CHERAW – On Tuesday, the Greater Cheraw Chamber of Commerce sponsored a ‘Stimulus Package” seminar at Northeastern Technical College to discuss the hot topic of the day, “The impact of the Stimulus Package’.

U.S. Small Business Administration South Carolina District Director Elliott Cooper captured the attention of everyone present as he focused on positive aspects on how small business owners and non-profit organizations can apply for business loans and other financial means.

“If I gave you my car keys and my credit card, and told you to California, what else would you need?” The reply was simple,

“A roadmap,” said Cooper. He continued to add, “With the ever-changing status of today’s economy, it is imperative for businesses as well as individuals to gather as much information as possible to survive during hard times.” Elliott spoke of the various types of business loans that are available and backed up by the SBA.

“One type of Small Business Loan is what we call a 7(a) loan. It is for interested borrowers such as entrepreneurs who are seeking to start, expand or acquire a small business,” he said.

In a recent study by the Urban Institute, SBA-backed loans are three to five times more likely to be made to minority and women owned businesses than conventional small business loans made by banks.

According to www.sba.gov/sc, Scott Bellows of the USC Small Business Development Center in Columbia said, "Business is booming at the Small Business Development Center [and other counseling organizations],"

Some of SBA's resource partners and organizations that provide free and confidential small business counseling include SCORE, Counselors to America’s Small Business, Small Business Development Center, South Carolina Women’s Business Center. Also, Counseling and Training Resources are available through SBA’s resource partners. Other agencies and nonprofit organizations include the S.C. Department of Consumer Affairs, IRS Small Business and Self-Employed Center and the U.S. Export Assistance Center.

To wind down the session, Elliott advised to stay away from using credit cards to keep a business going should it run out of working capital.

‘They call that “Plastic Capital” and that is one of the worse things a small business owner could do. Some things we cannot get around such as forms to be filled out and certain criteria that must be met by the applicant before any loan is approved, but we are here to serve you because this is what we do,” concluded Elliott.

To learn more about the U.S. Small Business Administration go to www.sba.gov/sc.