The Launch Grants offers grants ranging from $5,000 for businesses launching in non-retail commercial spaces—such as offices and warehouses—to $10,000 for businesses launching in retail commercial spaces with a storefront. Awards for these grants will be exclusively made to help businesses launch their brick-and-mortar business in the unincorporated areas of the County. While not a requirement, priority is provided to businesses dislocated by recent wildfires or opening a business in the unincorporated areas of the County in close proximity to the fires, among other factors such as number of employees and locations with higher unemployment rates of LA County based on the County’s Equity Explorer Map. Eligible uses include tenant or facade improvements, signage, and related building permits.

In addition, the Entrepreneurship Academy Grants provide up to $2,000 to entrepreneurs and small business owners that graduated from DEO’s Entrepreneurship Academies to help them launch their business or take their business to the next level. Entrepreneurship Academies are 8 to 10-week cohort-based educational programs launched in 2024 with four partners in the region. Academy participants graduated with a business, marketing, and financial plan as well as foundational business strategies, knowledge, and resources to grow. To date the Academies have graduated 819 participants across all five Supervisorial Districts.

“At the Department of Economic Opportunity, we’re focused on breaking down barriers for our small and micro businesses to grow, thrive, and serve their communities. This next phase of the Small Business Mobility Fund is about fueling ideas and removing the cost burdens that can prevent talented entrepreneurs from opening their doors. Whether it’s a graduate from our Entrepreneurship Academy or a small business bringing new life to a storefront in an unincorporated community, we’re investing in the people and places that are the foundation of LA County’s economic future,” said Kelly LoBianco, Director of the LA County DEO. 

Both the Launch Grants and Entrepreneurship Academy Grants are made possible through $501,000 of Care First Community Investment (CFCI) funds and are administered in partnership with the Initiating Change in Our Neighborhoods Community Development Corporation (ICON CDC). The Small Business Mobility Fund is a key part of DEO’s Economic Mobility Initiative (EMI) and its broader mission to reduce barriers to business success by expanding access to education, training and technical assistance, and capitalto small businesses across all five Supervisorial Districts. Please visit emi.lacounty.gov to learn more about the initiative and to enroll in an Entrepreneurship Academy— space is still available for a limited time.

“ICON CDC is proud to be working with the Department of Economic Opportunity to implement this impactful county-wide program,” commented the non-profit’s Executive Director, Roberto Barragan. ” We look forward to providing support to hundreds of new small businesses to create jobs and boost the local economy.”

The grant applications are now available in multiple languages until February 13 at 11:00 PM. To qualify, businesses must meet eligibility and documentation requirements, including location and business status. Applicants are also required to provide a business plan detailing how the capital will support their business’s launch. To provide application support, ICON CDC will host virtual informational webinars and application clinics. For application, application guidelines, registration to informational webinars, in-person application clinics, and more details, including eligibility criteria, please visit opportunity.lacounty.gov/sbmf/ Materials and support are available in multiple languages.

For any general questions, interested applicants can also contact DEO’s Office of Small Business by calling (844)-432-4900 or emailing osb@opportunity.lacounty.gov.