Description
Illustration pertaining to creating entrepreneurial communities lessons from 10 rural demonstrations.
At a glance: In recent months, 10 economically distressed communities in North Carolina have
accomplished something rather remarkable. Using a small public investment from the N.C. Rural
Economic Development Center and N.C. Department of Commerce, the communities have estab-
lished results-oriented entrepreneurship development programs that have trained local entrepreneurs,
grown businesses and produced jobs. From August 2004 through fall 2005, the 10 communities
helped nearly 400 people gain access to
entrepreneurial skills training or other types
of business services. Most impressive, they
created 49 new businesses and 75 jobs in 22
rural counties, with most of the jobs going to
low and moderate income workers. This report
is a snapshot taken in early 2006 of the
demonstration programs. The communities are expected to continue their efforts well beyond the
first year, demonstrating that entrepreneurship can be supported at the community level. The report
highlights the activities of each demonstration team and offers lessons for other rural North Carolina
communities interested in starting programs of their own.
Rural Center
Project Team
Leslie Scott
Malinda Todd
Catherine Moga Bryant
Michelle Hall
“This program is much bigger than the initial
jobs that will be created with the grant funds.
It’s about establishing a culture of entrepreneurship
that will sustain small business development in
rural communities for years to come.”
Billy Ray Hall,
N.C. Rural Center President, early 2004
Creating
Entrepreneurial Communities
Lessons from 10 rural demonstrations in North Carolina
CARTERET
WATAUGA
BURKE
MACON
COLUMBUS
BERTIE
SWAIN
GRAHAM
CHEROKEE
CLAY
JACKSON
TYRRELL
HYDE
BEAUFORT
MARTIN
YANCEY
WASHINGTON
Community Entrepreneurship Demonstrations
Entrepreneurial Development
Partnership
Revitalize Yancey!
Sound Jobs:
Homegrown
Businesses
that Come
Naturally
E³: Encapsulating
Entrepreneurial Enterprises
Stimulating the Mom
& Pop Economy
Town of Williamston:
Williamston Incubator Program
Bertie County is participating in both the Sound Jobs and Roanoke Center’s Initiatives
Town of Elkin:
Growing Entrepreneurs
SURRY
Entrepreneurial Stimulus
Program
Roanoke Center’s
Entrepreneurship Plan
Marine & Aquaculture
Resource and Training
GATES
HERTFORD
NORTHAMPTON
HALIFAX
April 2006
2
In late 2003, the Rural Center and the N.C. Department of Commerce's Division of Community
Assistance (DCA) joined in a collaborative venture to determine if a small public investment in rural
entrepreneurship development would to lead to jobs and business creation in distressed communi-
ties. The Commerce Department contributed $440,000 from the North Carolina Small Cities
Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) toward the project, and the Rural Center contributed
$160,000 from its research and development budget. The center also offered its new Institute for
Rural Entrepreneurship to guide and staff the demonstration.
Communities interested in competing for demonstration grants were invited to participate
in two-day workshops to learn about the steps involved in designing an entrepreneurial support
project. Fifty-nine communities sent some 200 local leaders to the workshops. As part of the
application process, communities were required to form a local team to lead their project and to
design programs that build on the assets of their communities and address specific local challenges.
Of the 59 interested communities, 24 followed up with grant requests and eleven projects were
funded. Three projects tackled issues on a regional scale; seven focused on individual towns or
counties. (One community withdrew, but is now developing an entrepreneurship effort as part
of a regional economic development hub.) The grants were awarded to:
I Encapsulating Entrepreneurial Enterprises (or E
3
), covering six counties in the far
west, plus the Qualla Boundary, Eastern Band of the Cherokee Nation
I Roanoke Center's Entrepreneurship Plan, involving five counties in the northeast
I Sound Jobs: Homegrown Businesses that Come Naturally, covering five counties
bordering on the Albemarle and Pamlico sounds
I Entrepreneurial Stimulus Programof Burke County
I Marine and Aquaculture Resource Training (MART) of Carteret County
I Stimulating the Mom and Pop Economy of Columbus County
I Growing Entrepreneurs, led by the town of Elkin in Surry County
I Entrepreneurial Development Partnership of Watauga County
I Williamston Incubator Programof Martin County
I Revitalize Yancey! of Yancey County
Grants ranged from $30,000 to $100,000, depending on the scope of the project. Funds were made
available for the projects in August 2004, with up to 15 months to complete the work. During the
demonstration, representatives of all 10 projects gathered twice to share experiences and advice.
Entrepreneur:
Entrepreneurship:
A person who organizes, operates and assumes the risk for a venture.
- American Heritage Dictionary
The process of identifying, developing and bringing a vision to life. The vision may be an
innovative idea, an opportunity or simply a better way to do something. The end result
is the creation of a new venture.
- Jay Kayne, The Entrepreneurship Center at Miami University of Ohio
Community Entrepreneurship Demonstration
3
Four Steps Toward Entrepreneurial Development
1. Strategy: Pursue a Realistic Economic Opportunity
2. Leadership: Build and Connect Local Capacity
In designing and carrying out their projects, the Rural Center encouraged the local teams to consider
four major steps in entrepreneurship program development:
Strategy: Pursue a realistic economic opportunity
Leadership: Build and connect local capacity
Implementation: Create value for the entrepreneurs
Sustainability: Leverage resources to maintain momentum
Following is a brief overview of how the project teams put these principles to work.
Each project team built an entrepreneurship strategy based on local assets, including emerging
clusters of entrepreneurs not already receiving business assistance. Some of the efforts were sector-
focused, such as Carteret County's emphasis on boat-builders and Elkin's on tourism businesses.
Other projects focused on the stage of development: Columbus County on start-up "mom and pop"
businesses, E
3
on small business owners with growth aspirations.
The Sound Jobs team focused its strategy on emerging markets – evident in the prevalence of
bed and breakfast owners, retailers and tour guides in the region – and the region's commitment
to the natural environment. It then incorporated leadership training and community development.
Although the strategy focused on natural resource-based businesses, the partnership remained
flexible enough to work with other types of entrepreneurs in developing sustainable businesses.
The 10 demonstration teams showed that a variety of organizations have the potential to lead
an effective entrepreneurship development program. The local community college played the lead
role in both Carteret and Columbus counties and figured prominently in Burke County. A regional
university, Appalachian State, led the Watauga County effort. A local government was the central
player in the towns of Elkin and Williamston. Nonprofits took the lead role in the Sound Jobs and
Yancey County projects; these included a community development corporation, conservation groups
and a cultural resources commission. A regional electric membership cooperative led the Roanoke
Center effort and three experienced entrepreneurs led the E
3
project.
Each type of organization offered different strengths in leadership. Appalachian State had access
to faculty at the Walker College of Business who helped create and teach the small business work-
shop series. Carteret Community College linked boat-builders with its Marine Training and Education
Center. Roanoke Electric Membership Cooperative was well connected to community leaders
Community Economic
Development Goals
Designing an Effective Entrepreneurship Strategy
Capacity of Leadership
& Partners
Entrepreneurial
Talent
4
through its broad membership base. Elkin's active arts council was able to mobilize the arts commu-
nity for strong participation in events. The entrepreneurs in the E
3
project were able to attract
like-minded business people to their effort.
