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Greetings from Count Me In
Happy Independence Day! Count Me In is thrilled to be celebrating
the fourth of July in conjunction with our first grant from
Metropolitan Life Foundation. We’re looking forward
to a long and prosperous partnership with MetLife who has
a keen interest in economic development.
Count Me In Celebrates the Laws of the
Bandit Queens
On
Wednesday, April 24, 2002 Count Me In staff, friends and
some local loan recipients joined photographer/author Ali
Smith at a fundraising event to benefit Count Me In and
celebrate the launch of her first book, Laws of the Bandit
Queens, available in bookstores now.
Count
Me In Board Member, Nancy Evans, Editor-In-Chief of iVillage,
hosted the successful event at her Manhattan home. Bandit
Queens in attendance included our very own Nell Merlino,
President and CEO of Count Me In; Actor, Comedian and Social
Satirist, Janeane Garofalo; the founders of Bust magazine;
World Champion Weight Lifter, Cheryl Haworth; and Photographer,
Donna Ferrato with a special performance by musical group,
ESG.
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| Luis
Mora of Peter Coppola, Nell Merlino, Bandit Queen and
President & CEO of Count Me In and Rudy Sprogis,
Founder and President of B.Cause have a few words at
the Count Me In Bandit Queen event. |
The
celebration was jammed with a wide range of individuals,
raised over $20,000 for Count Me In and was featured on
Oxygen TV.
In addition
to Nancy Evans, other Count Me In Board Members in attendance
include: Sharon Cohen, Strategic Marketing Consultant; Renee
Frengut, President, Psychological Insights; Beth Nash, Co-Founder,
Independence Asset Management, LLC; Pattie Garrahy, CEO,
PGR Media; Rich Tambor, Senior Vice Presidnet & General
Manager American Express Business Finance; and Jane Tollinger,
Senior Vice President Business Development, iVillage.
Two
of Count Me In’s National Advisory Board Members were
also in attenance: Vickee Adams, Senior Managing Director,
Media Communications Practice, Hill & Knowlton and Caroline
Hirsch, President, Caroline’s Comedy Club.
And
no Count Me In event would be complete without our loan
recipients. We’re so pleased that the following were
able to join us: Adrienne Smalls of PrisonHelp, Adele Horowitz
of Lice Advice, Sarah Liston of Tallulah Vintage and Amy
May of Beehive Hair Salon in Philadelphia.
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At
the CMI Bandit Queens Celebration from left: CMI loan
recipient Sarah Liston of Tallulah Vintage, CMI staff
member Brenda Worthy, CMI staff member Staci Pierson,
CMI loan officer Kathy Keeley and CMI loan recipient
Adele Horowitz of Lice Advice. (photo: Parker Noon) |
We’re
looking forward to another successful Count Me In fundraiser
with the Bandit Queens in September in Los Angeles. Stay
posted for details!
For more information
on Ali Smith or the Bandit Queens please visit www.alismith.com
Credit
Desk
| Starting
July 1st Count Me In will be reporting all loan activity
to the credit bureau. This includes both positive and
negative payment information. Reporting will help women
establish a credit history for themselves, as all of
the information will be reported in their name. Please
also be aware that if you are late or behind in your
payments, this will show up in your credit history.
Remember, we’re counting on you to make your payments
on time! |
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Shop Online at Office Depot and Help Count
Me In
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Now
shopping online at Office Depot will benefit Count Me
In each time you make a purchase for your business or
home office! Just visit our web site and click on the
Office Depot logo to start shopping and help Count Me
In. |
Count Me In Loan Recipient Success Story
Amy
Pittelkau is the successful owner and Director of Bikram's
Yoga College of India. She is also a second time Count Me
In loan recipient. She used her first Count Me In loan to
finance the development of her first yoga studio in San
Luis Obispo, CA, which was so successful she decided to
open a second studio. With her second Count Me In loan she
was able to open her second yoga studio in Arroyo Grande,
CA this spring.
Amy’s
specialty is Bikram Yoga, commonly known as “hot”
yoga. The practice involves 26 positions designed to strengthen
the spine and increase flexibility and health in a 90-minute
period.
 Amy
first took up Bikram Yoga, after being bedridden due to
a number of debilitating neuromuscular disorders. Following
doctor’s orders she began her recovery process by
studying yoga developed by her teacher, Bikram Choudhury.
