FORT KENT, Maine — New Ventures Maine has announced the winner of its Marketing Mini-grant competition for small businesses in Aroostook County. First Mile Brewing Co. of Fort Kent received an award of $500.
According to Karin Petrin, microenterprise specialist for NVM, First Mile is a nano-brewery with a mission to provide fresh, locally produced, crushable craft beer to the St. John Valley. Their onsite taproom has eight different tap lines.
To expand visibility, they will use the mini-grant to acquire a vinyl golf cart wrap for display at the Fort Kent Golf Club and purchase 75 logoed pint glasses for the clubhouse to use for serving beer to patrons. With over 1,000 individual golfers annually and public access to the clubhouse during meal times, this will afford brand visibility, Petrin said.
Josh Nadeau, director of the Small Business Development Center at the Northern Maine Development Commission in Caribou, served on the grant review committee, lending his expertise to the review process.
“The mini grant marketing program through New Ventures Maine is a great opportunity for small business owners,” Nadeau said.
“One of the most challenging things to do when you are a small business, especially in Aroostook County, is to attract and retain customers. This grant offers the opportunity for a business to try something different that may have a big impact on the bottom line, or to do something they’ve been putting off due to lack of capital.”
New Ventures Maine’s Marketing Mini-grant criteria include having five or fewer employees, gross annual sales of $250,000 or less, and articulating a compelling marketing project to support business growth. NVME’s mini-grants program garnered support in part from The Betterment Fund.
A statewide organization serving all sixteen Maine counties from nine centers and outreach sites, New Ventures Maine offers skills development and support in the areas of career planning, entrepreneurship and financial management.
For more information on marketing mini-grants as well as other programs, classes, and resources for small businesses, visit newventuresmaine.org or call 1 (800) 442-2092.
