Entrepreneur Grants for Small Business Owners

15th Anniversary Entrepreneur Grant

Cecilia Russo Marketing is accepting applications from new business owners, start-ups and budding entrepreneurs in the State of Georgia for a $5,000 grant award, paying homage to the first payment from the first client the company ever received.

Savannah, GA

In 2008, Founder and CEO Cecilia Russo Turner left a stable and secure job to take on the publicity and event planning for Tour de Georgia, a U.S. professional road cycling stage race across the State of Georgia. She was paid $5,000 for the successful completion of the project. Since then, she has worked with countless southeast, regional, and Savannah-area businesses and philanthropic organizations, providing strategic communications, marketing, fundraising, and public relations counsel to business executives in the large private and nonprofit sectors.

Governor Brian Kemp congratulated Russo Turner on the announcement of the grants.

Kemp commented, “Small businesses are the backbone of Georgia’s economy, supporting both individuals and employees while providing vital services and character to communities across our state. As the number 1 state for business, Georgia has the tools for entrepreneurs to succeed, including a qualified workforce, friendly business environment, and world-class infrastructure. We are also taking steps to further support these irreplaceable job creators through measures such as the recently passed HB 128, which will open new doors for small businesses in the state procurement process, especially for minority-, women-, and veteran-owned businesses. Hardworking Georgians appreciate all our small businesses offer.”

Cecilia Russo Marketing is inviting new businesses in the State of Georgia to submit a written pitch of no more than 1,000 words explaining their business and how it would benefit from a $5,000 grant and continue to propel the economic impact in our State. Nominations may be submitted online at crussomarketing.com by Sunday, October 1. 

Criteria and Eligibility

For more details on selection criteria and eligibility, see the 15th Anniversary Entrepreneur Grant page on the company website. The grant winners will be announced in November during National Entrepreneurship Month.

“I had been working in fundraising and events for decades and made many wonderful connections. When I had the opportunity to work on the Tour de Georgia, I jumped at it, threw caution to the wind and went for it,” Russo Turner said. “Through a lot of hard work, prayers, and surrounding myself with the right people, I’ve seen my business grow more than I could have ever imagined. It feels good to celebrate this milestone by paying it forward to a business in the same situation I was in when I started.”

For more information, call 912-665-0005 or visit ceciliarussomarketing.com

Read Georgia Trend’s Spotlight on Small Business in our May 2023 issue