WWC business briefs
The Cash Flow Check-Up class will be held on Thursday, Sept. 8, from 6-8 p.m. at Northern Maine Community College in the Reed Commons conference room.
Offered by Women, Work and Community, this two-hour workshop will show you how to track your expenses, develop your weekly spending plan and monthly budget, plan for seasonal income and expenses, monitor your credit and pay down debt, and build assets for a more secure financial future. At the end of the class, you will have the tools to make your own one-year map for your money — your household cash flow projection for the coming year. The class is open to women and men, individuals and families, and anyone interested in learning how to improve your money management skills.
Pre-registration is required, and there is no fee for the workshop. The Cash Flow Check-Up class is made possible by a grant from the FINRA Investor Education Foundation, through a partnership with United Way Worldwide.
Small Business Marketing Grants’ deadline approaching
Could your business use a marketing boost? Aroostook County business owners are encouraged to apply for Women, Work and Community’s marketing mini-grants program. WWC will make grants of up to $400 to help Aroostook County entrepreneurs promote their businesses through targeted marketing projects. The next deadline for the quarterly Aroostook County grants program is Thursday, Sept. 15, with grants to be awarded by mid-October.
Successful proposals will focus on marketing, branding and access to new markets for Aroostook County micro-enterprises. Men, women, and all entrepreneurs are welcome to apply.
Starting Sept. 12, Women, Work, and Community will offer a free 12-week course in business planning. If you are a new entrepreneur or business owner in the start-up stage, New Ventures will help you create a written business plan from start to finish with feedback from facilitators and fellow entrepreneurs. Topics include: your customer, your competition, marketing, financial recordkeeping, cash flow projections, taxes, legal aspects, financing and more. The class will meet on Mondays from 9:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. from Sept. 12 through Dec. 12 at the Presque Isle Career Center.
The New Ventures course is open to entrepreneurs of all ages, incomes and business sectors. There is no fee for the course.
Class size is limited to 15, and an application and interview are required. Applications are due by Thursday, Sept. 8, and individual interviews will be scheduled following the class orientation on Monday, Sept. 12.
To request an application and register for the orientation or to get more information about the New Ventures course, mini-grants or Cash Flow class, contact Erica Quin-Easter, microenterprise coordinator at Women, Work, and Community, at 764-0050 or e-mail eerica.quineaster@maine.edu. For more information on the New Ventures program and other classes and services offered by Women, Work, and Community, visit www.womenworkandcommunity.org.
