The Initiative welcomed a new tenant to its north Raleigh office building in September - the Raleigh MBDA Business Center. The business center is a U. S. Department of Commerce Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA) program operated by the N.C. Institute of Minority Economic Development, a long-time strategic partner of the Initiative.
The Institute has been dedicated to serving minority business enterprises in North Carolina for over 20 years. Through the MBDA Business Center, they are able to assist these enterprises with education, training, marketing and procurement.
The MBDA Business Center offers the following range of services to minority businesses:
Finance Management and Access to Capital
- Financial, credit and risk analysis
- SBA and conventional loans
- Qualification and evaluation
- Loan packaging
- General finance counseling (including securing working capital, applying for SBA loans, etc.)
- Venture capital and equity investment matchmaking
Strategic Business Consulting
- Strategic and business planning
- Staffing
- Organization and structure
- Policies and procedures
- General business consulting
Procurement Opportunities
- Government procurement assistance
- Private sector contract identification
- Market research and feasibility studies
- Marketing communications (i.e. advertising, promotion, public relations, brochure design, etc.)
- Construction industry related services
For more information on the Raleigh MBDA Business Center, visit http://www.ncimed.com/index.php/business-development/minority-businesses. The Initiative office building is also home to the N.C. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, and is located at 5800 Faringdon Place in Raleigh.
The N.C. Community Development Initiative leads North Carolina’s collaborative community economic development effort, driving innovation, investment and action to create prosperous, sustainable communities. For more information, visit www.ncinitiative.org.