As these examples suggest, four key ingredients in creating a successful team are: 1) access to
training programs, teachers and educational resources; 2) ties to community leaders to help create
an environment where entrepreneurship is understood
and valued; 3) knowledge to find and connect credi-
bly with entrepreneurs; and 4) one person to inform
and connect all the partners and entrepreneurs.
Team leaders must recognize their own strengths
and weaknesses and seek out partners for the team
with complementary skills and experiences.
The demonstration teams learned that partner-
ships should be established early, with each
cooperating organization assisting in project design. It
was important that each team member be committed
to the project – to their own role as well as the overall
mission. One person may fill more than one role, but
that person should not fill all roles. New partners
should be engaged as needed to create broader
impact and fill gaps identified over time.
Just as entrepreneurs pursue opportunities, build networks, create value in their products and
services, and leverage resources, so must their supporters and service providers. Each community
team started out by marketing their services to the types of entrepreneurs prevalent locally – such as
craftspeople in Yancey County and minorities wanting
to become self-employed in the Roanoke region – but
learned that as the clients advance, their needs
changed. The community teams themselves had to
become more entrepreneurial to remain relevant to
their entrepreneurs. The community college in
Columbus County responded by helping the entrepre-
neurs create an entrepreneur club for ongoing mutual
support after completing education and technical assis-
tance programs. They also tapped into e-commerce
and digital literacy training from the e-NC Authority to
help their home-based entrepreneurs. Principals from
the Burke and Sound Jobs teams pursued their own continuing education in entrepreneurship
through such programs as Cooperative Extension’s Creating Business Opportunities program and the
Energizing Entrepreneurship curriculum offered by the Institute for Rural Entrepreneurship.
Three powerful ways the demonstration communities learned to create value for the
entrepreneurs were:
I involving experienced entrepreneurs as mentors and program recruiters;
I creating continuous feedback loops for entrepreneurs; and
I raising community awareness through newspaper articles, radio spots, business plan
competitions, or entrepreneur expos.
Organize the entrepreneurship
support team to include individ-
uals and groups with diverse
and complementary skills,
knowledge and contacts.
Lesson 2:
Focus on the local entrepreneurs.
Continue to adapt and add value
as their needs change.
Lesson 1:
3. Implementation: Create Ongoing Value for the Entrepreneurs
5
Each of the demonstration
communities looked for ways that
individual aspects of their projects could
continue after the grant program con-
cluded. Burke County, for example,
leveraged the resources of the local eco-
nomic development partnership and
community college to create and main-
tain a new position of enterprise
facilitator. The facilitator is now on the
staff of Western Piedmont Community
College's Small Business Center. Watauga
County's economic development leader-
ship has committed to helping fund
continuing training workshops with the
Appalachian Regional Development
Institute. Lead organizations also used the
program activities as a way to strengthen relationships across partner organizations, as E
3
's lead
entrepreneur did with Mountain Microenterprise Fund and others in southwestern North Carolina.
The organizations looked to entrepreneurs for assistance in creating and carrying on mentoring
and networking opportunities, which are now ongoing among Harkers Island boat-builders in
Carteret County and Burnsville's ceramic tile-makers in Yancey County. Columbus County's client
entrepreneurs have created their own independent club. The High Country Business Network, an
outgrowth of the Watauga project, now has dozens of entrepreneurs who enjoy free networking
events sponsored by local chambers and banks.
In building momentum for the longer-term future of a community-based entrepreneurship
effort, a few of the demonstration teams began to reach the youth in their communities. Sound Jobs
and Carteret County's teams both offered summer youth entrepreneurship camps in 2005 using
training provided by N.C. REAL (the Rural
Entrepreneurship through Action Learning
program).
N.C. REAL also trained three middle
school teachers in the Burke County comm-
unity of Valdese. The enthusiasm of young
participants helps get parents and teachers
motivated and supportive of entrepreneurship. Furthermore, while such programs may seed future
entrepreneurial ventures, they also help young people understand the demands of entrepreneurship,
increasing their potential value as employees for other business owners.
While the ultimate goal of the Community Entrepreneurship Demonstration was job creation, the first
step was the establishment of partnerships that would provide the necessary long-term support and
encouragement for start-up companies and other small businesses. Most of the communities suc-
ceeded in this effort. Through entrepreneurial networks, local funding for full-time facilitators and
other measures, they have committed to continuing the work of the demonstration. Most also are
now active partners in the Institute for Rural Entrepreneurship's ongoing work to build an entrepre-
neur development system in each rural region of the state, in a project funded by the Kellogg
Foundation.
4. Sustainability: Leverage Resources to Maintain Momentum
“We saw a great interest on the part of the young
people to start businesses here in the county.”
Mavis Hill,
Tyrrell County Community Development Corporation
“The workshop was a chance for me to bounce my idea off of people to
tell me honestly what I would need to do to make this business successful.
It was the opportunity of a lifetime for me and a real blessing for the
community.” Lisa Clements, owner of the new Paradise Chocolatier in Boone.
Measures of Success
6
Project Name Area Served Targeted Entrepreneurs Education &Training
Encapsulating Entrepreneurial
Enterprises (E
3
)
Swain, Jackson, Macon, Clay,
Cherokee and Graham counties
and the Qualla Boundary
Existing small firms with growth
potential
Foundations of Business course from
Mountain Microenterprise Fund (MMF),
referrals to education programs at
community colleges and WCU.
Roanoke Center’s
Entrepreneurship Plan
Northampton, Halifax, Gates, Hertford
and Bertie counties
Start-ups and microenterprises,
primarily minority-owned
Roanoke Center hosts small business
workshops led by the local community
college.
Sound Jobs: Homegrown
Businesses that Come Naturally
Tyrrell, Washington, Hyde, Bertie and
Beaufort counties
Start-ups and microenterprises,
including natural resource-based
Customized series of business start-up
classes from Good Work, Inc.
Entrepreneurial Stimulus Program Burke County Start-ups and small businesses Classes from the Small Business
Center.
Marine and Aquaculture Resource
and Training (MART)
Carteret County Potential aquaculture and boat build-
ing entrepreneurs
Community college offered customized
workshops to boatbuilders on Harkers
Island in strengthening business skills.
Stimulating the Mom and Pop
Economy
Columbus County Start-ups and microenterprises Business classes from the Small
Business Center.
Growing Entrepreneurs Town of Elkin (Surry County) Arts, tourism and food-based start-ups
and microenterprises; focus on fine
and heritage crafts
Workshops from Yadkin Valley Craft
Guild.
Entrepreneurial Development
Partnership
Watauga County Start-ups and small businesses New series of small business work-
shops developed by ASU faculty.
Williamston Incubator Program Town of Williamston
(Martin County)
Downtown start-ups and small
businesses
Business classes at Small Business
Center; e-commerce classes at e-NC
telecenter.
Revitalize Yancey! Yancey County Artisans and craftsmen Business classes from the Small
Business Center; art and design
instruction from local craftsmen.
Snapshot of Demonstration Communities
7
Technical Assistance Access to Capital Business Networking Local Culture and Policy
Intensive, industry-specific coaching
from diverse team of experienced
entrepreneurs. E
3
also examines other
assistance providers prior to making
referrals.
