Five Women Microentrepreneurs in East Palo Alto Eligible to Receive up to $2500 Equity Award

East Palo Alto, March 10, 2006 – Start Up is proud to announce its selection as a local partner for the 2006 Women and Company Microenterprise Boost Program. Through this program, Start Up will have an opportunity to award $500 to $2,500 cash equity awards to at least five women microentrepreneurs in the East Palo Alto / Belle Haven community. The awards will help foster the growth and development of their businesses. Start Up is one of only fifteen Local Partners chosen for this nationwide program.

“Women and Company is proud to participate in this program because we believe all women should have the opportunity to achieve their financial goals,” said Lisa Caputo, President and CEO, Women and Company. “More and more women are finding they can begin to achieve financial independence by starting their own businesses, and these grants can have a practical and immediate impact as they strive to grow these businesses.”

The Women and Company Microenterprise Boost Program is designed to provide low- and moderate-income women microentrepreneurs the opportunity to achieve greater business success by providing cash awards that will have a measurable impact on the development of their business.

Start Up is a not-for-profit organization that trains and supports entrepreneurs who have limited access to resources to help them create prosperity for themselves and their communities. Founded in 1994 by six Stanford University Graduate School of Business students, Start Up has provided training in basic business fundamentals to assist in the creation of hundreds of new locally-owned small businesses in East Palo Alto and surrounding communities.

“Thanks to Citigroup and Women and Company we can provide and ensure women will have access to training and technical assistance and have an increased opportunity to succeed in business. The Women and Company Microenterprise Boost Program provides valuable resources needed to achieve business goals,” said Kimberly Carlton, Executive Director, Start Up.

Started in 2005 and funded by the Citigroup Foundation, the Women and Company Microenterprise Boost Program will disperse over seventy-five equity awards to women microentrepreneurs across the country. Recipients will receive technical training, business development guidance and assistance from Start Up on growing their business and maximizing their equity award. The awards may be used for essential business development activities such as marketing, technology purchases, website development, inventory, or professional services.

The program is managed by the Association for Enterprise Opportunity, a national membership association for the microenterprise development industry, representing hundreds of microenterprise development programs across the country. Women and Company, a division of Citigroup that provides access to financial education and resources for women, will work with AEO to implement and promote the program. Award recipients are announced in March and April.



Citigroup (NYSE:C), the preeminent global financial services company has some 200 million customer accounts and does business in more than 100 countries, providing consumers, corporations, governments and institutions with a broad range of financial products and services, including consumer banking and credit, corporate and investment banking, securities brokerage, and asset management. Major brand names under Citigroup’s trademark red umbrella include Citibank, CitiFinancial, Primerica, Smith Barney, and Banamex. The Citigroup Foundation focuses its grants primarily in three areas: financial education, educating the next generation, and building communities and entrepreneurs. Additional information may be found at www.citigroup.com.

Women and Company is a membership program from Citigroup designed to help women expand their financial knowledge, and prepare themselves for financial decisions that life’s transitions often bring. Women and Company provides financial education through conference calls, Master Classes, and newsletters; personal attention through toll-free resource lines for questions related to taxes, general finance, care giving, survivorship and real estate issues; and special savings on select Citigroup financial products. Additional information may be found at www.womenandco.com.

The Association for Enterprise Opportunity (AEO) is the national association of community-based organizations that provide entrepreneurial education, access to capital, and support to aspiring and active low-income entrepreneurs. AEO's mission is to support the development of strong and effective U.S. microenterprise programs to assist underserved entrepreneurs in starting, stabilizing, and expanding businesses. To learn more about AEO or microenterprise, please visit www.microenterpriseworks.org.

Start Up is an East Palo Alto-based not-for-profit organization that trains and supports entrepreneurs who have limited access to resources to help them create prosperity for themselves and their communities. Start Up’s services are offered in English and Spanish to residents of San Mateo and Santa Clara counties who want to control their own economic destinies through small business ownership. Programs provide education in financial literacy, business planning, marketing, finance, operations, and business incubation services. Additional information may be found at www.startupepa.org.