Resources

One-on-One Consulting

Technical assistance is available to business owners and entrepreneurs at the DC and Maryland offices of LEDC. With one-on-one counseling on issues related to the establishment and management of businesses.

For aspiring entrepreneurs: Counseling sessions include assistance on business plan development, market analysis, balance sheet/financial document preparation, loan packaging, and assistance in dealing with governmental institutions, and legal advice through our partnerships with local legal aid clinics throughout the city. If you have a business idea that you want to take to the next step, be sure to check out our Small Business Consulting Program, our course listing, the resource page or call today to make your first appointment with a business counselor.

For current business owners: LEDC technical assistance addresses the context of the changing marketplace for current business owners at an individual level. Additionally it works with businesses collectively to form commercial identity and strengthen the bargaining power of individual business owners in a single area.

Local Latino and other small business owners are operating in areas that are experiencing significant redevelopment. For example, in the DC neighborhood of Columbia Heights, passersby stagger at the enormous buildings that are under construction. New condominiums, retail spaces, and parking garages are slated for the area, and national chains have committed spaces.

Similarly, downtown Wheaton, MD (where LEDC’s Maryland office is located) is known and loved for its vibrant, minority-owned small business community. But in the last several years, the town has seen deep investment from large, national retailers. This rapid growth infuses the neighborhood with renewed investment and traffic, but also poses a challenge to small businesses.

Through one-on-one consulting, current business owners can gain new tools and skills in marketing, finance, contracting, and inventory management that will help them not only prevent displacement of their businesses but also help create new opportunities for expansion and improvement.