Entrepreneurs are actively investigat-
ing angel and venture capital sources.
MMF is a startup lender and Sequoyia
Fund assists Native American clients.
MMF maintains an active network of
all graduates. Entrepreneurs refer
clients to various networks including
Blue Ridge Entrepreneurial Council.
Demo team leveraged a Cherokee
Preservation Foundation grant to MMF
tocreate a web-based referral system
among service providers.
One-on-one confidential assistance for
minorities interested in entrepreneur-
ship.
Resources on environmental steward-
ship from Conservation Fund and
Partnership for the Sounds.
Lead staff is an intake professional for
the Rural Center’s Microenterprise
Loan Program.
Peer group from classes continues to
meet within region. Networks include
local churches.
NC REAL summer camp for youth host-
ed by 4H of Eastern North Carolina.
One-on-one assistance and referrals
from a newly hired entrepreneurial
facilitator who has owned a small
business.
Entrepreneurial facilitator trained by
N.C. Rural Center as a micro intake
professional. Morganton has city-wide
loan fund available to the program.
Town chambers offer meeting space
for networking events.
Trained middle school teachers to
teach NC REAL’s youth entrepreneur-
ship curriculum.
One-on-one business counseling from
community college referrals to SBTDC,
SCORE, university aquaculture
scientists.
Lead staff is a Microenterprise Intake
Professional.
Boat-builders together in workshops
conduct business networking.
Experienced business owners act as
advisers to startups.
NC REAL summer camp for youth.
Core Sound Waterfowl Museum hosts
festivals that celebrate local culture
and the self-employed economy.
One-on-one assistance and referrals
from entrepreneurial facilitator. A
woodcarver benefited greatly from a
referral to web-based marketing help.
Countywide business plan competition
with prizes.
Entrepreneurs created a local club for
networking and mentoring.
Held a well-publicized business plan
competition with community members
as judges.
Lead staff trained as an intake
professional for the Rural Center’s
Microenterprise Loan Program.
Craft guild and its senior members are
an informal support network for local
artisans.
One-on-one assistance from an
experienced business owner as a
mentor from the Entrepreneurial
Facilitation Council.
ASU’s SBTDC office helps find capital
as needed.
Leaders of Entrepreneurial Facilitation
Council helped form the new High
Country Business Network.
HCBN’s well-attended events have
helped elevate local awareness and
support for entrepreneurs.
Watauga County will sustain the
$50,000 investment the CDBG made
in the first year of the program.
One-on-one assistance from local
business owner.
Downtown rental subsidies with match
from landlord.
Use local radio and TV to highlight
local entrepreneurs. Part of broader
effort in Martin County to build
entrepreneurial economy.
Hands-on help from master craftsman
in use of ceramic tile-making equip-
ment in crafts incubator. Cultural
Resources helped launch new
company Yancey Crafted Tiles.
Crafts incubator cost-saving way for
clients to share the use of high-end
tile-making equipment by the hour or
day.
Held county-wide business plan com-
petition. This grant leverages a
broader effort in Yancey County to
build a craft-based entrepreneurial
economy.
The Northeast Asset Builders Coalition
established seventeen volunteer
Earned Income Tax Credit Sites for
2005.
Attendees to the Roanoke
Construction Group training developed
a network which increased business
and construction opportunities.
Developed local, state, private and public
partnerships and leadership development
workshops through Roanoke-Chowan
New Choices program.
Apprenticeships with certified crafts
professionals.
Strategy builds on crafts heritage of
Yadkin Valley and ties to wine industry.
Telecenter in Williamston offers net-
working opportunities.
Strategies for supporting local entrepreneurs through education and training, technical
assistance, access to capital, business networking and local culture and policy
Yancey County Mountain Heritage
Center is a joint marketing center for
people in the crafts industry.
8
Creating Entrepreneneur Development Systems
It is also noteworthy that while only 10 communities received grant funding, 59 communities were
interested enough in the demonstration to send representatives to two-day introductory workshops.
Positive results also are evident in the activities and outcomes of the demonstration projects. During
the 15-month period of the demonstration, 390 people availed themselves of the training, technical
assistance and consultations offered through the 10 projects. More specifically:
I 275 people consulted with project teams about their business ideas
I 201 received referrals for professional business services
I 216 completed an entrepreneurial skills training program
Furthermore, even in this short time, the demonstrations documented the creation of 49 new
businesses growing out of their programs. These businesses created the equivalent of 75 full-time
jobs. Many more of the nearly 400 people who received help or training also are on the path to
starting or growing businesses in the coming year.
The demonstration offered an especially hopeful sign for impoverished local communities.
Low-to-moderate income individuals accounted for approximately half of the people who received
some type of assistance through the demonstrations and benefited from two-thirds of the jobs
created through the project.
As the demonstration communities learned, many business support services in North Carolina
are largely unknown by rural entrepreneurs or not used because they find them confusing. The
Rural Center heard this clearly in statewide focus groups conducted in 2003, just before the center
established its Institute for Rural Entrepreneurship. (See the report Understanding the Environment for
Entrepreneurship in Rural North Carolina on the center's website for more information.) A frustration
expressed in those early focus groups was that information is organized by agency or program and
not by the type of need, which is how business owners shop for help. One of the early activities of
the Institute for Rural Entrepreneurship was to convene organizations active in North Carolina's cur-
rent system of entrepreneur development. This group of organizations grew into the North Carolina
Business Resource Alliance, whose members are working to make the support system more accessible
by looking at their programs and organizations through their clients' eyes.
From what the Institute knew about entrepreneurs then and now, entrepreneurs want clear
options and high-impact services they can access quickly at different points in their development.
The research of the Institute and national entrepreneurship economists points to five main types of
assistance that an effective entrepreneur development system at the state, regional or local level
includes. Institute staff promoted and discussed these elements with the demonstration communities
in the joint learning sessions held twice during the demonstration.
I Entrepreneurship education and training
I Technical assistance and counseling
I Access to capital
I Entrepreneurial networking
I Supportive culture and policy
Depending on the needs of the entrepreneurs they identified in their region, the rural
demonstration sites emphasized some of these elements over others, but they all provided referrals
9
to local services their own project team did not provide. See table on pages 6-7 for highlights of
the entrepreneurship supports provided.
Each of the five elements is important to the individual development of entrepreneurs and the
success of their enterprises. For maximum impact, the support elements must fit with the way entre-
preneurs work and seek information – 24/7 – and the nature of the support and information must
evolve over time along with the development of the business. For example, a startup entrepreneur
might take a Rural Entrepreneurship through Action Learning (NC REAL) class to help develop the ini-
tial business idea and its feasibility. Once the firm is up and running, the owner may encounter a
major opportunity to grow the business and seek a management coach and an equity investment.
The 10 demonstration communities learned that building an entrepreneurial support system
requires a thorough, carefully developed plan. They grappled with how to devise a community-based
strategy, with building leadership and implementation teams, and with ensuring the sustainability of
their programs. If the 15-month demonstration could be boiled down into a few essential lessons,
they would be these:
I Organize the entrepreneurship support team to include individuals and groups with diverse
and complementary skills, knowledge and contacts, ensuring that the essential components of
a comprehensive program are represented.
