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1398 Valencia Street
San Francisco, CA 94110

www.womensinitiative.org

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Mission

Women’s Initiative for Self Employment’s mission is to assist low-income women of diverse ethnic and social backgrounds in becoming economically self-sufficient through entrepreneurial activities.

Women’s Initiative provides economically disadvantaged women with entrepreneurial training, technical assistance, and financial services.  Since 1988, Women’s Initiative has served more than 16,000 women, disbursed loans totaling over $800,000 and assisted clients in leveraging an additional $1,800,000 in capital from other lending sources. Services are provided in English and through the ALAS program in Spanish.  In recent years our clients have started or developed over 1,600 businesses, from photography studios to catering companies and jewelry stores. Our nationally recognized Research and Evaluation Department evaluates our success through a comprehensive evaluation system that includes tracking business and the personal and business development our clients achieve as a result of our services.

Many low-income women in California fail to make ends meet. Nearly 37% of single women in California still live below the federal poverty level (compared with 25% nationwide), including many that have never received public assistance.  Many of the women we serve are also highly motivated, show entrepreneurial aptitude, and have skills in a particular craft or service. At the same time, they often face an array of obstacles when trying to launch a business: limited education or opportunity, lack of start-up capital, undeveloped business skills, competing family responsibilities, and limited access to marketing information and expertise. The immigrants we serve face additional barriers, including lack understanding of business regulations, marketing opportunities, and how computers can help them grow their businesses.  Traditional business development programs fail to meet these needs - Women’s Initiative bridges the gap. 

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Key Facts

Description

Women’s Initiative for Self Employment provides entrepreneurial training, consulting, and financing services for low-income women entrepreneurs in the San Francisco Bay.

Programs

Women's Initiative provides business assessment and entrepreneurial readiness workshops, comprehensive business management training, personal development training, one-on-one technical assistance, business plan writing workshops, peer support networking groups, and ongoing business support services. Scholarships and stipends for childcare and transportation are available for very low-income women to ensure that no one is turned away for lack of financial resources. Women's Initiative administers a revolving loan fund, disbursing loans ranging from $1,000 to $25,000, and links women with asset building opportunities, including Individual Development Accounts (IDAs) where participants' savings are matched. Women's Initiative is unique among microenterprise development programs in that our services target low-income women, focusing on the needs of traditionally underserved groups including minorities, immigrants, and welfare recipients. A third of the women we serve have incomes at or below poverty, 12% are current or former welfare recipients, 80% are women of color, and over 30% speak Spanish as their first or only language. Services are provided in Spanish through our Alternativas para Latinas en Autosuficiencia (ALAS) program, the first program of its kind in Northern California.