhood business district, reasonableness of costs, project feasibility, owner experience, size of the match relative to the grant amount, job creation, and expected economic multiplier effects (such as attracting visitors or committing to procure goods and services locally).

Food Export USA–Northeast (Food Export–Northeast) is a nonprofit organization created in 1973 as a cooperative effort between 10 Northeastern state agricultural promotion agencies and the United States Department of Agriculture’s Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS). Export’s goal is to provide a wide range of services to facilitate trade between Northeastern food suppliers and importers around the world. With the Branded Program, you may double your budget with 50% cost reimbursement on: -International website development -Foreign market-compliant packaging and labels -Advertising and public relations -In-store promotions and product demonstrations -Fees for exhibiting at select overseas and domestic trade shows -Marketing and point-of-sale materials -Freight costs for product samples