I Focus on the entrepreneurs themselves – starting with an understanding of their vision and
abilities, and continuing to adapt and add value as their needs change. Even as the demonstra-
tion projects began to create their programs, they quickly realized they had to be flexible, open
to new opportunities to better serve individual entrepreneurs and to build the local entrepreneur-
ial culture.
Other rural communities interested in entrepreneurship as an economic development approach can
benefit from the examples set by these 10 communities. More specifically, they should:
1. Initiate a local entrepreneurship effort following the basic four steps outlined here.
2. Attend a training session that focuses on team building and creating an actionable plan. Among
the training possibilities are the Energizing Entrepreneurship program offered by the Rural
Center's Institute for Rural Entrepreneurship. Local government officials also have the option of
attending entrepreneurship seminars from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School
of Government.
3. Create relevancy and value for entrepreneurs by working the way entrepreneurs must to survive
– being proactive and flexible and leveraging community resources – to maximize economic
benefit to both the business and community.
Lessons for Community Entrepreneurial Development
Demo Results at a Glance
Between August 2004 and December 2005, the 10 rural entrepreneurship demonstration projects served
a total of 390 people in rural North Carolina, 192 of whom were low to moderate income citizens.
75 new full-time jobs were created, 56 of them for low to moderate income people.
49 new businesses were started in rural North Carolina.
275 people received counseling about their business ideas.
216 people completed an entrepreneurial skills training program.
201 people were referred to business services.
I
I
I
I
I
I
10
Entrepreneurial Resources for Communities
Program sponsors
Institute for Rural Entrepreneurship www.ncruralcenter.org/entrepreneurship
This arm of the N.C. Rural Center provides community-based entrepreneurship strategy and
policy for rural community leaders throughout the state.
N.C. Division of Community Assistance www.ncdca.org
A division of the N.C. Department of Commerce, the agency assists local governments with
community development, economic development, smart growth management and downtown
revitalization.
Other resources and partners
Appalachian Regional Development Institute www.ardi.appstate.edu
This outreach arm of Appalachian State University makes faculty and professional staff available
to address economic and business issues in northwestern North Carolina. The institute also
convenes the new High Country Business Network.
Center for Rural Entrepreneurship www.ruraleship.org
The national center, an affiliate of the national Rural Policy Research Institute, conducts
practice-driven research and evaluation of entrepreneurial development strategies in rural
communities throughout the U.S.
CFED www.cfed.org
The national think tank combines community practice, public policy and private markets to
expand economic opportunity. It concentrates on communities traditionally excluded from or
limited by the mainstream economy.
N.C. Cooperative Extension www.ces.ncsu.edu
North Carolina Cooperative Extension gives our state’s residents easy access to the resources and
expertise of N.C. State University and N.C. A&T State University. Through educational programs,
publications and events, Cooperative Extension delivers unbiased, research-based information to
North Carolina citizens.
e-NC Authority www.e-nc.org
Based in the Rural Center, this authority is helping entrepreneurs in remote rural areas access and
use information technology to improve their businesses, in part through Business and
Technology Telecenters located in distressed counties.
Good Work Inc. www.goodwork.org
A nonprofit organization based in Durham, Good Work helps people start and expand small
businesses through business training and ongoing assistance.
Institute of Governmenthttp://ncinfo.iog.unc.edu
A component of the School of Government at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill,
the institute provides education, advice and research support for state and local government
leaders. Economic development has been added as an area of special focus.
Junior Achievement of Eastern North Carolina www.juniorachievement.net
The largest economic-education organization in the world, Junior Achievement works with
business executives to educate and inspire young people to value free enterprise and understand
business and economics.
11
Mountain Microenterprise Fund www.mtnmicro.org
The non-profit organization provides business training, loans and one-on-one support to Western
North Carolinians who want to start, expand or strengthen a small business.
N.C. REAL (Rural Entrepreneurship through Action Learning) www.ncreal.org
The non-profit supports entrepreneurship and small business creation through youth and adult
training programs and curricula offered through high schools, post-secondary institutions and
community-based organizations.
N.C. Small Business and Technology Development Center www.sbtdc.org
A service of the University of North Carolina system at 17 offices statewide, SBTDC's focus is
improving the competitiveness of existing businesses through management counseling.
Small Business Center Network www.nccommunitycolleges.edu/businesssupportservices
Small Business Centers are housed in each of the state's 58 community colleges and are often
the first stop for rural business owners seeking professional assistance. Among the services they
offer are education and training programs, business counseling, information and referrals.
The Institute for Rural Entrepreneurship would like to thank the N.C. Department of Commerce's Division of Community
Assistance for its financial support and administration of this project, the demonstration community teams for their
enthusiasm and good sportsmanship throughout this experiment, and the many organizations that partnered with the
communities in assisting North Carolina's rural entrepreneurs to realize economic opportunity.
SUSTAINING PUBLIC PARTNERS
N.C. General Assembly
SUSTAINING FOUNDATION PARTNERS
Z. Smith Reynolds
RURAL PARTNERS CORPORATE GROUP
Bank of America • BB&T Charitable Foundation • BellSouth • Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina
Cisco Systems • Duke Power • East Carolina Bank • ElectriCities of North Carolina
First Citizens Bank • Harvey Enterprises • Hobbs, Upchurch & Associates, P.A.
Jordan Lumber • Macon Bank • McGill Associates • Mechanics and Farmers Bank
Miller Breweries East • Murphy Brown LLC • Murphy Electric Power Board
North Carolina Farm Bureau • North Carolina Mutual Life Insurance Company
North Carolina’s Touchstone Energy Cooperatives • PBS&J • Piedmont Natural Gas
Progress Energy • RBC Centura • RJR Tobacco • Sanford Holshouser
Sprint • SunTrust • Time Warner Cable • Verizon • Wachovia Foundation
12
Observations from Participating Communities
Education
Technical Assistance
Access to Capital
Supportive Culture and Policy
The mission of the Rural Center is to develop, promote and implement sound economic strategies that
improve the quality of life for rural North Carolinians, with special focus on individuals with low to
moderate incomes and communities with limited resources.
A program of the Rural Center, The Institute for Rural Entrepreneurship works with numerous partners to
stimulate and support the development of micro, small and medium-size enterprises in North Carolina’s
85 rural counties.
4021 Carya Drive, Raleigh, NC 27610 • Telephone 919.250.4314 • Fax 919.250.4325
www.ncruralcenter.org
Entrepreneurial Networks
“People with a dream to start a business often don’t have the skills to reach the dream.”
“Free seminars at the Small Business Center and the NC REAL training program both can be
very helpful for guiding people through the basics.”
"The facilitator/coach position is a big help to those folks who just need to be nudged,
referred, or assisted."
"Go to the entrepreneurs. Focus on profit improvement. Be patient, flexible and determined."
"Don't give up. Don't miss any opportunities. Every small improvement helps."
"Our two biggest needs are loan capital and affordable space."
"How critical is the need for mentoring and networking opportunities for new and
potential entrepreneurs!"
"The entire community needs to embrace enterprise development, from the grassroots
to the business and elected leaders."
"There is a large network of regional support, but there are holes in the network.
