Sacramento launches business solutions center to boost local entrepreneurs
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Sacramento launched a Business Solutions Center to support local entrepreneurs.
- Eligible small businesses can access grants, fee credits, and expert consultations.
- Program prioritizes underresourced areas using metrics on equity and need.
When Naz Begum acquired Sammy’s Restaurant during the pandemic, she knew she needed three things: a refrigerator, a freezer and business management counseling to keep the Sacramento staple afloat.
Through the city’s new Business Solutions Center, Begum was able to get all three.
The center provides local entrepreneurs in Sacramento the opportunities to receive one-on-one consultations, up to $5,000 in microgrant funding and $2,500 in city fee credits to grow their small businesses and bolster the economy. The city’s Office of Innovation and Economic Development announced the center’s launch in a press release last week.
Temporarily shut down in 2020 by a previous owner, Sammy’s Restaurant found a new owner in Begum, who participated in a five-hour class with a business counselor through the center in February and later received a grant of $5,000 to purchase a refrigerator and freezer needed to generate more revenue for the business in early June.
“I think a lot of small business owners don’t know that this exists, and we feel like we have no help, but there is help,” Begum said. “There are so many things, like I didn’t know I needed a permit, or this or that, but these people, they help. It’s just something amazing that we have right here in Sacramento that I definitely think people should take advantage of.”
Michael Young, development project manager at the city’s Office of Innovation and Economic Development, said that the program was created so that local business owners could have a pool of resources to pull from and access services regardless of their starting points.
“Small businesses are the key to any local economy,” Young said. “So, it’s very important that these small businesses succeed, and we want to show the value of their success through the Business Solution Center.”
The foundation for the program was laid based upon lessons the city learned from the CARES Act and the American Rescue Plan Act to provide economic relief to businesses and residents during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We learned that speaking with businesses one-on-one and sharing what city services are available worked really well, and that’s a big part of this program,” Young said. “We also found that having businesses come to the city is going to be helpful and create less confusion. So instead of going to a third party to get services, we can help triage those services to our consultants.”
Consultants from California Capital Financial Development Corporation will speak with business owners through at least five hours of consultations to generate solutions for business improvement. Businesses are also later eligible for funding to implement possible solutions. They can assist entrepreneurs in a range of industries, from child care to nightlife, and with a range of skills, such as accounting, bookkeeping and maintaining an online web presence.
The center has about 600 businesses signed up for programming with the center through the 311 system.
“The 311 system allows us to know that a business said they were having an issue, and then we can refer them to counseling and try to close the loop,” Young said. “Now they’re going to have a microbrand, and if they reach out in the future to a different staff member, they can see these things and have a better understanding of what that business is facing or faced in the past to inform their development.”
The center is supported with two years of funding for consultations, $250,000 to expend on rolling microgrant funding and $50,000 for businesses through the city fee program, which pays for licenses, permits and inspections.
Young hopes the center can uplift the underresourced communities many small businesses helm. To do so, the center uses criteria based on the location and the socioeconomic demographics of the area in which businesses reside to distribute funding.
“We want to hit the areas that have a few more challenges and provide some of these resources to them,” Young said.
Jamie Perez, videographer and sole proprietor of Beyond Words Productions, received what she calls “free money” and a “business boost” from the center.
Perez began operating the video and storytelling consulting company four years ago in Madison, Wisconsin. While moving back to her hometown of Sacramento 10 months ago, she sought various resource and networking avenues to get her footing.
“I had to basically rebuild my whole business here and start over from scratch,” Perez said. “So that comes with a lot of financial challenges, networking challenges, and all sorts of different obstacles, so when I came to (the Business Solutions Center), I knew it was going to be a valuable resource for me to tap into.”
Perez applied for the center’s business grant in April and received mentorship from an advisor to help her make a new scalable business plan based on her previous annual profit and loss margins. She recently got approved for a $5,000 grant from the center, which will be finalized later this week.
“When you’re in a business and you get help, it’s fantastic, and it’s not only helping you financially, but just the exposure opportunities, getting to network with the city, puts your name in the forefront of people’s minds,” Perez said.
This story was originally published June 10, 2025 at 10:46 AM.
CORRECTION: This story has been updated to correct Michael Young’s title and the name of Jamie Perez’s business.
