Expo to Focus on Funding Small Firms

Helping small-business owners figure out where they fit in the financing food chain is the aim of an access-to-capital expo today.

The event, funded by Wells Fargo and co-sponsored by the Los Angeles Minority Business Opportunity Committee, is expected to attract more than 300 small- and minority-business owners to the Los Angeles Convention Center.

More than 200 of those small firms have appointments with lenders at the expo, said Sharon D. Evans, president and chief executive of the nonprofit Business Resource Group and organizer of the event.

“A small business could be turned down for a commercial loan at one bank, but had they gone across the hall to apply for a different [loan] product they might have been approved by the same financial institution,” Evans said.

“The type of credit available varies widely. What we’re doing is matching business owners with the type of credit they need,” she said.

Evans said she hopes to see at least 50 loans made to attending business owners within the 90 days.

More than 15 financial institutions, including Bank of America and California Federal Bank, have agreed to participate.

The lineup includes just one venture capital firm, Oakland-based National Monetary Fund. Evans said the lenders on board represent a better fit for most small firms.

“Everyone would prefer venture capital to debt,” Evans said. “But we didn’t want hordes of people looking for venture capital who can barely qualify for [Small Business Administration] loans.”

Recent studies, including one released last month by the Los Angeles-based Community Development Technologies Center, identify access to capital as the No. 1 hurdle facing many minority-business owners.

“These are the businesses that serve our community,” said Los Angeles City Councilman Mark Ridley-Thomas. “Without some assistance or lifeline, many of these small businesses won’t survive.”