Each community needs to identify the holes and connect the network."
doc_947972946.pdf
Illustration pertaining to creating entrepreneurial communities lessons from 10 rural demonstrations.
At a glance: In recent months, 10 economically distressed communities in North Carolina have
accomplished something rather remarkable. Using a small public investment from the N.C. Rural
Economic Development Center and N.C. Department of Commerce, the communities have estab-
lished results-oriented entrepreneurship development programs that have trained local entrepreneurs,
grown businesses and produced jobs. From August 2004 through fall 2005, the 10 communities
helped nearly 400 people gain access to
entrepreneurial skills training or other types
of business services. Most impressive, they
created 49 new businesses and 75 jobs in 22
rural counties, with most of the jobs going to
low and moderate income workers. This report
is a snapshot taken in early 2006 of the
demonstration programs. The communities are expected to continue their efforts well beyond the
first year, demonstrating that entrepreneurship can be supported at the community level. The report
highlights the activities of each demonstration team and offers lessons for other rural North Carolina
communities interested in starting programs of their own.
Rural Center
Project Team
Leslie Scott
Malinda Todd
Catherine Moga Bryant
Michelle Hall
“This program is much bigger than the initial
jobs that will be created with the grant funds.
It’s about establishing a culture of entrepreneurship
that will sustain small business development in
rural communities for years to come.”
Billy Ray Hall,
N.C. Rural Center President, early 2004
Creating
Entrepreneurial Communities
Lessons from 10 rural demonstrations in North Carolina
CARTERET
WATAUGA
BURKE
MACON
COLUMBUS
BERTIE
SWAIN
GRAHAM
CHEROKEE
CLAY
JACKSON
TYRRELL
HYDE
BEAUFORT
MARTIN
YANCEY
WASHINGTON
Community Entrepreneurship Demonstrations
Entrepreneurial Development
Partnership
Revitalize Yancey!
Sound Jobs:
Homegrown
Businesses
that Come
Naturally
E³: Encapsulating
Entrepreneurial Enterprises
Stimulating the Mom
& Pop Economy
Town of Williamston:
Williamston Incubator Program
Bertie County is participating in both the Sound Jobs and Roanoke Center’s Initiatives
Town of Elkin:
Growing Entrepreneurs
SURRY
Entrepreneurial Stimulus
Program
Roanoke Center’s
Entrepreneurship Plan
Marine & Aquaculture
Resource and Training
GATES
HERTFORD
NORTHAMPTON
HALIFAX
April 2006
2
In late 2003, the Rural Center and the N.C. Department of Commerce's Division of Community
Assistance (DCA) joined in a collaborative venture to determine if a small public investment in rural
entrepreneurship development would to lead to jobs and business creation in distressed communi-
ties. The Commerce Department contributed $440,000 from the North Carolina Small Cities
Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) toward the project, and the Rural Center contributed
$160,000 from its research and development budget. The center also offered its new Institute for
Rural Entrepreneurship to guide and staff the demonstration.
Communities interested in competing for demonstration grants were invited to participate
in two-day workshops to learn about the steps involved in designing an entrepreneurial support
project. Fifty-nine communities sent some 200 local leaders to the workshops. As part of the
application process, communities were required to form a local team to lead their project and to
design programs that build on the assets of their communities and address specific local challenges.
Of the 59 interested communities, 24 followed up with grant requests and eleven projects were
funded. Three projects tackled issues on a regional scale; seven focused on individual towns or
counties. (One community withdrew, but is now developing an entrepreneurship effort as part
of a regional economic development hub.) The grants were awarded to:
I Encapsulating Entrepreneurial Enterprises (or E
3
), covering six counties in the far
west, plus the Qualla Boundary, Eastern Band of the Cherokee Nation
I Roanoke Center's Entrepreneurship Plan, involving five counties in the northeast
I Sound Jobs: Homegrown Businesses that Come Naturally, covering five counties
bordering on the Albemarle and Pamlico sounds
I Entrepreneurial Stimulus Programof Burke County
I Marine and Aquaculture Resource Training (MART) of Carteret County
I Stimulating the Mom and Pop Economy of Columbus County
I Growing Entrepreneurs, led by the town of Elkin in Surry County
I Entrepreneurial Development Partnership of Watauga County
I Williamston Incubator Programof Martin County
I Revitalize Yancey! of Yancey County
Grants ranged from $30,000 to $100,000, depending on the scope of the project. Funds were made
available for the projects in August 2004, with up to 15 months to complete the work. During the
demonstration, representatives of all 10 projects gathered twice to share experiences and advice.
Entrepreneur:
Entrepreneurship:
A person who organizes, operates and assumes the risk for a venture.
- American Heritage Dictionary
The process of identifying, developing and bringing a vision to life. The vision may be an
innovative idea, an opportunity or simply a better way to do something. The end result
is the creation of a new venture.
- Jay Kayne, The Entrepreneurship Center at Miami University of Ohio
Community Entrepreneurship Demonstration
3
Four Steps Toward Entrepreneurial Development
1. Strategy: Pursue a Realistic Economic Opportunity
2. Leadership: Build and Connect Local Capacity
In designing and carrying out their projects, the Rural Center encouraged the local teams to consider
four major steps in entrepreneurship program development:
Strategy: Pursue a realistic economic opportunity
Leadership: Build and connect local capacity
Implementation: Create value for the entrepreneurs
Sustainability: Leverage resources to maintain momentum
Following is a brief overview of how the project teams put these principles to work.
Each project team built an entrepreneurship strategy based on local assets, including emerging
clusters of entrepreneurs not already receiving business assistance. Some of the efforts were sector-
focused, such as Carteret County's emphasis on boat-builders and Elkin's on tourism businesses.
Other projects focused on the stage of development: Columbus County on start-up "mom and pop"
businesses, E
3
on small business owners with growth aspirations.
The Sound Jobs team focused its strategy on emerging markets – evident in the prevalence of
bed and breakfast owners, retailers and tour guides in the region – and the region's commitment
to the natural environment. It then incorporated leadership training and community development.
Although the strategy focused on natural resource-based businesses, the partnership remained
flexible enough to work with other types of entrepreneurs in developing sustainable businesses.
The 10 demonstration teams showed that a variety of organizations have the potential to lead
an effective entrepreneurship development program. The local community college played the lead
role in both Carteret and Columbus counties and figured prominently in Burke County. A regional
university, Appalachian State, led the Watauga County effort. A local government was the central
player in the towns of Elkin and Williamston. Nonprofits took the lead role in the Sound Jobs and
Yancey County projects; these included a community development corporation, conservation groups
and a cultural resources commission. A regional electric membership cooperative led the Roanoke
Center effort and three experienced entrepreneurs led the E
3
project.
Each type of organization offered different strengths in leadership. Appalachian State had access
to faculty at the Walker College of Business who helped create and teach the small business work-
shop series. Carteret Community College linked boat-builders with its Marine Training and Education
Center. Roanoke Electric Membership Cooperative was well connected to community leaders
Community Economic
Development Goals
Designing an Effective Entrepreneurship Strategy
Capacity of Leadership
& Partners
Entrepreneurial
Talent
4
through its broad membership base. Elkin's active arts council was able to mobilize the arts commu-
nity for strong participation in events. The entrepreneurs in the E
3
project were able to attract
like-minded business people to their effort.
