Graphic Mechanic Design Studio, LLC, owned by WEDA client Joey Johnson, offers professional graphic and web design, print assistance, t-shirt design and laser printing on small print jobs. Joey has pursued a business development strategy centered on public- and private-sector procurement and, as a result, her company has been awarded a number of contracts that include the Atlanta Black Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce, City of College Park, Georgia Board of Regents, Georgia Council for the Arts, National Parks and Recreation, Turner Broadcasting Systems, Women in Cable and Telecommunications and WEDA (Graphic Mechanic designed the organization’s website).

“Before attending WEDA’s microenterprise program, I had made several efforts to prepare a business plan, but felt very lost,” said Joey, who worked for more than eight years as a graphic designer with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (“CDC”) where she was responsible for high profile publications like the agency’s annual report, “State of CDC.” “Having the thorough training that WEDA provided and the physical business plan allowed me to have better clarity about my overall business goals. I was able to map out specific deliverables that yielded positive growth. Even after I completed my business plan, WEDA was a consistent resource that helped me to stay on track.”

Joey’s thorough planning and dedication to her goals have paid off. In 2006, Graphic Mechanic’s annual revenue doubled versus 2005 and, this past October, Joey resigned from CDC to pursue her business full-time.

Graphic Mechanic, LLC
678.571.2243
www.graphi cmechanic.com
joeyjohnson@graphicmechanic.com

Innovative Bank is based in Oakland, California and specializes in serving the needs of small- to mid-sized businesses, including those who often are underserved by the country’s major financial institutions. Since 2003, Innovative Bank has approved and funded more than 11,000 SBA 7(a) loans, making it the nation’s 4th largest 7(a) lender.

One of Innovative Bank’s most innovative products is its Small Office / Home Office (“SOHO”) program, through which WEDA originates micro-loans up to $50,000 which can be used for a variety of business expenses, including for working capital. SOHO loans are SBA-guaranteed and are specifically tailored to meet the needs of start-up, minority or other types of businesses that may be unable to obtain business credit through “traditional” lending channels. The SOHO loan program typically offers quick underwriting, with most decisions rendered in less than two weeks and funds electronically deposited to the borrower’s business bank account within another week.

In November, WEDA helped Innovative Bank pilot a new instant approval process for SOHO loans through a day-long, on-site event in which more than 75 percent of loan applicants received approvals – all of them within a matter of minutes.

WEDA graduate, Marcia Dickerson, principal of Marcia D. Dickerson & Associates LLC, an on-line media and publishing business whose self-help book series will be published in 2007, said the SOHO instant approval process was “painless and unbelievably easy! Although you had to prove yourself as a viable business entity [by submitting Articles of Incorporation, evidence of an Employer Identification Number and proof of a business checking account], you did not need to present your business plan, proposal, etc. My experiences with past loans had been such that you are with a loan agent for a minimum of 45 minutes to however long, signing paper after paper after paper. This process was computer generated, right down to receiving an offer on the spot – just outstanding.”

In addition to its regularly-scheduled, monthly micro- loan orientations, WEDA is planning to host two more SOHO instant approval events in May and September 2007.