Alabama is ready to welcome entrepreneurs and investors with real Southern hospitality: friendly people, low cost of living, beautiful outdoors, thriving cities and, now, nearly $98 million to pour into small businesses.

Beginning this year, Innovate Alabama will administer small business loans and venture capital programs with a focus on historically underserved communities and individuals. Whether you’re a rural farmer in Alabama’s Black Belt, a veteran from Baltimore looking for the right place to relocate your small business, or a woman-run biotech startup in Atlanta, Alabama has the funding — and tools and talent — you need to succeed.

With a $97.9 million investment to spur activity in the state’s small business ecosystem, Innovate Alabama has launched the State Small Business Credit Initiative (SSBCI). Alabama’s first statewide public-private partnership focused on entrepreneurship, technology and innovation, Innovate Alabama’s mission is to help innovators grow roots in the state. And if you’re a small business owner, a tech founder or an investor looking for the right opportunity to sow your oats, Innovate Alabama has made sure the soil here is rich.

“The SSBCI program will have a tremendous impact on the small business landscape throughout the state,” said Innovate Alabama CEO Cynthia Crutchfield.

A State of Innovation from Innovate Alabama on Vimeo.

This program will catalyze entrepreneurship by making low-risk loans and investments possible for lenders and investors respectively. SSBCI is not exclusive to tech or innovative small businesses but open to all small businesses.

Rodney Sampson, the manager for SSBCI’s InvestAL program, knows well the life-changing impact of meaningful investment for a small business.

“To the fund manager and the founder, this is capital,” said Sampson, an entrepreneur renowned for building inclusive economic ecosystems with organizations like 100 Black Angels and Allies. Sampson said people outside Alabama need to visit and see what the state has to offer.

Innovate Alabama plans to launch the state’s SSBCI program in collaboration with Sloss Tech, the Southeast’s premier annual tech conference.

“In the context of the venture ecosystem, Sloss Tech is an incredible opportunity to come and check out Alabama’s startup ecosystem,” Sampson said. As an example, he pointed to a number of Alabama startups, including Shipt, a delivery service founded and headquartered in Birmingham that was purchased by Target in 2017 for $550 million.

This public-private capital arrives at a time when investment opportunities across the United States are increasingly limited by inflation.

“As Alabama signals that it’s open for business and has been open for business, it is crucial that we continue to contribute to the growth of the state’s economy through our small businesses. This is a sector that has played a pivotal role in defining Alabama’s history,” said Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey. “With the SSBCI program, we will demonstrate to all stakeholders that Alabama represents a sound investment opportunity.”

Alabama has long been known for its agriculture, but the state is also home to thriving cities, including Huntsville, a booming space and biotech hub; Birmingham, a tech and health care center; and Mobile, a longtime home for aerospace, marine and chemical industries.

Cynthia Crutchfield is CEO of Innovate Alabama. (file)

Walt Postlewait, the manager for SSBCI’s LendAL program, admits he didn’t know how much Alabama had to offer before spending time here to help set up the program. Postlewait has worked in lending for more than 20 years, including with Oregon’s SSBCI program.

“There are so many positive things happening in Alabama,” he said. “It’s a well-kept secret.”

Postlewait said when he came to the state to work with Innovate Alabama on the SSBCI lending program, he was happily surprised to discover all the state has to offer: booming industries with diverse economic drivers, gorgeous parks and waterways, music venues with stunning views, award-winning restaurants and kind people.

“And if you want to talk about cost of living, it’s some of the most affordable real estate in the country and you’re not really giving up anything,” Postlewait said.

For Crutchfield, the program is an impetus to realize the statewide vision for economic growth.

“Because of this program,” Crutchfield said, “it’s a new day for entrepreneurs in Alabama. I’m excited to see the long-term effects of this program, including catalyzing a self-sustaining, enduring investment pipeline.”