Loan Ready: A Four-Session Series for Women Business Owners

Dates & Time Wednesdays, July 1, 8, 15 & 22 5:00 – 7:00 PM Via Zoom

Cost: $25

Are you loan ready? If you have been thinking about financing for your business but are not sure where to start, this series is for you. Over four Wednesday evenings in July, WISE is bringing in national small business finance expert Maria Randall to walk you through everything you need to know, from understanding your loan readiness to sitting across the table from a lender with confidence.

Who should attend: Women business owners and aspiring entrepreneurs in Onondaga, Oneida, Madison, Cayuga, Cortland, Jefferson, and Oswego counties who are considering financing in the next 6 to 18 months.

What Is Included

Registration includes all four sessions plus a free 30-minute one-on-one virtual consultation with Maria Randall. Your individual consultation is your chance to bring your specific questions, your numbers, and your situation — and get honest, expert guidance before you approach a lender.

What You Will Learn

Session 1 — Is Your Business Loan Ready? An honest assessment of where you stand. We cover what lenders look for, how to read your own financials, and what needs to be in place before walking into a bank.

Session 2 — Understanding Your Options Not all capital is the same. We walk through SBA loans, conventional bank loans, CDFIs, microloans, and lines of credit, what each is best for, what they cost, and who they are right for at different stages of business.

Session 3 — Building Your Loan Package The practical session. Financial statements, business plan, projections, personal credit, collateral, and how to put together a package that makes a strong first impression.

Session 4 — Lender Panel: Straight Talk A panel of local lenders answering your questions directly. WISE recruits and coordinates the panelists. You ask the questions.

Loan Ready is offered through WISE Women’s Business Center, a designated SBA Women’s Business Center and NYS Entrepreneurial Assistance Center hosted by Syracuse University’s Whitman School of Management.

After registering, you will receive an email from Eventbrite with a link to access the webinar. Please save this email and be sure to check your SPAM folder if you don’t see it in your email inbox.

Reasonable accommodations for persons with disabilities will be made if requested at least two weeks in advance. Contact Carolyn Tucker at wisecenter@syr.edu to make arrangements.

Your Instructor

Maria Randall | Founder & CEO, LLADNAR Services, LLC

Maria brings more than 25 years of banking and finance experience to the Loan Ready series, including 17 years as an SBA lending specialist. After a career spent working primarily with small businesses, she founded LLADNAR Services to share her insider knowledge as a lender and help entrepreneurs, especially women, navigate every phase of the loan process. She is a graduate of Vassar College and has been a sought-after speaker at business conferences and workshops nationally.