Small business owners and entrepreneurs in Turlock will have an opportunity to learn more about funding opportunities at the City of Turlock’s first ever Small Business Funding Expo on Jan. 18. The event, which is a collaborative effort between the City of Turlock, Valley Sierra Small Business Development Center, Central Valley Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and Stanislaus Equity Partners, hopes to connect members of the public with experts and resources needed to successfully fund or kickstart their endeavors.

Anthony Sims serves as the City of Turlock’ economic development director and explained that the workshop, which has been in the works for nearly four months, is something that community members can greatly benefit from, especially in current economic circumstances.

“Startups and small businesses account for over 90% of our U.S. economy. We can really impact our economy by helping these groups,” Sims said. “Also, most small businesses are so busy staying afloat and running their business, they don't have time to research the available capital funding opportunities that are out there for them. Funding opportunities are vital to the entrepreneur and small businesses economy. What's even more crucial is getting that information and sharing it with them. We need to help create that spark. We need to assist in the incubation of entrepreneurialism and helping small businesses survive and scale up their business.”

Numerous guest speakers will be on hand, including Maisie Silva (Project Manager from of Valley Sierra SBDC), Johnny Garcia (Executive Director of the Central Valley Hispanic Chamber of Commerce) and Monica Vergara (Small Business Services for Stanislaus Equity Partners).

“The event will cover a diverse lineup of funding options for small businesses and entrepreneurs,

including SBA loans, micro-loans, small business loans, and small business credit,” explained Silva. “Loans can be an overwhelming ordeal for many business owners. This event is here to guide and assist our local businesses through the process.”

In addition to the guest speakers, representatives from Valley First Credit Union, Access Plus Capital, Success Capital, and the Small Business Administration (SBA) will be present to answer any specific questions or to help get started on pursuing some of the opportunities.

“Any individuals wanting to start a business in 2023 and are thinking of asking friends and family for funding, before they ask, they should consider attending the expo to learn about other available funding options for start-ups,” added Vergara.

Silva shared similar sentiments, acknowledging the fact that many individuals may be pondering big career moves with the start of the new year.

“We encourage potential entrepreneurs to attend to discover potential loan opportunities,” she said. It’s never too early to turn your dream into a reality.”

The workshop will be held at the Carnegie Arts Center at 250 N. Broadway in Turlock. Check-ins will take place at 1 p.m. with the event officially kicking off at 1:30 p.m. and lasting till 4 p.m. The expo is entirely free, but attendees are encouraged to preregister online at Eventbrite by searching “Small Business Funding Expo” in the search bar with location set to “Turlock.”

“Within economic we need to assist and be a connecter for businesses,” Sims said. “The funding expo will be an outstanding and exciting opportunity to share capital funding opportunities with small businesses and entrepreneurs.”