After seeing the results, she was so pleased she decided
to make a living teaching others the healing effects of
Bikram Yoga.
For
more information on Bikram Yoga or to find out where to
sign up for Amy’s classes please visit www.bikramyoga.com.
The Biz Corner:
Finding
a Good Sales Rep and Keeping a Good Sales Rep
Using
manufacturers’ representatives, commonly known as
sales reps, can be a valuable component to expanding sales
opportunities for your company. Sales reps are independent
agents who sell multiple lines of products for several manufacturers
in a certain geographic territory. Sales reps travel extensively,
personally calling on retail buyers to sell the product
lines they represent. They usually specialize in a type
of retail sector (e.g. specialty shops, gift shops, clothing
stores, bookstores, and larger retailers if the corporate
headquarters is in their territory).
To
learn more about finding a good sales rep and keeping one,
please
click here.
Terre
Thomas, the author of these two articles, is a marketing/planning
consultant and writer living in Minneapolis, MN. She specializes
in assisting companies and organizations in launching new
endeavors and the transition from the early stage of “surviving”
into the “thriving” state of business. For more
information about Terre please
click here.
Biz
Education
Take a Class Online with Count Me In
Registration
to participate in the Count Me In online class on How to
Start a Business is currently underway. Join Count Me In
Business Instructor, Kathy Keeley, in learning how to start
your own business.
Topics
will include: What You Need to Know Before You Start,
Writing a Business Plan, Obtaining Financing, and A Checklist
for Starting a Business. Join a lively online discussion.
Hear
others’ questions and get your own questions answered.
Classes are for one hour in the evening and they are a great
opportunity to share your experiences and learn from others.
Complete an application and sign up now for this exciting
new opportunity made possible by Morgan Stanley. All classes
are conducted using AOL Instant Messaging, which is free
to the public for download. Click
here to get started.
Stay
Tuned A new curriculum for fall is currently under development.
Classes should begin in early September. Keep checking our
web site for details.
Don’t Forget —
The Financial Empowerment for Small Businesses Workshop
Is Now Available On-line!
This
online workshop is now featured on our web site and will
provide you with the knowledge you need to manage your business
and personal finances more effectively. The lesson you will
learn is it's not how much money you make but what you do
with it that counts. The workshop is designed with that
in mind. The workshop was created for Count Me In by Moneyworks,
Inc. and is supported by a generous grant from Morgan Stanley.
Click
here for more information.
Business Question Stumping
You? Try Count Me In's BizLine™
We
developed BizLine™
so that we can help you - the small business owner or aspiring
owner - build your business. Email us a business question
and the Count Me In experts will answer it within 48 hours!
Ask
us a question about what is puzzling you - whether you are
just starting a business or growing fast. Email your questions
to BizLine@count-me-in.org.
Just
remember, your questions need to be business related and
try to keep them to less than a paragraph with just enough
relevant information to outline your question. We want to
help!
BizLine™ Archives
If you
have a question that you are hesitant to ask or are just
plain curious, check out our BizLine™
archives for a peak at some of our most commonly asked
questions.
Count
Me In Family News
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Lice
Advice founder, Adele Horowitz, is a first time Count
Me In loan recipient. Renowned for her expertise in
getting rid of head lice, she specially designed a comb
to get the lice and eggs out of hair. For Lice Advice
or to purchase the comb, please visit her web site at
www.liceadvisor.com |
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Adrienne
Smalls of www.prisonhelp.com has been busy over the
last few months. On April 24th, she was featured on
a PBS series, Success Bound, which appeared in syndicate
in Manhattan, Queens and Brooklyn. She also spoke at
a job fair for local communities hosted by the Northern
Manhattan Perinatal Partnership on June 14th. Adrienne
is currently working with a filmmaker on a documentary
following the plight of a family of an incarcerated
individual. Expected release of the documentary is November
2002.
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Heather
McCartney of Ethnic
Edibles will be at the Fancy Food Show at the Javits
Center in New York City from July 7th through the 9th.
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Count
Me In staff member, Staci Pierson, was married in New York
City on June 1st.
Interesting
Fact
Women
are among the fastest-growing group of home-based entrepreneurs,
owning approximately 60% of home-based business. (US Census
Bureau)
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