The Women’s Business Center of Utah (WBCUtah) helps women build confidence, create opportunities and experience success in business ownership. Their services include one-on-one advising, available in-person, online or via video call and group training taught by small-business owners and subject matter experts, both at the center locations as well as offsite within a variety of communities.
“The Women's Business Center of Utah is privileged to interact with, on a daily basis, women business owners and aspiring entrepreneurs across the state,” said Ann Marie Wallace, state director of the Women's Business Center of Utah. “We have seen them firsthand overcome self-doubt and move forward with new- found skills and knowledge to create businesses that grow and thrive. We are thrilled to be recognized for providing exceptional female-focused services and will continue to reach, assist and champion women owners.”
Unique to the WBCUtah is the Online WBC Network available to rural women business owners throughout the state in partnership with rural chambers of commerce. Each chamber has a webpage with local resources and online support for women business owners with online training powered by the WBCUtah. Online courses and livestream classes, tools and resources, customized for women, are available to any business owner.
The WBCUtah has been using virtual platforms for years in order to serve all the counties in Utah. However, when everyone in the world was forced to conduct their business virtually it expedited their growth and services. On top of their mentoring and trainings the WBCUtah recently has been able to:
• Create two new cohort programs that were launched within the past two years: Ms. Biz for those looking to start a business and Next Step for those already in business provide the synergy of lessons, project assignments, mentors and peer-to-peer learning/support. The programs have so far produced 85-plus graduates.
• Successfully launch the first-ever Utah Women-Owned Business Directory at UtahWomenOwned.com. The directory can be filtered by keyword, industry or county and city, making it more powerful and helpful for local use. There are currently 1,000 women-owned businesses listed and it continues to grow.
• Launch its first podcast, “Women Own It!”, with 3,000 downloads. It is in its third season.
• Partner with Kiva US to promote and provide assistance for their 0 percent-interest crowdfunded loans.
• Continue to collaborate with Utah Women’s Networking Group and Utah Microloan Fund to host the annual Women’s Entrepreneurial Conference and Grant Competition, which has awarded over $90,000 in the past five years to women business owners to help them take advantage of a growth opportunity.
• Take part part in SBA Utah District Office’s second iteration of its Rapid Response Team (RRT), helping to reply quickly using a central inbox for questions regarding COVID relief assistance programs, including EIDL and PPP loans. The center also collaborated with SBA and the Utah Restaurant Association to provide training and support on SBA’s Restaurant Revitalization Fund grant application.
Helping women entrepreneurs achieve their dreams is really what the Women’s Business Center of Utah is all about. Their passion is to help women turn their talents and little side hustles into official businesses. As they mentor amazing women, they are able to see them start and grow companies, provide financial support for their families, create jobs and contribute to their communities and the Utah economy.