Our unique credit-building program offers education and support to help clients access affordable financial products and services, and to build and maintain good credit over time.  How? By providing credit education and one-on-one credit coaching, and credit builder tools that allow for payment behavior to be reported to the major credit bureaus – a strategy that helps people to lay the foundation for financial resiliency. EO has worked with hundreds of individuals seeking affordable capital, so we have unique insight into the huge gap in credit building knowledge that is essential for personal and small business financial success. Even more importantly, we understand how to efficiently close it. 

Jesse, a married father of four runs a local barbershop. His first credit pulls revealed ten collections and a heavy reliance on alternative financial services. With Economic Opportunity classes and coaching, Jesse learned how to track sales, budget and segregate business expenses. He paid off seven collections within eight months, and improved his credit score by 97 points. Jesse still has work to do, but is better positioned to access mainstream financial services and negotiate a better lease for his business.

Economic Opportunity (EO) offers business support that helps individuals and families increase income through self-employment.  Our approach to business development provides opportunities to learn business basics in a safe, culturally sensitive environment free of business jargon and judgment. We provide group classes and lots of one-on-one time to help clients learn how to run a business in Idaho and about the business planning process. We pride ourselves on helping individuals figure out whether a business will be profitable on paper before a client spends a dime.

Since 2002 EO has successfully worked with more than a thousand individuals to help launch hundreds of local businesses that have created hundreds more jobs—all contributing to greater self-sufficiency and the local economy.

EO has seen many unique food industry start-ups like Kibron’s Ethiopian foods and Bee Wise Gifts and Bakery. Establishments that enhance the life of the community have been started offering the benefits of a day spa, child care, animal care, gyms and photography, to name a few. Less conventional women run businesses like auto repair, trucking, contracting and ‘handyman’ services are growing in number and thriving.  EO assists and inspires men and women with a great idea to start and succeed in a one-of-a-kind business like Boise Speakwell- a coaching business and Tringling - a new online “travel and mingling” platform.

We succeed when our clients become financially resilient and contribute to the fabric of our community, possessing the very qualities necessary for a thriving local economy.