HVADC Program: BIPOC Microloan Accelerator

The application window for one of HVADC’s newest programs, the BIPOC Microloan Accelerator is now open, with an application deadline of June 20. The nine-month program will be accepting 12 BIPOC and other minority agribusiness entrepreneurs from the Hudson Valley counties of Albany, Columbia, Dutchess, Orange, Rensselaer, Sullivan, Ulster and Washington.

The BIPOC Microloan Accelerator program will provide Business Technical Assistance (BTA) to help participants improve their businesses’ financial literacy and access microloans through HVADC’s Agribusiness Loan Fund. The curriculum for the BIPOC Microloan Accelerator will combine virtual, in-person and on demand training, and will be conducted in-group, and one-on-one. Topics will include how to manage debt, using credit to increase FICO scores, credit repair, personal and business management budgeting, choosing the right loan for a business, managing cash flow, and achieving loan readiness to access capital. Additional programming will address operational and management skills, as well as mental and physical well-being.

As a certified Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI), HVADC facilitates training such as the BIPOC Microloan Accelerator as part of its mission to provide financial services and investment in local communities and the residents who live there by providing critically needed financing often unavailable from mainstream financial institutions. HVADC is the only CDFI in the region exclusively dedicated to providing funding to farm and food enterprises in economically disadvantaged communities. Funding for the BIPOC Microloan Accelerator has been made possible through a grant received from Empire State Development.

“HVADC is continuing its efforts to support equity and inclusion through this opportunity for BIPOC farm and food business owners,” said Mary Ann Johnson, HVADC Deputy Director. “Past HVADC Accelerator programs have resulted not only in positive economic outcomes for the participants, but all have rated the aspects of relationship and community-building as being beneficial to enhancing their network and businesses,” she continued. 

The entrepreneurs selected to participate in the BIPOC Microloan Accelerator will be those that have promising business concepts where greater financial literacy and access to capital can make a significant and positive impact on the future of their business. These impact measurements include significant sales growth, increased profitability, job retention and creation, and enhanced sustainability of the business. Those successfully completing the program benchmarks will each receive a low-interest $5,000 microloan from the HVADC Agribusiness Loan Fund.

The BIPOC Microloan Accelerator is specifically tailored to fit the needs of agribusinesses owned by those in underserved populations in rural areas, particularly those defined as low- to mid-income, startups, nonemployee firms, those with no access to capital in the traditional sense, and minority groups (businesses owned by women, persons with disabilities, LGBTQ+ persons, and Black, Latino, Indigenous and Native American, Asian and Pacific Islanders, and other persons of color).

To learn more about the BIPOC Microloan Accelerator and to apply, visit https://www.hvadc.org/business-technical-assistance/bipocmicroloanaccelerator.

 Questions about the program may be addressed to Duane Stanton dstanton@hvadc.org.