The Lake County Community Foundation’s new partnership with Honeycomb Credit is a new addition to our Small Business Growth Initiative (SBGI) program with intention to create a small business community loan fund here in Lake County. Honeycomb Credit is a small business loan crowdfunding platform where everyday people can invest in local businesses, they believe in. Loan crowdfunding allows business owners to compliantly borrow money from their own customers, fans, and supporters through a crowdfunding campaign.

LCCF and Honeycomb acknowledge there is a gap in services for small business lending in Lake County that disproportionately affects communities of color and Low to Middle Income (LMI) communities. LCCF with the help of Honeycomb wants to begin shifting a portion of our foundation’s investments to contribute to sustainable, local business economies. We also intend to further educate, grow and activate our Donor Advised Funds (DAFs) holders on the opportunity to create more equitable communities by using their dollars to invest. To begin, LCCF is committing $50,000 to 5 small businesses who want to grow their business in Lake County, Illinois and meet the requirements for a Honeycomb credit loan.

Small business requirements
Small business must align with LCCF SBGI program values (you can read here)
Small business must owned be owned by a person of color or in a Low to Moderate Income (LMI) community within Lake County, Illinois. 
Small businesses must fit Honeycomb Credit’s requirements (you can read here)

How does it work
Step 1: Have an idea for your business that requires more than $25,000 of capital. 
Step 2: Talk to the Honeycomb team and prepare a loan application. 
Step 3: Launch your Honeycomb loan campaign and LCCF will be your first $10,000 investor. t

Partnership and community loan fund goals
At least 50% of the total dollar amount of LCCF investments will be in communities of color in Lake County, Illinois.
At least 50% of the total dollar amount of LCCF investments will be in non-white-owned businesses.
At least 50% of the total dollar amount of LCCF investments will be in woman-, non-binary-, and LGBTQ-owned businesses.

Want to talk more about this opportunity? Please feel free to contact Courtney Combs at [email protected] to discuss your idea prior to applying.