GREENFIELD — Collaboration is the name of the business game in Franklin County, and the Chamber of Commerce’s monthly breakfast Friday morning highlighted some community partners that can help businesses of any stage and type get their feet underneath them.

Franklin County Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Jessye Deane emphasized the relationships of local businesses at the chamber’s breakfast, which was themed “Let’s Get Technical,” as local organizations shared assistance and lending opportunities for business owners and entrepreneurs in the region.

“I think one of the things that separates Franklin County from a lot of our other markets is how supportive so many of our partnerships are,” Deane said. “I think collaborative partnerships are the spirit of Franklin County. I see it everyday and I am so grateful that is the approach we all take to business here.”

Representatives from the Franklin County Community Development Corporation, Common Capital Inc. and the MassHire Franklin Hampshire Career Center spoke to the audience about their various programs and initiatives for lending money to businesses that are getting off the ground or needing a cash infusion, diverse hiring practice and employee training resources.

John Waite, the CDC’s executive director, explained they provide technical assistance and “flexible financing” of loans for start-up, fledgling and established businesses that can use the help. Their technical assistance comes in the form of information sessions, where people can talk about their business plans. Feedback and advice is helpful, but money is a necessity and Waite said their lending programs are there to help people achieve their dreams.

“You can’t run a business without money. … We have a lot of money to lend, and we’re excited to do that,” Waite said, highlighting the CDC’s Pioneer Valley Grows Investment Fund, which allows community investors to fund farms and other food businesses, such as Many Graces Farm in Hadley. “It’s very unique and innovative. … PV Grows Investment Fund is something that we’re growing, and the farmers love it.”

Joining Waite from the CDC was Racial Justice and Community Engagement Lead Traci Talbert, who works with businesses to address unintentional biases in hiring and lending practices.

“My job is to help them to become more aware of where we can make real difference and real change,” Talbert said. “We have to flip the system inside out. It causes fear for many businesses because it’s different … it’s not part of the way we’re used to doing things.”

Talbert said the goal is to ensure that people who come into the community are welcomed and, more importantly, feel like they belong.

Following Waite and Talbert was Common Capital, a non-profit community development institution, and its president, Raymond Lanza-Weil, who talked about how his business and the CDC can help fill the gaps in funding that bank loans often don’t cover. For example, he said start-ups often don’t have a financial track record to qualify for a bank loan and an existing business may not have enough collateral to respond to a one-time event like a fire.

He used Whitney Hill Antiques owner Dale Whitney as an example. Whitney opened her retail store on Main Street in Greenfield and saw an opportunity to open Whitney Hill at The Gables on Routes 5 and 10, which she funded with a Greenfield Savings Bank loan. Whitney’s expansion, however, needed some funding for things a bank loan couldn’t cover. That’s where Common Capital stepped in.

“She needed additional funding to provide some working capital and install some ventilation,” Lanza-Weil said. “Common Capital provided that financing and Whitney Hill Antiques at the Gables celebrates its one-year anniversary next month.”

The breakfast closed out with Penni Menard and Jennifer Droesch of the MassHire Franklin Hampshire Career Center, who shared the agency’s resources for employee training and retention services.

“We are a vast area with relatively limited resources, which is why we really value building relationships and establishing new connections in our collaborations,” Droesch said.

Prior to the presentations, Deane honored Greenfield’s outgoing community and economic development director, MJ Adams, who is retiring on May 6 after spending five years in the role. Adams received an extended standing ovation from the audience.

“MJ’s vision and expertise have advanced the downtown revitalization efforts, helped Greenfield businesses navigate a pandemic and progress many of Greenfield’s most treasured assets, including the Wilson’s redevelopment and the expansion of the Greenfield industrial park,” Deane said. “She’s been an invaluable resource to me and I know to many in this room.”

Chris Larabee can be reached at clarabee@recorder.com or 413-930-4081.

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