AmPac and Caravanserai receive grant from Wells Fargo to support small business recovery

Funds will provide capital and technical assistance to bolster diverse small businesses and nonprofits impacted by COVID-19

Wells Fargo has announced the award of nearly $2 million in small business recovery grants to AmPac Business Capital (AmPac) and Caravanserai Project (Caravanserai) to help small businesses manage the economic effects of COVID-19 as they shift to recovery.  Wells Fargo’s funding will help small businesses in the Inland Empire stay open and get back to growth through increased access to capital with low rate loans and technical expertise.

The grant is part of Wells Fargo’s Open for Business Fund (OFB) program, a roughly $420 million small business recovery effort across the U.S. The initiative focuses on three key areas: increasing access to capital through CDFIs, technical assistance, and long-term recovery and resiliency programs for diverse small businesses.  The Open for Business Fund is projected to provide $1 billion in financing for small business owners nationwide.

“We need to help the Inland Empire small business community get back to growing again. Small businesses need capital, and access to experts who can help them solve business challenges, find new revenue opportunities, and plan for the future,” said Flor Tolley, Vice President, Social Impact & Sustainability, Wells Fargo. “By working with AmPac, Caravanserai and other CDFIs, we can ensure that local minority-owned small businesses receive the resources necessary to recover and emerge from the pandemic stronger and more resilient.”

With funding from the Open For Business Fund, AmPac has established the Minority Business Loan Fund focused on helping Black and LatinX business with access to capital. The loan fund offers low interest rate loans up to $150,000 for eligible minority owned small businesses. Part of the program includes business acumen training where participants will increase their business acumen and learn strategies on how to scale their business. The organization is also offering a minority targeted down payment assistance program for commercial real estate properties including no payments for 12 months with a long amortization period.

“The funds from Wells Fargo’s Open for Business Fund have provided us an opportunity to remind minority businesses that it is possible,” said Hilda Kennedy, AmPac Founder and President. “Oftentimes, there are barriers of entry to pivotal resources that can sustain and revitalize the minority small business community. With this grant, AmPac will breakdown those barriers by providing capital and business acumen training to help Inland Empire small businesses recover and scale. We are thrilled that we have also made training grants available, so that businesses can stay engaged without feeling pressured to choose between completing training and losing a sale.”

The grant will provide Caravanserai Project and its partners, Inland Empire Community Collaborative and Inland Empire Community Foundation, the necessary support to scale already established capacity building programs such as breakthrough masterclasses, strategic networking and planning circles, the SEED LAB pre-accelerator, the Capacity Building Academy, organizational assessments, monthly workshops, and other technical tools designed for nonprofits and other mission-driven organizations. Caravanserai is also launching two new initiatives later this year:  a Professional Certificate in Nonprofit Career Readiness and Advancement (awarded by University of California Riverside University Extension) and a regional nonprofit database for donors use, both programs offering additional unique and innovative resources to mission-driven organizations in the Inland Empire and beyond.

“While Covid-19 demonstrated once again the vital role played by nonprofits in supporting communities across the Inland Empire, strengthening mission-driven organizations’ infrastructure to increase their impact has been a priority for Caravanserai Project and our partners at the Inland Empire Community Collaborative and the Inland Empire Community Foundation,” said Mihai Patru, Caravanserai Project CEO. “By supporting our already great programs such as masterclasses and strategic circles, the SEED Lab pre-accelerator, the Capacity Building Academy, and other initiatives designed for mission-driven organizations as well as the development of a regional nonprofit database for donors use, this grant is a timely and encouraging investment in the Inland Empire and a valuable recognition of our on-going efforts to provide jet fuel to the local nonprofit sector.”