Arkansas Starters Coalition

The Arkansas Starters Coalition is a statewide initiative that is advancing entrepreneurship across Arkansas. The Coalition will convene entrepreneurs, identify barriers to starting new businesses, make policy recommendations to remove those barriers, and engage all communities. This can lead to greater prosperity for all Arkansans through homegrown jobs, higher incomes, stronger communities, lower inequality, and less poverty.

Take action to make our community more supportive for all entrepreneurs. Join the Coalition today!

Let Your Voice Be Heard!

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We are born to be starters, makers, doers, dreamers.

Everyone has the right to pursue their entrepreneurial dreams… a Right to Start. 94% of Americans across party lines agree that having a fair chance to start and grow a business is important to the future of our nation.

Join the first-ever Right to Start Coalition in Northwest Arkansas to help change the entrepreneurial landscape and level the playing field.

Let your voice be heard and your opinion counted!

Founding Coalition Member Organizations

RIGHT TO START'S NWA SUMMIT

Right to Start’s Northwest Arkansas Summit in August 2023 was the first of its kind, where Americans from all backgrounds came together to realize the potential in all of us to be starters, makers, doers, dreamers. Attendees met “next door” entrepreneurs and became active changemakers for the entrepreneurial ecosystem in Northwest Arkansas.

Barriers Identified

During the Summit, participants identified significant barriers that exist for entrepreneurs in starting and/or running a business. These challenges, and their potential solutions, are listed below.

Also, groundbreaking information about the impact of micro-businesses on the Northwest Arkansas economy was shared from Venture Forward by GoDaddy (slides are downloadable here).

Here are barriers that participants identified:

“There are too many regulations. There should be deregulation and exemptions from certain regulations for small businesses to enable competition and reduce barriers to opening.”
“More opportunities for government contracts.”
“Access to capital/loans”
“Incentives for traditional small businesses”
“Access to resources”
“Information clearing house. Capital clearing house. Compliance simplified.”
“NWA has a lot of resources and organizations supporting entrepreneurs. We need these services in all areas of the state, especially in the south and eastern parts of our state.”
“Help us find funding!”
“I would like to ask for cities to be more consistent with their approvals.”
“The confusion on where to start (this pushes people away).”
“My entrepreneurs struggle with collateral (for funding)!”
“Access to healthcare and other benefits.”
“Language accessibility: English, Spanish, Marshallese.”
“High-speed broadband.”
“Removing red tape. Streamline at city, state level.”
“Financial Literacy.”
“Have the cities notify entrepreneur when the state has a new policy or change to an active project.”
“Access to childcare.”
“Clearer information for SBA loans with clear approval notes for banks and entrepreneurs. Reduced processing times.”
“One-stop shop.”
“Increase staffing for the existing small business and entrepreneurship office— so state employees can provide for help.”
“Business education and helping immigrants understand how to start a business in the U.S.”
“Representation: having a voice for the diverse, one to help us get in spaces.”
“Helping entrepreneurs get more exposure.”
“Real estate access at affordable prices.”
“Office of Entrepreneurship state office!”
“Entrepreneurs should have access to capital that doesn’t eat into their ownership.”
“Entrepreneurship education. Especially in Jr. High/High school.”