Mountain BizWorks :: Training | Financing

Mountain BizWorks has educated me, and encouraged me to build confidence within myself.

LeSaunta Karone Wilson - Customer Inspired Services LLC

The Laughing Mermaid Soap Company
Category: Retail - House and Home
Mary Novak
191 Lyman Street, Studio 222
Asheville, NC 28801
Phone: (828) 713-5190
Email: thelaughingmermaid@gmail.com
Website: http://www.thelaughingmermaid.com

Handmade aromatherapy soaps and bath and body products.

The Works
Category: Retail - House and Home
Mary Dill
David "Terry" Dill
PO Box 1492
Hendersonville, NC 28793
Phone: (828)696-1720
Email: maryhdill@yahoo.com

Decorative art service for faux finishes, color consulting, hand-painted tiles, mosaics, inlays, and stained glass. Other branches of service are home improvement and repair and professional painting.

Visit our online directory for a complete listing of alumni-owned and operated businesses!

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For over two decades, Mountain BizWorks has been in the hope business, the dream business, the opportunity business. We have been helping small business owners build the economy of Western North Carolina one business and one job at a time. Mountain BizWorks values serving all individuals who aspire to be entrepreneurs and they believe that people should be able to create a better life for themselves and their families through business ownership. Mountain BizWorks believes that successful businesses create long-term social benefits and economic prosperity, particularly in underserved communities. They value the dignity and work of each individual and encourage self-sufficiency, accountability, and cooperation. Furthermore, they value being a community that bridges the gap between entrepreneurs of varying incomes, geographies and ethnicities. Mountain BizWorks is an entrepreneurial, non-profit organization that operates with a double bottom line of social impact and financial viability -- ensuring a permanent resource for the Western North Carolina region.

In 2009, Mountain BizWorks was able to provide its services to 1074 entrepreneurs (65% were low-income, 61% were women, 26% were racial or ethnic minorities). Those individuals created 163 businesses and expanded 390 businesses. In turn, those businesses created 309 jobs and sustained 1147 jobs. We also made 49 loans totaling almost $792,800.

Since thriving small businesses are central to a vibrant regional economy, our vision is that every entrepreneur has access to business training, support, and capital for creating and sustaining successful businesses.

Alumni Spotlights

Casa dei Bambini: House of the Child is a bilingual village school with two communities – the toddler community is for ages 18-36 months and the preschool area is for 3-6 years. The center’s philosophy is that of a bilingual, family centered, and early childhood evidence-based practices approach. The school embraces hands-on experiential learning practices from many early childhood philosophies including Montessori, Reggio Emilia, and Waldorf (Steiner). The program includes a dual language immersion approach where half of the day is spent speaking Spanish and the other half speaking English. This facilitates the acquisition of a second language for both English and Spanish speaking children.

Since opening in September 2005, the school has grown to a staff of eight full-time employees with 60 students and a waiting list. The program runs year-round and the hours are Monday-Friday from 8:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m., with extended care until 5:30 p.m. For more information on Casa dei Bambini: House of the Child, visit their website www.houseofthechild.org or call 828-254-CASA.