Chicanos Por La Causa Selected by the U.S. Small Business Administration to Operate a Women’s Business Center

5th Jan 2021

Chicanos Por La Causa (CPLC) has received one of 20 new grant awards across the United States from the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) to support the launch of Women’s Business Centers. This expansion marked the single largest of WBC’s across the country in its 30-year tenure.

Prestamos CDFI, a division of CPLC, will oversee the CPLC Women’s Business Center (CPLC WBC) expected to serve every year over 1,000 aspiring and established female entrepreneurs in the metro Phoenix area, rural and other underserved communities. Offering one-on-one counseling, training, workshops and technical assistance, CPLC WBC will work to empower women entrepreneurs and arm them with the resources they need to overcome the obstacles presented by the pandemic and business world, including access to capital.

“Small businesses are the economic engine of our economy and their social impact on our communities is profound. The CPLC WBC recognizes that women entrepreneurs face unique barriers to starting and operating small businesses and accessing capital. It is vital that we create a space where minority, female and entrepreneurs in underserved communities can access not only quality financial and business education, but also be provided with the opportunity to access capital to help these businesses thrive,” said Teresa Miranda, Vice President of Prestamos CDFI.

 “Expanding the WBC program is part of this Administration’s longstanding commitment to the success of female entrepreneurs and women-owned small businesses.  Adding these new Women’s Business Centers to the already existing network of centers across America will boost timely resources to our nation’s female economic drivers, providing them with local training and counseling,” said Jovita Carranza, SBA Administrator.

By educating and empowering underserved female entrepreneurs, the work through CPLC WBC will provide pathways for small businesses to not only flourish but also contribute to the economic, cultural, and social vitality of our communities.

"Bringing a Women's Business Center back to Maricopa County, home to over 4.5 million people, is going to be instrumental in helping our small business community recover from the pandemic. CPLC's WBC will provide training and education that will empower women who lost jobs or had to pivot to remain home to care for children, with additional opportunities to become entrepreneurs and create businesses. Our team of expert business advisors will work on assisting clients with help on topics such as financial management, marketing, human resources and much more. We look forward to continuing to provide valuable and trusted resources to our community,” said Amber Cordoba, Prestamos CDFI Director of Business Education and Consulting Services.

For more information about the CPLC WBC or to receive updates visit https://prestamosloans.org/womens-business-center/.