Blogs
Ruben Mauricio built RPM Diesel Services in Texas without advertising, a website or business cards—just character, grit, and word of mouth. After serving time in prison, he turned lessons from the Prison Entrepreneurship Program into a successful oilfield service business, overcoming barriers to financing, hiring and growth along the way.
Access to childcare isn’t a concern that’s limited to parents—it’s also a business issue. Across the country, small business owners and their employees struggle to find and afford quality childcare, forcing too many caregivers to choose between their jobs and their families. In fact, according to Small Business Majority’s 2024 national poll, 58% of entrepreneurs report that childcare challenges have made it harder to start their business, while 59% say these challenges have slowed their growth. For more than one in four, the impact was even more severe and they were forced to close their business altogether.
Nearly 80% of small business owners support a national paid family and medical leave (PFML) program, yet in the absence of federal action, states are stepping up. Small Business Majority has been at the forefront of this movement, helping shape programs like Colorado’s FAMLI through research, advocacy, and small business voices. Read about our efforts and hear directly from small business owners on why PFML matters.
At Small Business Majority, we know small businesses don’t succeed in a vacuum, they thrive when surrounded by a strong, connected support system. That’s why we’re committed to building small business ecosystems: networks of community organizations, mission-driven lenders, service providers, and policymakers working together to help entrepreneurs start, grow, and scale their businesses.
Rural entrepreneurs face a unique set of challenges compared to their urban and even their suburban counterparts. Poor infrastructure including limited broadband internet, as well as a lack of access to hospitals, doctors, and childcare providers can make it difficult for rural economies to thrive. And while many cities have dedicated programs to support under-resourced small businesses, that often isn’t true in rural areas. That’s why small business advocacy organizations must help fill the resource void in rural America.
Many small business owners struggle to save for retirement or offer benefits due to cost and limited resources. That’s why Small Business Majority has long supported state and federal auto-IRA programs like California’s CalSavers, which provides no-cost retirement savings options for workers and helps small firms compete for talent. One early participant, bookstore owner Christin Evans, shares how CalSavers improved retention and professionalism at her business. With 20 states now offering similar programs, thousands more entrepreneurs and employees can plan for a more secure future—yet continued advocacy remains essential.
One of the biggest barriers to entrepreneurship is capital. It’s often so hard to get, in fact, that many early-stage small business owners resort to borrowing from friends and family, or risking their life savings to support their dreams. In addition to the deceptively high interest rates, one of the most insidious aspects of predatory loans is that business owners who are victimized by bad-faith lenders tend to also feel shame. That’s why we’re grateful for small business owners like Chrishon Lampley, a member of our Illinois Small Business Council, who has regularly shared her predatory lending story over the years to help others avoid the same pitfalls.
When John Arensmeyer launched Small Business Majority in 2005, he was trying to fill a gap in the advocacy space. As a former small business owner himself, he recognized that the overwhelming majority of entrepreneurs didn’t have the resources to receive meaningful attention from their elected officials. He also saw that most of the small business advocacy groups at the time tended to conflate the needs of big businesses with the needs of small firms.
After being laid off from her job as a graphic designer, Jackie Huebbe found herself unemployed and with a house in foreclosure, uncertain of what would come next. It was then that her passion for helping those in need and offering second chances was born. Years later, after rebuilding her life and facing another corporate layoff, Jackie decided to bet on herself and take control of her future, launching her small business, SugarBot Sweet Shop & Creamery.
Inspired by his dream to change the world for the better, Daniel Ryave joined the Peace Corps at 22 years old as a volunteer teacher. While in Togo, West Africa, teaching high school English as a second language, he fell in love with empowering the next generation and building connections through education.
“[It] really gave me the desire to keep working one-on-one and making those meaningful connections with people,” Daniel said.
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