COVID-19 Resources for Business Owners

We are here to serve and support our corporate partners, our WBEs, and our entrepreneurial start-ups through the business and life changes of COVID-19.

We are collating all resources we come across to share.

Free Business Consulting for Covid-19 Affected Businesses in SE PA

WBEC-East has received additional resources for our Women’s Business Center grant through the U.S. Small Business Administration to connect eligible for-profit businesses in Southeastern Pennsylvania with various subject matter experts.

This funding allows us to offer free business consultants to business which have been directly impacted by COVID-19.

To get started, please complete the inquiry form posted above and someone will be in touch with you shortly!

Fill Out Inquiry Form

EverSafe™ OS | Aramark + Jefferson Health

As guidelines fluctuate throughout the country, the continued threat of COVID 19 requires businesses to focus more than ever on providing clean and safe environments for employees, clients, customers, and guests.

Re-open and run your business safely with EverSafe™ OS. EverSafe OS is a digital safety platform enabling organizations to execute against a robust safety agenda, regardless of their ability to fund a large, sophisticated safety and risk department.

By packaging Aramark’s world class safety standards and operational best practices with Jefferson Health’s expertise in infection prevention and improving health, EverSafe OS supports users to develop a plan, assess and mitigate risks, make sound decisions, and sustain change.

Learn More Here

IF Lab: Free Marketing Services for Minority/Low-income Entrepreneurs

Little Giant Creative id a minority-owned + minority operated creative agency offering free marketing/branding services for minority entrepreneurs. Since its soft opening, IF Lab has served as a welcoming place for local community members to enable entrepreneurship, relationship building and business best practices.

Back in January 2019, Little Giant Creative created an interim entrepreneurial space called The Idea Factory Lab (IF Lab) in Kensington, Philadelphia. It was founded on the premise that access to economic resources and social networks are necessities for equitable urban development.

We’re looking to identify and welcome 10 new businesses in all stages of their development, prioritizing low-income and minority entrepreneurs, and provide design, marketing, and branding services at no cost (services partly subsidized by the City of Philadelphia Dept of Commerce).

You can apply using our Google Form, linked below:
Apply Here

PPP Updates: Loan terms are different, eligibility has been updated, and new forgiveness rules

Paycheck Protection Program Second Draw Loans
Creates a second loan from the Paycheck Protection Program, called a “PPP second draw” loan for smaller and harder-hit businesses, with a maximum amount of $2 million. In order to receive a Paycheck Protection Program loan under this section, eligible entities must:

Employ not more than 300 employees;
Have used or will use the full amount of their first PPP;
Demonstrate at least a 25 percent reduction in gross receipts in the first, second, or third quarter of 2020 relative to the same 2019 quarter.

Additional Eligible Expenses
Makes the following expenses allowable and forgivable uses for Paycheck Protection Program funds:

Covered operations expenditures. Payment for any software, cloud computing, and other human resources and accounting needs.
Covered property damage costs. Costs related to property damage due to public disturbances that occurred during 2020 that are not covered by insurance.
Covered supplier costs. Expenditures to a supplier pursuant to a contract, purchase order, or order for goods in effect prior to taking out the loan that are essential to the recipient’s operations at the time at which the expenditure was made.

Targeted EIDL Advance for Small Business Continuity, Adaptation, and Resiliency.
Provides additional targeted funding for eligible entities located in low-income communities through the EIDL Advance program:

Makes entities in low-income communities that received an EIDL Advance under Section 1110 of the CARES Act eligible to receive an amount equal to the difference of what the entity received under the CARES Act and $10,000.
Provides $10,000 grants to eligible applicants in low-income communities that did not secure grants because funding had run out.

***Repeal of EIDL Advance Deduction*** MAJOR CHANGE

Repeals section 1110(e)(6) of the CARES Act, which requires PPP borrowers to deduct the amount of their EIDL advance from their PPP forgiveness amount.
Establishes the Sense of Congress that EIDL Advance borrowers should be made whole without regard to whether those borrowers are eligible for PPP forgiveness.
The Administrator shall issue rules that ensure borrowers are made whole if they received forgiveness and their EIDL was deducted from that amount.

