MCSC Women’s Business Center Celebrates 20 Years
By Stephen Ellison
Special to the Business Times
It’s a milestone year for the Mission Community Services Corp. Women’s Business Center as it celebrates its 20th anniversary supporting and guiding local small business owners and entrepreneurs in San Luis Obispo, Monterey and Kern counties.
Since its start in 2006, the nonprofit program, partially funded by the Small Business Administration, has helped launch more than 500 new businesses across the three counties and continues to support new and existing clients with guidance in business planning, financial management, marketing and new technology, among other services
In 2025, MCSC Women’s Business Centers served more than 1,500 clients, including 84 new business starts, and those clients combined for more than $8.39 million in increased sales, according to a news release. The program also helped create 193 new jobs and retain 2,631 jobs last year.
One longtime client, Michelle Pualani, who now serves as a WBC consultant, credits the program for helping her found and sustain her non-alcoholic beverage company.
“MCSC is really the reason we launched To Be Honest Bev,” said Pualani, whose drinks can be found in stores and restaurants across the Central Coast and beyond. “They made the daunting feat of starting a business feel manageable. I first participated in the EDL program and received a $5,000 grant, which allowed us to validate our business ideas with initial sales before investing in creating a product.”
Founded by Anita Robinson, the MCSC has served small business owners and entrepreneurs since 1997. MCSC was established as a technical assistance provider and trainer for small business owners and aspiring entrepreneurs who would not otherwise have access to help, Robinson said.
“The premise is to give them the tools to be successful,” she said.
The WBC, launched in 2006, expanded on that small business support regardless of gender. But there’s a concerted focus on women. Maxine Kozler, executive director of MCSC, said the WBC’s clientele is about 80% women, with the remainder consisting of men, couples and variations of families.
Over the years, the WBC has overcome its share of challenges, including multiple administrations threatening to defund parts of the SBA or eliminate programs such as the WBC. But despite the WBC’s relatively small size, Kozler said it continues to thrive.
“We, as they say, punch above our weight class,” she explained. “Our metrics of impact and outcomes are exponentially more than the amount of money that the SBA provides as a core grant. … But in the last year, we’ve actually had huge success because we went from being one of the programs that potentially was going to get cut forever to now an actual line item in the congressional budget. And this is the first time in the history of the Women’s Business Center we are officially named as an essential program.”
Part of the milestone celebration is the organization’s 20-for-20 fundraising campaign, seeking $20,000 for 20 years of service. As of Aug. 31, the campaign had raised $2,140.
The celebration culminates Nov. 5 with the Women’s Business Center Legacy Awards, a first-of-its-kind event for the program, Kozler said. The ceremony’s featured speakers will include Robinson, her fellow board members and perhaps some elected officials. And, of course, current and former clients will be there to share firsthand accounts of WBC’s support.
For Pualani, working with the program’s consultants provided her with accountability, creative approaches and guided support as she launched and grew To Be Honest Bev, she said.
“Business ownership can feel really isolating sometimes, especially as a solo founder,” she said. “Having the team at MCSC behind you makes you feel like you’re not in it alone.”
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