Rising Tide Capital Launches 2011 Annual Report

During a funder briefing which preceded the Community Business Academy graduation on May 31^st, Rising Tide Capital launched its 2011 annual report. Here are some of the things we learned:

Our impact:

• • • • • • • • 85% Graduation Rate
          • 233 Entrepreneurs Currently in Business
          • 200 in Planning Stage

In 2011 alone, 96 full and part time jobs were created by Rising Tide Entrepreneurs like Chelo Mercado, the founder of the Grassroots Community Space.

“Just in September, I was going to give this all up. Now I feel very confident about what I’m doing and I can proudly say today, I’m a full time entrepreneur,” said Chelo Mercado who graduated from the Community Business Academy in December 2011.

Who we serve:

• 82% minorities
• 65% women
• 68% low-to-moderate income

The average entrepreneur at Rising Tide Capital is a 40 year-old mother of two children earning less than $33,000 per year. Meanwhile, local cost of living calculations indicate that her income would need to be $47,763 to be considered financially self-sufficient. Learn more about the entrepreneurs we work with every day by visiting our Entrepreneur Profiles and Testimonials page.

Our Programs

In partnership with the City of Orange Township and JPMorgan Chase, Rising Tide Capital hosted its first ever Community Business Academy session outside of Jersey City in 2011. To help provide for the ever-expanding class of Rising Tide graduates, Rising Tide Capital launched several new initiatives including:

• The Help Desk: Hand selected local entrepreneurs ranging from general business coaches to specialists from project-based consultants to professionals such as lawyers, accountants and graphic designers, are paid by Rising Tide Capital to provide their expert advice to graduates of the CBA. Read More.

• Access to Capital Partnership: While most businesses start with personal savings and loans from friends and family- many Rising Tide Entrepreneurs need to turn to the cash flow they generates from their nascent businesses to start and grow businesses. Since that is not always possible or advisable, Rising Tide Capital has built relationships with a number of microlenders such as the Intersect Fund to serve as sources of capital.

• Rising Tide Exchange: Rising Tide Capital launched the beta version of the Rising Tide Exchange with generous funding from a 2011 grant awarded by the Citi Foundation. In addition to boosting each featured entrepreneurs’ online presence, this new platform allows entrepreneurs to connect with one another and the general public. The website includes profiles of featured entrepreneurs, a small business blog, and resources for Rising Tide Entrepreneurs.

Rising Tide Capital also hosted New Jersey's largest celebration of Global Entrepreneurship Week, Start Something NJ, drawing nearly 600 New Jerseyans.

Start something for your community today by making a contribution to our mission.

*Statistics represent data collected throughout the year as well as the 2011 annual outcomes survey. To learn about the woman behind the numbers, Rising Tide Capital’s Program Evaluation Manager, read 5 Questions with Louisa Cousins.