Wave Staff Report
HOLLYWOOD — Mayor Karen Bass, Small Business Administrator Isabel Casillas Guzman and county Supervisor Hilda Solis visited Barbershop Lopez Oct. 24 to highlight their partnership and continued work to open the city for business.
During the visit, Guzman announced a historic surge in small business financing under the Biden-Harris administration with a dramatic rise in support for Latino-owned, Black-owned and women-owned businesses. Bass highlighted the immense support that businesses in L.A. have received as she locked arms with the federal government.
“Small businesses like Barbershop Lopez are the backbone of our local economy and we must continue to support them now and as we gear up for the major events that L.A. will host in the years to come,” Bass said. “With the support of the White House and SBA Administrator Isabel Casillas Guzman, more resources are flowing to our small businesses. I thank them for their continued support and for championing L.A.’s businesses.”
“Under the Biden-Harris administration, the SBA has massively scaled its capital impact, financing a record number of businesses across America in the last fiscal year,” Guzman said. “In Los Angeles in particular, entrepreneurship is surging among Black, Latino and women entrepreneurs who are accessing SBA loans at historic rates. The SBA is fortunate to have strong local partners like Mayor Bass and Supervisor Solis as we continue our work to fund the diverse entrepreneurs who define Los Angeles.”
“I want to thank the SBA for their support of small businesses not just in Los Angeles but throughout the country,” said Oscar Lopez, owner of Barbershop Lopez. “For me it was a smooth process. I worked with the local SBA office and they helped make sure we got the help we needed.
Thank you to Lendistry for their assistance in this process and to Mayor Bass, Supervisor Solis and of course SBA Administrator Isabel Casillas Guzman for coming by today.”
The SBA has significantly scaled its support for L.A. small businesses over the last four years, including a 44% increase in total loans to L.A. small businesses; a 92% increase in loan dollars to Black-owned businesses, 89% increase to Latino-owned businesses, and 58% increase to women-owned businesses, and a 148% increase in small dollar loans to businesses.
In May, Guzman helped open the first federally recognized Women’s Business Center in South L.A. to help businesses start, grow and develop. The Mayor’s Small Business Cabinet has the expertise of the SBA informing her policy as SBA Los Angeles District Director Julie Clowes serves in the cabinet, alongside former SBA Administrator Maria Contreras-Sweet.
The Mayor’s Office has hosted six small business summits including the most recent sports and entertainment summit focused on contracting opportunities ahead of major sporting events like the 2026 FIFA World Cup and 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
Bass signed Executive Directive 4 in June 2023 to support small business creation, growth and development in the city.
