A recent graduate of Belmont’s MBA program is quoted about how the MBA program at the Jack C. Massey Graduate School of Business prepared her the business world, in a story in the Nashville Business Journal on a study that finds women entrepreneurs are often aggressive risk-takers.
“I don’t know if it’s an innate thing, but if you’ve got three kids and $500, you’ve got to work it out,” says Nancy Leach, founder and president of Facility Planners, a commercial furniture dealer. “Women will keep pushing and pushing to get what they need.”
Leach speaks from experience. With a newly minted MBA from Belmont University’s Massey School of Business Administration, she launched her company with a $10,000 loan from her father.
“I went to the Small Business Administration, and they turned me down two or three times before they approved me,” she says.
Developing a successful business didn’t end her quest for additional capital or her problems attaining it. When Leach pursued the acquisition of another business several years ago, she approached her bank. “We got them all the numbers and they just stalled,” she says. “Our bank wouldn’t even come to the table.” On the verge of losing the deal, Leach says, she found another bank – with whom she still has a relationship – that gladly funded the purchase.
Addressing another survey topic, Leach says her MBA training equipped her for combat in the business arena. “It helped me be more aggressive and gave me more confidence,” she says. “I have a better network of business contacts than I would have.”
