Micro Credit New Hampshire Helps The Smallest Of Small Businesses

Micro Credit New Hampshire helps the smallest of small businesses get on their feet.

MicroCredit-NH is a program and registered trademark of the New Hampshire Community Loan Fund, a New Hampshire non-profit corporation.

First started by the Loan Fund in 1996, MicroCredit-NH provides self-employed and small business entrepreneurs with access to:

• Business training
• Loans up to $15,000
• Networking opportunities

These business essentials are provided through a unique network of over 60 peer groups each made up of four to 10 members who have different small businesses, both product-based and service-oriented. The peer group offers its members ongoing assistance to help them achieve business success.

Here’s one of their success stories…

Dan Bishop
Nature’s Way Gutter Systems, Dover, NH
MicroCredit-NH Group: Empowered Entrepreneurs

The third time is a charm.

But in the case of Dan Bishop, the first and second times were too.

He’s received three loans from MicroCredit-NH in as many years. From the first loan of $500 for a trade show fee to the latest of $5000 for new equipment and modifications to his truck, his business, Nature’s Way Gutter Systems, has skyrocketed in clients and reputation.

“Three years ago, people blew me off, “said the 46-year-old, a former construction worker whose 18-year-old son, Dan, Jr., helps him install the covered, self-cleaning roof gutters. “Now, my business has taken on a life of its own. I’ve gotten so many calls in such a wide radius, that I’ve stopped advertising over such a wide range.�

“Dan is such a fine example of what $500 can do to leverage a business,� said Rob Riley, director of Micro-Credit-NH, a program started by the Loan Fund in 1996.

Dan was unable to borrow money through traditional channels because of a poor credit history which, he says, stemmed from a messy divorce. “I heard that with Microcredit, my credit would not matter.�

He joined a Dover-based Micro-Credit-NH borrowers’ group, named by them, the “Empowered Entrepreneurs,� which includes a potter, a pet care vendor, candle makers, a baker of dog snacks and a poet. The group, which provides support, shares Micro-Credit-NH tutorials and decides collectively on member requests for loans, was invaluable to Dan.

“The most important part for me has been the brainstorming and sharing what works and doesn’t work,� said the father of five children.

“Micro-Credit gave me a second chance to prove myself,� he said. “I’ve been pretty fortunate. The work has come my way.