As these examples suggest, four key ingredients in creating a successful team are: 1) access to
training programs, teachers and educational resources; 2) ties to community leaders to help create
an environment where entrepreneurship is understood
and valued; 3) knowledge to find and connect credi-
bly with entrepreneurs; and 4) one person to inform
and connect all the partners and entrepreneurs.
Team leaders must recognize their own strengths
and weaknesses and seek out partners for the team
with complementary skills and experiences.
The demonstration teams learned that partner-
ships should be established early, with each
cooperating organization assisting in project design. It
was important that each team member be committed
to the project – to their own role as well as the overall
mission. One person may fill more than one role, but
that person should not fill all roles. New partners
should be engaged as needed to create broader
impact and fill gaps identified over time.
Just as entrepreneurs pursue opportunities, build networks, create value in their products and
services, and leverage resources, so must their supporters and service providers. Each community
team started out by marketing their services to the types of entrepreneurs prevalent locally – such as
craftspeople in Yancey County and minorities wanting
to become self-employed in the Roanoke region – but
learned that as the clients advance, their needs
changed. The community teams themselves had to
become more entrepreneurial to remain relevant to
their entrepreneurs. The community college in
Columbus County responded by helping the entrepre-
neurs create an entrepreneur club for ongoing mutual
support after completing education and technical assis-
tance programs. They also tapped into e-commerce
and digital literacy training from the e-NC Authority to
help their home-based entrepreneurs. Principals from
the Burke and Sound Jobs teams pursued their own continuing education in entrepreneurship
through such programs as Cooperative Extension’s Creating Business Opportunities program and the
Energizing Entrepreneurship curriculum offered by the Institute for Rural Entrepreneurship.
Three powerful ways the demonstration communities learned to create value for the
entrepreneurs were:
I involving experienced entrepreneurs as mentors and program recruiters;
I creating continuous feedback loops for entrepreneurs; and
I raising community awareness through newspaper articles, radio spots, business plan
competitions, or entrepreneur expos.
Organize the entrepreneurship
support team to include individ-
uals and groups with diverse
and complementary skills,
knowledge and contacts.
Lesson 2:
Focus on the local entrepreneurs.
Continue to adapt and add value
as their needs change.
Lesson 1:
3. Implementation: Create Ongoing Value for the Entrepreneurs
5
Each of the demonstration
communities looked for ways that
individual aspects of their projects could
continue after the grant program con-
cluded. Burke County, for example,
leveraged the resources of the local eco-
nomic development partnership and
community college to create and main-
tain a new position of enterprise
facilitator. The facilitator is now on the
staff of Western Piedmont Community
College's Small Business Center. Watauga
County's economic development leader-
ship has committed to helping fund
continuing training workshops with the
Appalachian Regional Development
Institute. Lead organizations also used the
program activities as a way to strengthen relationships across partner organizations, as E
3
's lead
entrepreneur did with Mountain Microenterprise Fund and others in southwestern North Carolina.
The organizations looked to entrepreneurs for assistance in creating and carrying on mentoring
and networking opportunities, which are now ongoing among Harkers Island boat-builders in
Carteret County and Burnsville's ceramic tile-makers in Yancey County. Columbus County's client
entrepreneurs have created their own independent club. The High Country Business Network, an
outgrowth of the Watauga project, now has dozens of entrepreneurs who enjoy free networking
events sponsored by local chambers and banks.
In building momentum for the longer-term future of a community-based entrepreneurship
effort, a few of the demonstration teams began to reach the youth in their communities. Sound Jobs
and Carteret County's teams both offered summer youth entrepreneurship camps in 2005 using
training provided by N.C. REAL (the Rural
Entrepreneurship through Action Learning
program).
N.C. REAL also trained three middle
school teachers in the Burke County comm-
unity of Valdese. The enthusiasm of young
participants helps get parents and teachers
motivated and supportive of entrepreneurship. Furthermore, while such programs may seed future
entrepreneurial ventures, they also help young people understand the demands of entrepreneurship,
increasing their potential value as employees for other business owners.
While the ultimate goal of the Community Entrepreneurship Demonstration was job creation, the first
step was the establishment of partnerships that would provide the necessary long-term support and
encouragement for start-up companies and other small businesses. Most of the communities suc-
ceeded in this effort. Through entrepreneurial networks, local funding for full-time facilitators and
other measures, they have committed to continuing the work of the demonstration. Most also are
now active partners in the Institute for Rural Entrepreneurship's ongoing work to build an entrepre-
neur development system in each rural region of the state, in a project funded by the Kellogg
Foundation.
4. Sustainability: Leverage Resources to Maintain Momentum
“We saw a great interest on the part of the young
people to start businesses here in the county.”
Mavis Hill,
Tyrrell County Community Development Corporation
“The workshop was a chance for me to bounce my idea off of people to
tell me honestly what I would need to do to make this business successful.
It was the opportunity of a lifetime for me and a real blessing for the
community.” Lisa Clements, owner of the new Paradise Chocolatier in Boone.
Measures of Success
6
Project Name Area Served Targeted Entrepreneurs Education &Training
Encapsulating Entrepreneurial
Enterprises (E
3
)
Swain, Jackson, Macon, Clay,
Cherokee and Graham counties
and the Qualla Boundary
Existing small firms with growth
potential
Foundations of Business course from
Mountain Microenterprise Fund (MMF),
referrals to education programs at
community colleges and WCU.
Roanoke Center’s
Entrepreneurship Plan
Northampton, Halifax, Gates, Hertford
and Bertie counties
Start-ups and microenterprises,
primarily minority-owned
Roanoke Center hosts small business
workshops led by the local community
college.
Sound Jobs: Homegrown
Businesses that Come Naturally
Tyrrell, Washington, Hyde, Bertie and
Beaufort counties
Start-ups and microenterprises,
including natural resource-based
Customized series of business start-up
classes from Good Work, Inc.
Entrepreneurial Stimulus Program Burke County Start-ups and small businesses Classes from the Small Business
Center.
Marine and Aquaculture Resource
and Training (MART)
Carteret County Potential aquaculture and boat build-
ing entrepreneurs
Community college offered customized
workshops to boatbuilders on Harkers
Island in strengthening business skills.
Stimulating the Mom and Pop
Economy
Columbus County Start-ups and microenterprises Business classes from the Small
Business Center.
Growing Entrepreneurs Town of Elkin (Surry County) Arts, tourism and food-based start-ups
and microenterprises; focus on fine
and heritage crafts
Workshops from Yadkin Valley Craft
Guild.
Entrepreneurial Development
Partnership
Watauga County Start-ups and small businesses New series of small business work-
shops developed by ASU faculty.
Williamston Incubator Program Town of Williamston
(Martin County)
Downtown start-ups and small
businesses
Business classes at Small Business
Center; e-commerce classes at e-NC
telecenter.
Revitalize Yancey! Yancey County Artisans and craftsmen Business classes from the Small
Business Center; art and design
instruction from local craftsmen.
Snapshot of Demonstration Communities
7
Technical Assistance Access to Capital Business Networking Local Culture and Policy
Intensive, industry-specific coaching
from diverse team of experienced
entrepreneurs. E
3
also examines other
assistance providers prior to making
referrals.
