City Art Supply
www.cityartsupply.org

Dana Smith, owner

Description: An art supply shop in South St. Louis that supplies the basics for artists, from professionals to students to independent artists.

Years in business: Opened October 2008

Funding vehicle: US Small Business Administration microloan guarantee through Justine Peterson: $10,000.

Purpose of the funds
The money City Art Supply received by working with Justine Peterson allowed the shop to purchase initial inventory and paid for the first couple months of rent.  “It got us off the ground,” says Smith.  “Now we are paying shop bills with shop money.”

How they did it
After he failed to get appointments and received conflicting information, Smith tried a contact he had with Justine Peterson, a local nonprofit that helps small businesses get financing. “I knew Galen Gondolfi at Justine Peterson,” says Smith.  “He told us exactly what we needed to do and helped us to draft a proposal.  I knew City Art Supply was a good idea.  There are no art shops in the city, so as an artist myself, I would get frustrated jumping on the highway to buy a tube of paint,” says Smith.

Piece of advice
“Make sure you figure out what your startup costs are going to be and then triple that amount.  You might get close,” says Smith.