The 2024 New Ulm Small Business Incentive Grants, offering each business $7,500, are well on their way with more than half of the available 14 grants allocated already. Recipients include White Boxer Coffee, Rush, Midwest Detail Garage, and The Beauty Spot among others.
Applications for the remaining grants are still open, inviting small businesses to make use of this wonderful financial aid opportunity. The primary goal of these grants is to boost growth and aid local businesses, crucial in the current economic scenario.
Established in 2019 by the Economic Development Authority (EDA), the grant program has been remarkable in helping new businesses overcome the high operating costs usually faced in their first year, providing them solid ground for future growth.
The grant comes with specific eligibility requirements; businesses must maintain a commercial address and possess 10 or fewer full-time equivalent workers. Home-based childcare services are exempted from the commercial address requirement, although the full-time staffing rule still applies to them.
Since 2019, it has aided 31 businesses, with an impressive 26 remaining operational. These extraordinary results highlight the grants’ role in fostering fledgling businesses.
Although the grant process started slowly, it gained pace because of the shift in financial climates. The significant influx of funds led to an increase in available grants, leading to substantial growth in innovative projects, previously stunted due to funding constraints.
In 2024, total funds rose to $105,000, despite individual grants dropping to $7,500. Pay-outs are linked to certain requirements such as business-related expenses, arranged meetings with the city’s Business Consultant, and a viable business strategy. This approach ensures that businesses stay on track towards profitability.
At last, Heather Bregel, the Economic Development Director, emphasizes that the future of the grant is adaptive, keeping pace with funding availability, demand, and community needs. The grant could potentially provide relief for sectors that have been hardest hit by the pandemic, like childcare services and dining establishments.
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