Entrepreneurs are actively investigat-
ing angel and venture capital sources.
MMF is a startup lender and Sequoyia
Fund assists Native American clients.
MMF maintains an active network of
all graduates. Entrepreneurs refer
clients to various networks including
Blue Ridge Entrepreneurial Council.
Demo team leveraged a Cherokee
Preservation Foundation grant to MMF
tocreate a web-based referral system
among service providers.
One-on-one confidential assistance for
minorities interested in entrepreneur-
ship.
Resources on environmental steward-
ship from Conservation Fund and
Partnership for the Sounds.
Lead staff is an intake professional for
the Rural Center’s Microenterprise
Loan Program.
Peer group from classes continues to
meet within region. Networks include
local churches.
NC REAL summer camp for youth host-
ed by 4H of Eastern North Carolina.
One-on-one assistance and referrals
from a newly hired entrepreneurial
facilitator who has owned a small
business.
Entrepreneurial facilitator trained by
N.C. Rural Center as a micro intake
professional. Morganton has city-wide
loan fund available to the program.
Town chambers offer meeting space
for networking events.
Trained middle school teachers to
teach NC REAL’s youth entrepreneur-
ship curriculum.
One-on-one business counseling from
community college referrals to SBTDC,
SCORE, university aquaculture
scientists.
Lead staff is a Microenterprise Intake
Professional.
Boat-builders together in workshops
conduct business networking.
Experienced business owners act as
advisers to startups.
NC REAL summer camp for youth.
Core Sound Waterfowl Museum hosts
festivals that celebrate local culture
and the self-employed economy.
One-on-one assistance and referrals
from entrepreneurial facilitator. A
woodcarver benefited greatly from a
referral to web-based marketing help.
Countywide business plan competition
with prizes.
Entrepreneurs created a local club for
networking and mentoring.
Held a well-publicized business plan
competition with community members
as judges.
Lead staff trained as an intake
professional for the Rural Center’s
Microenterprise Loan Program.
Craft guild and its senior members are
an informal support network for local
artisans.
One-on-one assistance from an
experienced business owner as a
mentor from the Entrepreneurial
Facilitation Council.
ASU’s SBTDC office helps find capital
as needed.
Leaders of Entrepreneurial Facilitation
Council helped form the new High
Country Business Network.
HCBN’s well-attended events have
helped elevate local awareness and
support for entrepreneurs.
Watauga County will sustain the
$50,000 investment the CDBG made
in the first year of the program.
One-on-one assistance from local
business owner.
Downtown rental subsidies with match
from landlord.
Use local radio and TV to highlight
local entrepreneurs. Part of broader
effort in Martin County to build
entrepreneurial economy.
Hands-on help from master craftsman
in use of ceramic tile-making equip-
ment in crafts incubator. Cultural
Resources helped launch new
company Yancey Crafted Tiles.
Crafts incubator cost-saving way for
clients to share the use of high-end
tile-making equipment by the hour or
day.
Held county-wide business plan com-
petition. This grant leverages a
broader effort in Yancey County to
build a craft-based entrepreneurial
economy.
The Northeast Asset Builders Coalition
established seventeen volunteer
Earned Income Tax Credit Sites for
2005.
Attendees to the Roanoke
Construction Group training developed
a network which increased business
and construction opportunities.
Developed local, state, private and public
partnerships and leadership development
workshops through Roanoke-Chowan
New Choices program.
Apprenticeships with certified crafts
professionals.
Strategy builds on crafts heritage of
Yadkin Valley and ties to wine industry.
Telecenter in Williamston offers net-
working opportunities.
Strategies for supporting local entrepreneurs through education and training, technical
assistance, access to capital, business networking and local culture and policy
Yancey County Mountain Heritage
Center is a joint marketing center for
people in the crafts industry.
8
Creating Entrepreneneur Development Systems
It is also noteworthy that while only 10 communities received grant funding, 59 communities were
interested enough in the demonstration to send representatives to two-day introductory workshops.
Positive results also are evident in the activities and outcomes of the demonstration projects. During
the 15-month period of the demonstration, 390 people availed themselves of the training, technical
assistance and consultations offered through the 10 projects. More specifically:
I 275 people consulted with project teams about their business ideas
I 201 received referrals for professional business services
I 216 completed an entrepreneurial skills training program
Furthermore, even in this short time, the demonstrations documented the creation of 49 new
businesses growing out of their programs. These businesses created the equivalent of 75 full-time
jobs. Many more of the nearly 400 people who received help or training also are on the path to
starting or growing businesses in the coming year.
The demonstration offered an especially hopeful sign for impoverished local communities.
Low-to-moderate income individuals accounted for approximately half of the people who received
some type of assistance through the demonstrations and benefited from two-thirds of the jobs
created through the project.
As the demonstration communities learned, many business support services in North Carolina
are largely unknown by rural entrepreneurs or not used because they find them confusing. The
Rural Center heard this clearly in statewide focus groups conducted in 2003, just before the center
established its Institute for Rural Entrepreneurship. (See the report Understanding the Environment for
Entrepreneurship in Rural North Carolina on the center's website for more information.) A frustration
expressed in those early focus groups was that information is organized by agency or program and
not by the type of need, which is how business owners shop for help. One of the early activities of
the Institute for Rural Entrepreneurship was to convene organizations active in North Carolina's cur-
rent system of entrepreneur development. This group of organizations grew into the North Carolina
Business Resource Alliance, whose members are working to make the support system more accessible
by looking at their programs and organizations through their clients' eyes.
From what the Institute knew about entrepreneurs then and now, entrepreneurs want clear
options and high-impact services they can access quickly at different points in their development.
The research of the Institute and national entrepreneurship economists points to five main types of
assistance that an effective entrepreneur development system at the state, regional or local level
includes. Institute staff promoted and discussed these elements with the demonstration communities
in the joint learning sessions held twice during the demonstration.
I Entrepreneurship education and training
I Technical assistance and counseling
I Access to capital
I Entrepreneurial networking
I Supportive culture and policy
Depending on the needs of the entrepreneurs they identified in their region, the rural
demonstration sites emphasized some of these elements over others, but they all provided referrals
9
to local services their own project team did not provide. See table on pages 6-7 for highlights of
the entrepreneurship supports provided.
Each of the five elements is important to the individual development of entrepreneurs and the
success of their enterprises. For maximum impact, the support elements must fit with the way entre-
preneurs work and seek information – 24/7 – and the nature of the support and information must
evolve over time along with the development of the business. For example, a startup entrepreneur
might take a Rural Entrepreneurship through Action Learning (NC REAL) class to help develop the ini-
tial business idea and its feasibility. Once the firm is up and running, the owner may encounter a
major opportunity to grow the business and seek a management coach and an equity investment.
The 10 demonstration communities learned that building an entrepreneurial support system
requires a thorough, carefully developed plan. They grappled with how to devise a community-based
strategy, with building leadership and implementation teams, and with ensuring the sustainability of
their programs. If the 15-month demonstration could be boiled down into a few essential lessons,
they would be these:
I Organize the entrepreneurship support team to include individuals and groups with diverse
and complementary skills, knowledge and contacts, ensuring that the essential components of
a comprehensive program are represented.
