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For a list of resources, please visit our COVID-19: Small Business Resource page.
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COVID-19: Small Business Resources

Our hearts go out to you, your families, and all of our communities during this uncertain time. While this is a challenging, scary situation for everyone, we know that it is especially difficult for those, like so many of you, who are working to build a new business or keep a small, local business afloat. Now and always, you are our greatest inspiration. Below, please find a list of resources for small businesses during this difficult time.

For the latest COVID-19 health information and related campus announcements, please visit: https://coronavirusupdates.uchicago.edu

View the Small Business Bootcamp recorded sessions.

Acknowledgements:

The Polsky COVID-19: Small Business Resources guide is made possible by a community of Booth students (Naila Dharani, Faisal Akkawi, Jennifer Linker, Balthazar Bergkamp, Kate Sercombe, and Graham Lombardi), Booth professors Marianne Bertrand and Sendhil Mullainathan, SSA Professor Nicole Marwell, staff from the Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation, the Office of Civic Engagement, the Rustandy Center for Social Sector Innovation, as well as Accion and LISC.

Financial & Logistical Support

  • The Mansa Fund, Lee Moulton founded The Mansa Fund to help bridge the funding gaps that are putting promising Black and LatinX businesses at a disadvantage.  
  • Paycheck Protection Program: Coronavirus Assistance — Coronavirus Assistance – Small Businesses
  • Workest: A list of top SBA lenders and whether they are accepting loan applications under the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP)
  • UChicago: Community Support | Coronavirus Updates 
  • Baker Donelson: Forgivable Small Business Loan, Paycheck Protection Program CARES Act
  • DCEO: Illinois Small Business Emergency Loan Fund, The Illinois Small Business Emergency Loan Fund offers small businesses low interest loans of up to $50,000. Businesses located outside of the City of Chicago with fewer than 50 workers and less than $3 million in revenue in 2019 will be eligible to apply
  • Small Business Administration: Economic Injury Disaster Loans
    • Provides small businesses with working capital loans of up to $2 million that can provide vital economic support to small businesses to help overcome the temporary loss of revenue. If you wish to apply for the Advance on your EIDL, please visit https://covid19relief.sba.gov/#/ as soon as possible to fill out a new, streamlined application. In order to qualify for the Advance, you need to submit this new application even if you previously submitted an EIDL application. Applying for the Advance will not impact the status or slow your existing application.
  • Small Business Administration: SBA Express Bridge Loans
    • Allows small businesses who currently have a business relationship with an SBA Express Lender to access up to $25,000 with less paperwork
  • Small Business Administration: Local Assistance
    • SBA works with local partners to counsel, mentor, and train small businesses (e.g., help SBs craft a plan to navigate any rapid changes in demand due to covid)
  • Facebook: Small Business Grants Program
    • Cash grants and ad credits for up to 30K businesses in 30 countries
  • Local Initiatives Support Corporation: Verizon/LISC Small Business Covid-19 Recovery Fund
    • Grants of up to $10,000 from an investment of $2.5 million from Verizon to support struggling businesses, especially entrepreneurs of color, women-owned businesses and other enterprises that don’t have access to flexible, affordable capital in historically underserved communities
  • Mastercard: Small Business’ Financial Security, Mastercard Commits $250 Million To Support Small Business’ Financial Security.
  • Hello Alice: COVID-19 Business for All Emergency Grant, This opportunity offers immediate grants of $10,000 to businesses affected by the coronavirus pandemic.
  • Spanx by Sara Blakely Foundation: The Red Backpack Fund, The Spanx by Sara Blakely Foundation donated $5 million to support female entrepreneurs in the wake of COVID-19 and teamed up with GlobalGiving to establish the Red Backpack Fund. GlobalGiving will be overseeing the fund, making 1,000 grants of $5,000 each to female entrepreneurs in the U.S. to help alleviate the immediate needs and support the long-term recovery of those impacted by this crisis.
  • GoFundMe, Yelp & Intuit: The Small Business Relief Initiative
    • Added functionality on Yelp for small businesses to collect donations
  •  Lunchbox & Eniac Ventures: Help Main Street
    • Platform for discovering and buying gift cards from small businesses
  • Google: Ad credits for Google Ads
    • $340 million in ad credits, which can be used at any point until the end of 2020 across our Google Ads platforms for SMBs who have been active advertisers since the beginning of 2019 
  • Kiva: 0% interest loans
    • Platform that allows entrepreneurs to crowdsource a 0% interest loan of up to $15,000
  • Kabbage: Gift Certificate Program
    • Platform that allows SBs to sell gift cards with a value between $15-500
  • UChicago Institute for Justice: Shop in Place Chicago
    • Site for consumers to discover small business in Chicago that are still operating
  • Amazon: Neighborhood Small Business Relief Fund 
    • Cash grants to small businesses in and around the Seattle area
  • The SnapBar: Keep Your City Smiling
    • Sells gift boxes containing products of local, small businesses (Seattle)
  • Rally for Restaurants: Gift Cards
  • Honeycomb: Crowdfunded Small Business Relief Loan 
    • Community sourced loans for small businesses affected by COVID-19. The loans are community funded via the Honeycomb crowdfunding platform. 
  • Honeycomb: Credit Loyalty Bond Platform, Crowdfunded gift card subscription product that vests to a higher value over a twenty-four month period. Get cash flow now, without having to redeem all your gift cards sold once you reopen. Businesses with at least 1 year of operating history, strong social media and/or email following, and a physical or online shop that accepts gift cards are encouraged to apply.
  • Square: Give and Get Local, local businesses need your support. You can give your favorite Square merchants a boost by buying digital gift cards.
  • Fanbank: COVID-19 Small Business Relief Program
  • The Mom Project: Stronger Together Fund, a $500,000 fund that will provide grants to small businesses that have been hit hard during the COVID-19 pandemic.
  • Learn from a Chef: Online Cooking Classes
  • $1,200 Payment from the IRS: Free File: Do Your Federal Taxes for Free, IRS Tax Filing for independent workers and freelancers are entitled to receive a $1,200 payment ($2,400 for married couples) from the IRS, plus an additional $500 per dependent 16 years or younger. Additionally, the deadline for federal tax return filing has been extended to July 15, 2020
  • Gusto: COVID-19 Small Business Relief Finder – Answer questions, get relief
  • Inspire360: Fit Pro Relief Fund, the Fit Pro Relief Fund was created to support fitness professionals impacted by COVID-19. The $500,000 fund seeks to help the fitness and wellness industry, which has been hit very hard by the pandemic. They will give around $1,000 to 500 applicants who meet the criteria for eligibility.

Information Support

Legal Support

Resource Aggregators

Mental Health Support

Workplace Safety Products

Resource Guide Updates

We will continue to update this resource guide as we learn of additional opportunities and information. If you have information or resources to add to this resource guide, please contact Isra Omar at iomar@uchicago.edu.

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