Ep 18 - Gail Lara-Women’s Collaborative Mentoring Program

Gail Lara is a Small Business Commissioner for the City of Los Angeles. She was also the founder of the Women’s Collaborative Mentoring Program and brought to the position more than twenty years of experience as a business owner and small-business development training. She holds twenty-five years of experience in retail buying, sales management, procurement, and advertising specialty.  Commissioner Lara also worked as a business coach with Operation Hope and progressed their Launch + Grow for women entrepreneur’s program. Over her extensive career, she served more than 5,200 business owners to start or grow their company and connect to resources for funding and new business opportunities.  Listen to her tips and advice while being a mom of three children, which includes raising a special needs child with high functioning Autism (Asperger’s) and was an instrumental leader in navigating the system to help improve school programs for youth with Special needs!

 

Ep 18 - Gail Lara-Women's Collaborative Mentoring Program

2:50 - Right out of college, moved to Hawaii, stayed there for 25 years, had her three children, and moved back to the mainland 23 years ago, and was in retail.  She decided to start her own business bringing goods from Hawaii.  

3:50 - Started the Women’s Collaborative Mentoring Program 10 years ago.

5:15 - Word of mouth is the best way to do things.

6:00 - Planning and scheduling Pau, Hana Friday’s, to them means finish work then go to the beach, watch the sunset and have dinner together. Kids get used to family traditions.

8:04 - Assigned each child a budget for a meal for the family each week. She would take them to the store to buy the items within budget. And if not, they would put it back.

9:22 - With high functioning autism, her son was in LAUSD and on so many programs that mixed them with the other children, it was a challenge. 

10:07 - Autism is a big business, “do this for him”, “take this medicine,” etc. You try to do it all and you don’t even know what is working.  

10:55 - It’s not about fixing him but understanding him. I needed to sit down with his teachers and caregivers and ask what one thing are you doing that’s working?

13:46 - we tend to want to hover and do it for them and fix things. They need to know how to do it themselves. 

15:30 - Gail is my friend that started the entrepreneurial training program 

16:25 - Tips for people starting Business - 

• Work with the free resources out there (see link below) funded by the city.
• Work with all of them. You never know who’s desk it will reach that needs your services.

• • SBDC (for each city)
  • Business Source Center (for each city)
  • SBA – Small Business Administration (Federal program)

• Two most asked questions:

• • Where do you find a mentor.
  • What are the steps?

• Checklist to get started.

19:10 – Not once source has the budget to handle it all, be part of all of them. 20:30 – Contracting; Women contractors, Women owned business, Black owned business certifications.

22:15 - Gail connected you with the free resources and helped get your business started.

23:13 – Women’s Collaborative Mentoring Program was put under the VEA and Launch and grow was under OPERATION HOPE.  They were both transitioning when she retired so they are no longer.  But her resources still exist. 

25:54 – My middle daughter has a wellness center in Mammoth and Bishop, Her oldest daughter is doing elixirs and works for a corporate company.  Her son has his own business. 

27:00 – You need to speak your business every day, to everyone at every opportunity, nonstop and ask yourself; did I speak to 10 people today?

28:00 – Ariella was at her son’s school event as she was starting a group