Emory Impact Investing Group
Profile Summary:
- Venture Name: Emory Impact Investing Group (EIIG)
- Impact Focus Area(s): Business Lending, Consulting, Workforce Development, Job Creation
- Business Stage (Ideation, Startup, Early, Later, Mature): Startup
- Year Venture Established: 2014
- Business Type: Student-Run Microbusiness Lender
- Headquarters: Atlanta, GA
The Issue
Social entrepreneurship is about solving problems. Tell us about the challenge you are focused on addressing and why it is critical that we make progress.
“Emory Impact Investing Group was founded in 2014 to provide microloans to local entrepreneurs who lack access to capital.
Formally known as the ‘Microbusiness gap,’ research shows that there is ~30% drop in number of microbusinesses per capita from low- to high-poverty neighborhoods in the United States. To unlock the full economic potential of the Atlanta community, EIIG aims to close the microbusiness gap in traditionally high-poverty areas by increasing the number of successful small businesses. We direct our efforts in pursuit of this goal by providing early-stage financing, knowledge, and networks necessary for the sustainable growth of businesses.”
Your Journey
Entrepreneurship is a journey that requires connections and support from a wide array of stakeholders across the ecosystem to help successfully identify, start, and grow a social enterprise.
“Dr. Peter Roberts and the Social Entrepresize @ Goizueta at Emory University’s Goizueta Business School have done extensive research on entrepreneurship in the metro-Atlanta area. His findings have revealed the presence of a microbusiness gap between low- and high-poverty neighborhoods. Dr. Roberts identified high-poverty neighborhoods within Atlanta that lack small businesses, but are economically capable of supporting them. This belies a large problem: a lack of initial capital and network resources for entrepreneurs in Atlanta that need them most. EIIG was created to be a part of the solution to this problem, providing microloans to local entrepreneurs who offer macro benefits and direct social impact to their local community.”
GSIC and the Map
The mission of the Georgia Social Impact Collaborative (GSIC) is to accelerate the growth of impact investing in Georgia. Over the past 18 months, GSIC and its partners have engaged hundreds of investors, nonprofits, social entrepreneurs and others who care about scaling social impact through leveraging creative capital. The result of this work is the Map, an interactive resource designed to educate and connect stakeholders interested in impact investing. For more info, see www.GaSocialImpact.com and the Summary Report from phase 1 of the Map.
From your perspective, why do we need to develop Georgia’s Social Impact Ecosystem and how can the Map help with that?
“The entrepreneurial spirit is at the core of the Georgia community, from high-growth tech to a thriving small business network. When working with social entrepreneurs, matching needs to support resources is crucial for driving impact. Integrating all impact investing stakeholders into one platform is the next step towards building a leading model for economic empowerment, implementable in other states across the nation. Georgia’s Social Impact Ecosystem will allow organizations and individuals to start sharing best practices, monitoring and evaluating impact, and ultimately, provide an enabling environment for businesses to thrive within Georgia.”
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