The Wisconsin Women’s Business Initiative Corp. has received a grant from the U.S. Small Business Association to open a Veterans Business Outreach Center in Milwaukee.
The center will serve veterans seeking to open businesses in Wisconsin, Illinois and Minnesota. There are 21 other VBOCs nationwide, which provide training and counseling for budding veteran entrepreneurs. All of the U.S. VBOCs received a total of $6.6 million in funding, but the breakout of the amount provided to WWBIC was not available.
The SBA funding will cover the first year of operations for the VBOC, with the option to apply for four more one-year grants. The VBOC will be located within WWBIC’s existing Milwaukee office, and it will hire a new employee to lead the center.
WWBIC is already an SBA Women’s Business Center and Community Advantage lender. The nonprofit organization provides microloans and training to entrepreneurs.
