When an entrepreneur is getting their startup off the ground, small loans can make a big impact.
“We are so appreciative of organizations like the GFMEDC (and Innovate ND and Emerging Prairie) that support entrepreneurs like us that have vision for amazing things but need both financial and community support”, said Patrick Mineer, CEO & Founder, Golden Path Solutions.
For Golden Path Solutions, it supports things like software development, website upgrades and increased marketing to get their product off the ground.
The Fargo-based startup recently received the first microloan from the newly formed Early Venture Microloan Program administered by the GFMEDC managed Growth Initiative Fund (GIF). Golden Path Solutions was approved for a $20,000 microloan, which then provides the opportunity for a potential matching $10,000 microloan from the North Dakota Development Fund.
The new funding will allow the startup to lay the groundwork to access additional funding and partnerships in the near future.
“John’s GFMEDC role has been a real asset to us, and I know others in the ecosystem have said the same,” said Mineer. “We are so grateful of the amazing support from business leaders and the community in general. We are thrilled to be able to take part in this new microloan to take Golden Path to the next level.”
Golden Path Solutions provides a new application called Compass to students and schools. The app uses a student’s experiences (classes, activities, hobbies & interests) to give insight into skills, talents and career paths. The company works with employers to identify the skills, talents, and educational paths needed to be successful at jobs in their company. Then, Golden Path Solutions provides options for students and employers to find each other, creating agreements where an employer can influence a student’s educational path in exchange for a work agreement and tuition reimbursement. Their goal is to help students plan ahead, help schools and employers work together more efficiently, and help employers develop their future workforce.
One goal of the new microloan program is to provide early-stage seed funding that will ideally help startups progress to their next stages of revenue and gain access to other funding sources.
“Getting through the seed stage is a crucial point for startups and a funding gap at this stage can really halt their progress. We are pleased to play a helping role to access this early financing that can help them keep the momentum,” says John Machacek, Chief Innovation Officer, GFMEDC.
