Program
How It Works
WIBO Grow: How to Build a Growing, Profitable Business is a 16-week peer-based learning workshop, designed to help current and aspiring entrepreneurs start and grow sustainable businesses. Each week the Group Leader will facilitate a discussion on a business concept and a guest Discussion Leader, who is an expert on the topic, will guide workshop members in understanding the subject and coming up with solutions and plans as it relates to each person’s business.
The Numbers Don’t Lie
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How It Works
Our workshop covers everything required to start, run and grow a profitable business. Each week, an expert Discussion Leader, will go over a different business topic including:
- Marketing
- Sales
- Costs
- Return On Investment
- Financing: Credit
- Business Presentation
- Recordkeeping & Taxes
- Personal Finance
- Messaging
- Prospecting
- Pricing
- Profits
- Cash Flow Projections
- Human Resources
- Elevator Pitch
- Ethics & Law
You’ll also receive a planning workbook, now online, that you can customize and modify based on your business. This workbook is your business plan!
Expert Discussion Leaders
Every session is lead by a volunteer discussion leader who is an expert on the night’s topic. Here is a growing list of our current faculty:
- Chef Ava Bastien – Owner, Ava’s Lifeline
- Mike Blumenfeld – Owner, Myron I Blumenfeld & Associates
- Timothy Cooke – Management Consultant
- Nancy Coughlin – Real Estate Private Lender
- Alozie Etufugh, ESQ. – Managing Member, Patent, Trademark, and Copyright Law – Etufugh Law
- Kevin Gilbert – Founder and CEO, Gilbert International Inc.
- Lucien Harriot, PGA | VES – President/VFX Supervisor CGI,VFX, Emerging Media – Mechanism Digital Inc.
- Dominique Hart, MPS – CEO & Founder, Dynamik Endeavors & The Dynamik Foundation
- Robert Heffley – Self Employed Options and Commodities Trading
- Gamal Hennessy, ESQ – Attorney, Author and Business Consultant
- Francine Holt – President, Holt Computer Training, inc
- Rajiv Jadhav – CEO, Rsquare Media
- Diana Lee – Principal, Diana Lee HR LLC
- joEL McGlynn – Co-founder, Hot Glue & the Gun
- Amore Philip – Founder & PR Strategist, Apples & Oranges Public Relations
- Marie Paz Ramos, CPA – Senior Manager, CBIZ Advisors, LLC
- Isa Abdur Rahman, ESQ – The Law Office of Isa Abdur-Rahman
- Gregory Reid, ESQ – Partner, Reid Rodriguez & Rouse, LLP
- Antonio del Rosario – Vice Chair, Licensed Associate, Real Estate Broker, Brown Harris Stevens
- Magda Souffront – Founder & Vice President, Hanover Bank
- Glenda Villajuan – Executive Director, CitiTots Early Childhood Center, Inc
- Dr. Sandi Webster – Advisory Board Creator & Coach CEO, Sandi Webster LLC
- Ying Zhou – Executive Director, Tech Incubator at Queens College
If you would like to join the ranks of our volunteer discussion leaders, please email business@wibo.works
Program Calendar
Currently, we are offering workshop cohorts at the following locations and dates:
- Brooklyn: Thursdays starting May 14 (Flatbush)
- Virtual: Mondays starting May 11 (Zoom)
- Queens: Begins in the Fall
- Manhattan: Begins in the Fall
Workshop Perks
When you become an alumni, you join the WIBO family. Here are some of the benefits of being part of the family.
- Access to office hours with topic experts
- Advice and insights from staff and other alumni
- Networking events, conferences, seminars and more
- Access to exclusive opportunites, content and resources
- The support of the WIBO family and community
Frequently Asked Questions
WIBO Grow meets once a week for 3 hours, typically in the evenings from 6:00–9:00 PM. The program runs for 16 weeks, plus a Week 0 orientation for preparation and onboarding.
Your investment is $360 per course. WIBO Grow gives you the practical skills and knowledge you need in building a sustainable, income-generating business with long-term impact.
Needs-based scholarships and payment plans are available. We aim to remove financial barriers for participants who are committed to building their business. Simply mark the scholarships check box in the registration form and someone will contact you.
WIBO Grow is designed for idea-stage entrepreneurs. You’ll start with clarity – your goals, strengths, values, and market – then move into structured steps covering validation, setup, pricing, and early traction.
Yes. Through guided exercises, coaching, and peer feedback, you’ll identify transferable skills, lived experience, and expertise that can be shaped into viable offers.
You’ll learn how to structure and plan your business step by step. Legal setup is supported through referrals to trusted professionals. Business planning focuses on practical, testable plans, not theoretical documents.
WIBO Grow provides funding education, lender connections, and pitch preparation. While we don’t provide direct funding, we help you become fundable and confident when approaching capital sources.
You’ll learn pricing strategies based on value, costs, market demand, and sustainability – so your business can support you, not burn you out.
Financial literacy is built into the program through sessions led by professionals. You’ll learn how to track money, understand taxes, and make informed financial decisions, with referrals for specialized support.
We guide you through customer discovery and validation so you can clearly define who you serve, what problem you solve, and why your solution matters.
You’ll learn practical, repeatable ways to attract and convert clients, focusing on relationship-building, clear messaging, and systems that work for your stage of business.
WIBO Grow emphasizes sustainable growth. You’ll work on systems, pricing, processes, and decision-making frameworks that allow you to grow without chaos.
We provide education on legal structures and risk considerations, plus referrals to legal professionals who can help you set up and protect your business properly.
Yes. WIBO Grow can support nonprofit formation through education, strategy, and referrals, helping you decide whether a nonprofit is the right structure for your mission.
You’ll learn how to design simple systems for operations, marketing, finances, and decision-making, so your business doesn’t rely solely on your time and energy.
We help you plan a realistic transition by building revenue, confidence, and systems over time, rather than encouraging risky, unplanned leaps.
WIBO Grow focuses on ownership, sustainability, and long-term thinking – helping you build assets, skills, and systems that can benefit you and future generations.
That’s exactly what WIBO Grow is for. Through structured exploration, coaching, and peer learning, you’ll uncover viable business ideas aligned with your strengths, values, and market demand.