Full Updates Here

Covid-19 Wastewater Pre-Screening

Brownfield Science & Technology, Inc. has teamed with Eurofins QC to bring cost effective early detection of severe acute respiratory coronavirus outbreaks to facilities across the United States. This is a pre-screening alternative to direct sampling of personnel. BSTI sets up composite samplers at strategic locations within the wastewater stream as the first indication that Covid-19 is present in the building. Upon receipt of a positive result the facility could evaluate the next strategy which may involve direct sampling of personnel. They are currently providing this service to several universities in PA and their partner Eurofins Laboratories has nation-wide facility experience.

Learn More

SBA Announces Simpler PPP Forgiveness Application

The U.S. Small Business Administration, in consultation with the Treasury Department, released a simpler loan forgiveness application for Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans of $50,000 or less. This action streamlines the PPP forgiveness process to provide financial and administrative relief to America’s smallest businesses while also ensuring sound stewardship of taxpayer dollars.
SBA and Treasury have also eased the burden on PPP lenders, allowing lenders to process forgiveness applications more swiftly. SBA began approving PPP forgiveness applications and remitting forgiveness payments to PPP lenders for PPP borrowers on October 2, 2020. SBA will continue to process all PPP forgiveness applications in an expeditious manner.

Instructions for completing the simpler loan forgiveness application View the simpler loan forgiveness application

IPAK partners with N95 Manufacturer to Provide Safety Products

IPAK has launched a new suite of safety products to help keep people safe at home and protect them when they return to work. We’ve partnered with Arbill – a company whose only focus is sourcing, distributing and making their own brand of PPE, Truline. All of our kits can be customized with company or personalized branding!

Fabric masks do not require FDA approval but Arbill, as a manufacturer of N95s, put their fabric through rigorous testing and its ability to filter particulates is similar to an N95 and its breathability is exceptional.

Product Details & Pricing – Shop Here

Prelude Solutions Supports WBEC-East & Our Corporate Members!

It all starts with an audit! When Prelude Solutions saves you money with our telecom audit, we PAY IT FORWARD to WBEC-East!

Prelude’s Key Services:

Optimization of Voice, Data, Mobile & Cable
Unbiased Carrier Selection Review
VoIP Strategies (UCaaS/CCaaS)
Cloud Transformation and Planning.

Special Offer:

FREE analysis of communication services and systems.
NEW Contingency fee-based model 75% of savings directly to corporate member
3% of Telecom savings will be donated back to WBEC-East
FREE health check at 6 months.

Prelude Solutions saves corporations an average of 33% on telecom spend! Let’s help WBEC-East increase their programming support!

Fill Out Form

Purchase 3 Ply Face Masks that support WBEC-East!

Stellar Health Services LLC, a CHAP Accredited, Woman Owned Small Business based in Avondale, PA, is proud to support our WOSB partners by supplying 3-Ply Protective Masks at an affordable price. Stellar also pledges a donation to WBEC-East with every box of masks sold through this program. We are all in this together!

Fill Out Form

Tips to Make a Great Impression on a Video Call

Whether it is a conference call or a one-on-one video call, these quick tips will help you make a great impression on a video call.

Returning to a Healthy Workplace Presentation

DxDempsey, an architecture, interiors and environmental graphic design firm, was inspired by the many amazing WBE women and others who stepped up during this pandemic. The team at DxDempsey has spent time thinking about the problem of people feeling anxiety and apprehension about returning to work since work no longer seems like a safe. Below is their presentation. They hope it will serve as a road map and guide to returning to work with less anxiety and more peace of mind.

Coronavirus Covid-19 Workplace Safety Guide

As part of their mission of improving safety in the workplace, MYCA Learning has compiled and vetted the top subject-matter-expert information on coronavirus Covid-19 and created the Workplace Safety Guide.

Safety Guide E-Book

Marketing and Communication Resources from Slice

Slice Communications has complied free marketing and communications resources related to COVID-19.

Communication through a crisis situation is most effective when it is clear and consistent. Creating a plan with primary messages, delivery methodologies, and regular cadence can make all the difference in ensuring that communication is thoughtful and strategic.

Marketing Resources