Begun in August of 1998, the Quitman County Micro-Enterprise and Business
Development Program, located in Marks, is an organization put into place to
help existing businesses grow and new ventures start out right. Part of the
Quitman County Development Organization, a non-profit group, the
Micro-Enterprise Center is run by director Antoinette Green, a Quitman
County native.
"I was working on my Masters degree in economic development, and when I
received my degree, I was offered this position," Green says. "Our
organization is a Kellogg Mid-South Delta Initiative project, a group that
partners with us and helped us initially get off the ground," Green adds
"Our target group to help assist is women and minority-owned businesses,"
Green says. "We are working diligently to try to increase business
development in this area, especially with these types of businesses.
However, I want to stress that we do much more than just try to help obtain
loans for businesses," Green adds. "We also stress training and technical
assistance and work with the Small Business Development Center in those
areas."
As of today, the Micro-Enterprise program has given out four loans that
were approved by the organization's loan committee, made up of
Tallahatchie, Panola, and Quitman County representatives. "After their
initial approval, we must get approval from the U.S. Rural Development
Authority, which is actually where our funds for loans come from," Green
says.
One of the four loans given out went to a Mr. and Mrs. Reed, owners of North
Panola County Daycare, who received a loan for $25,000 from the program to
complete renovations on their new building. Currently, North Panola County
Daycare is the only daycare serving the Sardis, MS area. A Sledge, MS
business, owned by a Mr. and Mrs Lewis, also received a loan from the
Micro-Enterprise program to renovate and stock a new convenience store to
open within the next few months.
"Ultimately, we hope that we can increase the awareness and knowledge of
what it takes to be an entrepreneur, all of the facets and factors involved
in being successful," Green states. "There are a lot of challenges in the
communities we serve, simply because there is not much business development
here. We want to assist and provide help to our clients to get them off the
ground. We aren't just a loan program," Green reiterates. "Micro-Enterprise
is here to help in all aspects of helping a business grow."
"Our program has been partnering with many other organizations to bring
entrepreneurs in this area to the table with trainers and other financial
institutions to create a cooperative environment in which businesses can
grow and flourish," Green summarizes.