WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — Wilmington Downtown Incorporated announced their first-ever microloan program for small businesses on Tuesday.
The new WDI microloan program, in partnership with Civic Federal Credit Union, is designed to help small businesses get access to startup funds, navigate the impacts of COVID-19, and otherwise thrive in the Wilmington area.
The program is a revamp of a previous loan program that would give $50,000 to $100,000 mostly to developers and commercial real estate owners to improve the appearance of their buildings, but after little activity in the account since 2018 because of larger-scale development in the area, WDI got permission from the City of Wilmington to change the use to help small businesses.
“Instead of just benefitting developers or property owners, it would help the small businesses that are in those properties,” WDI President and CEO Holly Childs said.
The microloans are short-term, low-interest loans that can be used for a wide range of needs from rent to inventory to expanding e-commerce capabilities, differing from most other small business loans.
With as little as a two-week application-to-approval process and the ability to defer the initial payment for up to six months, Childs says they have worked to make the program as flexible as possible.
“We think if we can help them with just this little bit more cash, which is hard to come by, operating money especially in a time like this,” Childs said. “That if they can have six more months to ramp up this will kind of really help them to weather the last of the storm and hopefully be back to some sort of new normal in six months.”
Small businesses in the region’s central, commercial and emerging business districts are eligible to apply, though Childs says they hope to help minority, women, and veteran-owned businesses in particular.
WDI microloan terms include:
- Amounts: Maximum loan amount is $20,000
- Maximum Terms: 5 years
- Initial Payment Deferral: Approved loans have initial payments deferred for six months
- Businesses must be located within one of the downtown districts of Wilmington, N.C.
Contact the WDI office to begin the application process or for more information at [email protected]
Read More: WDI announces microloan program to help small businesses ‘weather the last