Wells Fargo Expands National Awards Program to Honor Women Business Owners
June 04 2004 - 9:30AM
PR Newswire (US)
Wells Fargo Expands National Awards Program to Honor Women Business
Owners Diversity Partners' Adrian Guglielmo Honored by Wells Fargo
and National Association of Women Business Owners as the Third
Trailblazer Award Winner DALLAS, June 4 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ --
Fueled by the continuous growth of women-owned businesses, Wells
Fargo today announced the expansion of its Women's Business
Services' national awards program at this year's National
Association of Women Business Owners (NAWBO) National Conference.
At next year's event, Wells Fargo will recognize three Trailblazer
Award winners with $5,000 cash awards. This year, Wells Fargo and
NAWBO recognized New York businesswoman Adrian Guglielmo as the
third annual Trailblazer Award winner during NAWBO's Annual
Business Conference and Trade Show. Guglielmo is CEO and owner of
Diversity Partners, a Brewster, New York-based company counseling
companies on the benefits of services to the disabled, and on
making their businesses accessible. "As women-owned firms continue
to be a driving force in the U.S. economy, we want to send a strong
message that reinforces Wells Fargo's commitment to their success,"
said Joy Ott, Regional President for Wells Fargo in Montana and
National Spokesperson for Wells Fargo's Women's Business Services
program. "We are excited to expand our national awards program
beginning with next year's NAWBO event, and are thrilled to
recognize this year's winner Adrian Guglielmo, whose business
success and commitment to giving back to her community embody all
of the ideals we look for in a Trailblazer Award winner." "Our
programs have been very successful in reaching out to this vital
community," said Guglielmo. "We have an unwavering commitment to
make the world a better place for people with disabilities, but
many companies have yet to tap into the spending power and
potential of this market segment." The NAWBO/Wells Fargo
Trailblazer Award showcases the achievements of extraordinary women
business owners who exemplify a "trailblazing" spirit. The award
recipient and three finalists -- chosen from a pool of applicants
from across the country -- were selected based on their companies'
business performance, innovation, growth, and service to the
community. Wells Fargo's Women's Business Services program is an
outreach and education program aimed at building relationships with
women business owners by sponsoring key community organizations and
market research. Measuring its progress with a new public goal to
lend $20 billion to qualified woman-owned businesses within ten
years, Wells Fargo has lent more than half a billion dollars since
re-establishing the goal in September 2003. Since the program's
inception in 1995, Wells Fargo has lent more than $17 billion to
women business owners nationwide. About NAWBO Founded in 1975,
NAWBO propels women entrepreneurs into economic, social and
political spheres of power worldwide. More than a quarter-century
later, NAWBO is still the only organization that solely represents
the interest of women entrepreneurs in all industries. The
organization's mission is to strengthen the wealth-creating
capacity of its members and promote economic development; to create
innovative and effective change in the business culture; to build
strategic alliances, coalitions and affiliations; and to transform
public policy and influence opinion makers. About Wells Fargo Wells
Fargo & Company is a diversified financial services company
with $397 billion in assets, providing banking, insurance,
investments, mortgage and consumer finance from more than 5,900
stores and the internet (wellsfargo.com) across North America and
elsewhere internationally. Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. is the only
"Aaa"- rated bank in the United States. Visit Wells Fargo at
http://www.wellsfargo.com/ Providing financial products and
services to more than one million businesses with annual sales up
to $20 million in all 50 states, Puerto Rico and Canada, Wells
Fargo is the #1 lender to small businesses in the United States in
total dollar volume according to 2001 CRA data. The second largest
national SBA lender in dollars, and third largest in loans, Wells
Fargo is an SBA Preferred Lender in 28 states, and originated 3,181
loans for $473 million in 2003. Wells Fargo has also been ranked
the number one SBA 504 lender nationally for the last two years.
Speer & Associates rated Wells Fargo's online services #1 for
small business and for consumers (2003). Its targeted business
services programs provide outreach and education to women, African
American, Latino, and Asian business owners about financial
services. Since 1995, Wells Fargo has loaned more than $20 billion
to women and minority business owners. DATASOURCE: Wells Fargo
& Company CONTACT: Matt Hurwitz of Wells Fargo & Company,
+1-415-222-1679, or Web site: http://www.wellsfargo.com/
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