Washington Chamber of Commerce
Main Street Washington
WEDG
City of Washington
September 4th, 2020
Washington, IA–Leslie Allender, owner of Repurpose It and co-owner of Carson Plumbing and Heating in Washington has been selected to participate in the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses Program.
It all started when Washington Chamber Executive Director Michelle Redlinger contacted Allender and encouraged her to submit an application to get into the program. She applied in March, was interviewed later in the year and was accepted August 23.
The rigorous 100-hour program is administered through the Des Moines Area Community College (DMACC) in Ankeny and involves online class work due to the COVID-19 virus.
The curriculum focuses on practical business skills such as negotiation, marketing and employee management. Students also learn how to put their businesses in a better position to access needed capital. Other subjects covered include:
- Diagnostics and Skillsets:
- Financial Statements Workshop;
- Money and Metrics;
- Growth and Opportunities;
- Leadership;
- Feasibility and Risk Assessment;
- Understanding Your Market;
- Forecasting For Growth;
- Operations and Processes;
- Operations and Valuations and
- It’s the People.
To participate in the program, students must have been owners of a business for at least two years with revenues of at least $100,000 in the most recent fiscal year and employ as least two people.
Through the program, participants will gain practical skills in topics such as negotiations, marketing and employment managing that can immediately be put into action. In addition, they will receive the tools and professional support they need to develop a strategic and customized business growth plan that will take their company to the next level.
