Small Business - Big Impact
“Supporting and empowering small businesses is key to our community’s success – when our community members develop and thrive, the entire community succeeds!” – Yee Vue
Meet Yee Vue, a Hmong American woman and refugee who learned the significance of libraries and the access to information they provide while working at the Memorial Library at the University of Wisconsin – Madison’s campus. The experience prompted her to pursue her Masters of Library and Information Science. Initially, Yee wanted to be in academic libraries but a spontaneous internship at the Appleton Public Library dramatically changed her motive. And so her professional story in public libraries begins.
Yee is currently the Adults Services and Engagement Librarian for the Community Partnerships team at the Appleton Public Library in Wisconsin. Yee spearheads an initiative, Small Business – Big Impact, that is funded by the American Library Association’s Libraries Build Business program. The Appleton Public Library was one of the thirteen public libraries across the nation to receive the competitive grant.
Their innovative model sparked after having many conversations with community partners on ways to support small businesses and local entrepreneurs. Yee notices a lack of entrepreneurs in her community who are aware of the free library tools available for them to strengthen their business plan or market research analysis. Small Business – Big Impact aims to connect the business and entrepreneur community to library tools as well as support business start up, retention, and expansion for and with people of color and immigrants.
The first component focuses on business start up. A series of workshops, Start Your Business: Stories and Strategies, highlights local business owners who share their strategies, challenges, and triumphs with business start up. A diverse set of speakers were selected, ranging from restaurant owners to creative entrepreneurs, young to well-seasoned professionals. All workshops have been operating in virtual spaces due to the pandemic. The second component focuses on business retention and expansion. An academy will be formed and dedicated to training selected participants in business management. Individuals will attend as a cohort to support one another through informative and hands-on learning practices. It will be a comprehensive class taught by a highly-qualified instructor with years of professional experience. The grant award of $65,000 will cover speaker and instructor fees, consulting, and marketing. All workshops and classes are free and open to the public. There are future plans to continue both components of the initiative but it may not operate at the same level as now, during the grant period.
With the pandemic directly affecting small businesses across the nation, Small Business – Big Impact hopes to be a part of businesses’ plans to bounce back and recover. To learn more about how you can bring something similar to your community, listen to this podcast episode with Yee Vue. Yee explains the initiative in more detail and shares some challenges along with the impact it brings to local business owners and entrepreneurs. If you have any questions, feel free to contact Yee Vue at yvue@apl.org.
Libraries Build Business
Small Business - Big Impact