SOREDI Loan Program
SOREDI has a loan fund that helps to provide financing for small businesses who may have limited access to capital.
The goal of these funds is to help benefit and grow Southern Oregon’s business environment.
Funds are typically issued on a term lending basis. Interest is typically higher than traditional financing because of the inherent risk associated with these types of businesses.
Connect with SOREDI
A few of our happy clients
Debt Financing
Debt Financing (taking out a loan) is ideal for more established businesses that can show historical operations and cash flow. Taking this approach means you'll pay interest and have to provide collateral, but you don’t have to give away any equity or ownership.
Watch this short video from our Ashland Chamber of Commerce to learn a little more about the types of documentation you will need to secure financing.
Here are some of our local providers.
Equity Financing & Venture Capital
What's the difference?
Equity financing typically involves giving up a percentage of equity (ownership) in your company, in exchange for capital.
Venture capital is investing, usually by a firm, to support startup and early-stage companies that have very high growth potential.
Raising either equity finance or venture capital is hard, requires persistence, tenacity and, of course, connections.
First round: Work your own network to get that first round of finance-- this is often referred to as the “Friends, Family and Fools” route.
Second round: Venture capital (VC) or private equity firms can help. A full list of statewide Venture Capital / Angel funds can be found here.
Note: Before you reach out to any firm, it's critical that you do your industry research. Some useful tools for this are CrunchBase and AngelList, and FinSMES. These are great resources for seeing activity in your industry, such as which VC firms are investing in which companies. Showing solid activity (mergers & acquisitions or other liquidity events) in your sector is important when convincing a potential investor to put money in.
Other Sources of Financing
Alternative Lending/Crowdfunding
What resources do you need?
Jackson County
- Coworking spaces.
- Medford Cowork and Ashland Works offer a variety of memberships to fit individual and business needs across different locations, and has an active entrepreneur community schedule. First day trial is free.
- Libraries. JCLS offers free wifi, workspace, meeting spaces, and lends out hotspot-enabled devices. Check locations and hours here.
Josephine County
- Coworking spaces.
- The Hiive in Grants Pass has daily, weekly, and monthly drop in options for individuals or conference spaces.
- Libraries. Josephine Community Libraries offer free wifi, workspace, meeting spaces, and technical support for personal devices. Check locations and hours here.
Initial Research
- Jackson County Library System's Business Librarian can help.
- General Census data is available online from the government.
- Customized Market Research Reports are available through the Small Business Development Centers in Jackson and Josephine Counties.
Once you have your market research and plan in mind, reach out to your local SBDC to get started on your business plan.
For assistance drafting one, contact:
Jackson County
SOU Small Business Development Center (SBDC)
Josephine County
RCC Small Business Development Center (SBDC)
Reach out to SOREDI. We'll help direct you to the right agency or resource.