Nicole Johnson is expanding her business, Olivia Floral, Gift and Garden Center, with help from Southwest Initiative Foundation’s Microenterprise Loan Program. Olivia Floral is a full-service floral and gift shop that creates custom flower, gift and garden arrangements and offers quality products for special occasions, seasonal projects and everyday events. Nikki’s parents and grandfather have been business owners in the town for more than 50 years, so entrepreneurship runs in the family.
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2024 cohort named for Growing Local Emerging Leaders
We’re excited to announce the participants who will make up this year’s Growing Local: Emerging Leaders cohort, representing 10 different communities across southwest Minnesota. Growing Local: Emerging Leaders is designed to help up-and-coming leaders discover and build on their unique strengths so they can make a difference through local boards, commissions and elected positions. It’s facilitated by SWIF in partnership with University of Minnesota Extension.
Celebrating 10 Business Reinvention cohorts
We recently wrapped up the 10th Business Reinvention cohort with our partners redstar marketing un/academy! This program has been a game-changer for dozens of Southwest Initiative Foundation loan clients. Business Reinvention brings together up to eight businesses for a unique, collaborative workshop experience. The team at redstar marketing un/academy guides passionate entrepreneurs through a hands-on process to assess the current business landscape and craft a fresh vision for the future.
Otto Bremer Trust Community Responsive Fund
Southwest Initiative Foundation has been selected by the Otto Bremer Trust as a philanthropic partner to award funds through its new Community Responsive Fund. SWIF will work closely with OBT to award $400,000 in grants of up to $75,000 each to support local organizations that directly respond to immediate challenges and opportunities in the community. The grant application deadline is 5 p.m. on April 19, 2024.
Briana Mumme
Briana Mumme has joined Southwest Initiative Foundation’s (SWIF) staff as economic development manager. In this role, Mumme will help craft and implement innovative programs spanning business finance, entrepreneurship, workforce initiatives and regional economic development. Prior to joining SWIF, she served as the economic development coordinator for Redwood County.
Jackson Snow Angels remove snow, spread kindness
No act of kindness is ever wasted. Paul Spence lives by those words, and it’s the motto for a local nonprofit he helped create called the Jackson Snow Angels that clears snow for older adults for free. It’s a group effort among retirees, business owners, students and public health. In January, the Snow Angels received a grant from the Paul and Alma Schwan Aging Trust Endowment Fund at Southwest Initiative Foundation to help purchase a tractor.