Be careful of those grants for businesses that are supposedly out there -- there s lots of SCAMsYou may also want to read the warnings FTC has issued against these grant companies:http://www.ftc.gov/opa/2004/03/grantreso��http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer��Here is also one of the warnings issued by the Better Business Bureau http://www.concord.bbb.org/tips_timeshar��It is hard to find grants to start a business. Unlike the myths that some perpetuate, federal government and even private foundations hardly give grant money for starting a for-profit business. One possible exception is for companies developing or exporting agricultural goods, including food and forest product. Another exception could be the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) or Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs http://www.sba.gov/aboutsba/sbaprograms/�� , which fund the research and development of technological innovation that meets specific government needs.Your best bet actually will be from the states if they offer grant programs for women (or any other special interest groups -- minorities, women, disabled, veterans, etc). Or check with non profit organizations, particularly women organizations if they offer grants. Examples includeIowa Women s Foundation http://www.iawf.org/New Mexico Women s Foundation http://www.nmwf.org/guidelines.htmlEven SBA does NOT give out grants. From the SBA website http://www.sba.gov/mostrequesteditems/CO�� The U.S. Small Business Administration does not offer grants to start or expand small businesses, although it does offer a wide variety of loan programs. (See http://www.sba.gov/financing for more information) While SBA does offer some grant programs, these are generally designed to expand and enhance organizations that provide small business management, technical, or financial assistance. These grants generally support non-profit organizations, intermediary lending institutions, and state and local governments. Nonetheless, you can go to the Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) http://www.cfda.gov and Grants.gov http://www.grants.gov - these are two sites created by the federal government to provide transparency and information on grants. Browse through the listings and see if you can find any grant that would support a for-profit venture.
Don t bother as there are no grants for a small business. You should contact your local SBA office about SBA guaranteed loans.
