City Treasurer Launches Small Business Series to Highlight Success Stories

Published: October 7, 2020

Today, Chicago City Treasurer Melissa Conyears-Ervin will launch a small business web series to highlight local businesses that have benefited the Chicago Community Catalyst Fund.

The Chicago Community Catalyst Fund was established by the City Treasurer’s Office to help small businesses deal with the impact of COVID-19 by investing up to $50 million into the Chicago Small Business Resiliency Loan Fund. Zero-interest loans were made available to City of Chicago businesses that demonstrated at least a 25% decrease in revenue as a result of COVID-19 and had less than 50 employees. Eligible business owners received up to $50,000 over six months to cover up to 50% of their payroll and additional expenses.

The social media series will kick off with Nicole Jordan Catering, a local business located in the McKinley Park neighborhood at 3931 S. Leavitt St. Business owner Nicole Jordan used the loan as an avenue to manage expenses and rebrand her catering company, allowing her to use her creativity to stay in business.

“Not only did it help in paying the rent for space and vehicles, but we were also able to keep up with our critically important insurances, managing to keep the company afloat while I strategized the next steps for the business,” Jordan said. “The loan gave me the time to think, regroup and adapt my business model to the new reality.”

The City Treasurer’s Office Small Business Series will highlight a local business every other week to show success stories throughout the Chicagoland area. Featured businesses will be available on the City Treasurer’s Office social media pages and website.

“As an advocate for small businesses that are providing much-needed resources to our local communities, making this investment available was a priority for my office,” Conyears-Ervin said. “These small businesses invest in the communities they serve so it’s only fitting that we help them during a difficult time with the necessary resources. We’re proud of businesses like Nicole Jordan Catering that have managed to pivot and become success stories and we look forward to sharing more stories like these in the coming weeks.”

Keywords: Chicago, community, Food, small businesses