I Focus on the entrepreneurs themselves – starting with an understanding of their vision and
abilities, and continuing to adapt and add value as their needs change. Even as the demonstra-
tion projects began to create their programs, they quickly realized they had to be flexible, open
to new opportunities to better serve individual entrepreneurs and to build the local entrepreneur-
ial culture.
Other rural communities interested in entrepreneurship as an economic development approach can
benefit from the examples set by these 10 communities. More specifically, they should:
1. Initiate a local entrepreneurship effort following the basic four steps outlined here.
2. Attend a training session that focuses on team building and creating an actionable plan. Among
the training possibilities are the Energizing Entrepreneurship program offered by the Rural
Center's Institute for Rural Entrepreneurship. Local government officials also have the option of
attending entrepreneurship seminars from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School
of Government.
3. Create relevancy and value for entrepreneurs by working the way entrepreneurs must to survive
– being proactive and flexible and leveraging community resources – to maximize economic
benefit to both the business and community.
Lessons for Community Entrepreneurial Development
Demo Results at a Glance
Between August 2004 and December 2005, the 10 rural entrepreneurship demonstration projects served
a total of 390 people in rural North Carolina, 192 of whom were low to moderate income citizens.
75 new full-time jobs were created, 56 of them for low to moderate income people.
49 new businesses were started in rural North Carolina.
275 people received counseling about their business ideas.
216 people completed an entrepreneurial skills training program.
201 people were referred to business services.
I
I
I
I
I
I
10
Entrepreneurial Resources for Communities
Program sponsors
Institute for Rural Entrepreneurship www.ncruralcenter.org/entrepreneurship
This arm of the N.C. Rural Center provides community-based entrepreneurship strategy and
policy for rural community leaders throughout the state.
N.C. Division of Community Assistance www.ncdca.org
A division of the N.C. Department of Commerce, the agency assists local governments with
community development, economic development, smart growth management and downtown
revitalization.
Other resources and partners
Appalachian Regional Development Institute www.ardi.appstate.edu
This outreach arm of Appalachian State University makes faculty and professional staff available
to address economic and business issues in northwestern North Carolina. The institute also
convenes the new High Country Business Network.
Center for Rural Entrepreneurship www.ruraleship.org
The national center, an affiliate of the national Rural Policy Research Institute, conducts
practice-driven research and evaluation of entrepreneurial development strategies in rural
communities throughout the U.S.
CFED www.cfed.org
The national think tank combines community practice, public policy and private markets to
expand economic opportunity. It concentrates on communities traditionally excluded from or
limited by the mainstream economy.
N.C. Cooperative Extension www.ces.ncsu.edu
North Carolina Cooperative Extension gives our state’s residents easy access to the resources and
expertise of N.C. State University and N.C. A&T State University. Through educational programs,
publications and events, Cooperative Extension delivers unbiased, research-based information to
North Carolina citizens.
e-NC Authority www.e-nc.org
Based in the Rural Center, this authority is helping entrepreneurs in remote rural areas access and
use information technology to improve their businesses, in part through Business and
Technology Telecenters located in distressed counties.
Good Work Inc. www.goodwork.org
A nonprofit organization based in Durham, Good Work helps people start and expand small
businesses through business training and ongoing assistance.
Institute of Governmenthttp://ncinfo.iog.unc.edu
A component of the School of Government at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill,
the institute provides education, advice and research support for state and local government
leaders. Economic development has been added as an area of special focus.
Junior Achievement of Eastern North Carolina www.juniorachievement.net
The largest economic-education organization in the world, Junior Achievement works with
business executives to educate and inspire young people to value free enterprise and understand
business and economics.
11
Mountain Microenterprise Fund www.mtnmicro.org
The non-profit organization provides business training, loans and one-on-one support to Western
North Carolinians who want to start, expand or strengthen a small business.
N.C. REAL (Rural Entrepreneurship through Action Learning) www.ncreal.org
The non-profit supports entrepreneurship and small business creation through youth and adult
training programs and curricula offered through high schools, post-secondary institutions and
community-based organizations.
N.C. Small Business and Technology Development Center www.sbtdc.org
A service of the University of North Carolina system at 17 offices statewide, SBTDC's focus is
improving the competitiveness of existing businesses through management counseling.
Small Business Center Network www.nccommunitycolleges.edu/businesssupportservices
Small Business Centers are housed in each of the state's 58 community colleges and are often
the first stop for rural business owners seeking professional assistance. Among the services they
offer are education and training programs, business counseling, information and referrals.
The Institute for Rural Entrepreneurship would like to thank the N.C. Department of Commerce's Division of Community
Assistance for its financial support and administration of this project, the demonstration community teams for their
enthusiasm and good sportsmanship throughout this experiment, and the many organizations that partnered with the
communities in assisting North Carolina's rural entrepreneurs to realize economic opportunity.
SUSTAINING PUBLIC PARTNERS
N.C. General Assembly
SUSTAINING FOUNDATION PARTNERS
Z. Smith Reynolds
RURAL PARTNERS CORPORATE GROUP
Bank of America • BB&T Charitable Foundation • BellSouth • Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina
Cisco Systems • Duke Power • East Carolina Bank • ElectriCities of North Carolina
First Citizens Bank • Harvey Enterprises • Hobbs, Upchurch & Associates, P.A.
Jordan Lumber • Macon Bank • McGill Associates • Mechanics and Farmers Bank
Miller Breweries East • Murphy Brown LLC • Murphy Electric Power Board
North Carolina Farm Bureau • North Carolina Mutual Life Insurance Company
North Carolina’s Touchstone Energy Cooperatives • PBS&J • Piedmont Natural Gas
Progress Energy • RBC Centura • RJR Tobacco • Sanford Holshouser
Sprint • SunTrust • Time Warner Cable • Verizon • Wachovia Foundation
12
Observations from Participating Communities
Education
Technical Assistance
Access to Capital
Supportive Culture and Policy
The mission of the Rural Center is to develop, promote and implement sound economic strategies that
improve the quality of life for rural North Carolinians, with special focus on individuals with low to
moderate incomes and communities with limited resources.
A program of the Rural Center, The Institute for Rural Entrepreneurship works with numerous partners to
stimulate and support the development of micro, small and medium-size enterprises in North Carolina’s
85 rural counties.
4021 Carya Drive, Raleigh, NC 27610 • Telephone 919.250.4314 • Fax 919.250.4325
www.ncruralcenter.org
Entrepreneurial Networks
“People with a dream to start a business often don’t have the skills to reach the dream.”
“Free seminars at the Small Business Center and the NC REAL training program both can be
very helpful for guiding people through the basics.”
"The facilitator/coach position is a big help to those folks who just need to be nudged,
referred, or assisted."
"Go to the entrepreneurs. Focus on profit improvement. Be patient, flexible and determined."
"Don't give up. Don't miss any opportunities. Every small improvement helps."
"Our two biggest needs are loan capital and affordable space."
"How critical is the need for mentoring and networking opportunities for new and
potential entrepreneurs!"
"The entire community needs to embrace enterprise development, from the grassroots
to the business and elected leaders."
"There is a large network of regional support, but there are holes in the network.
Each community needs to identify the holes and connect the network."
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