New York Congressional District #7
District Success Story:
Squar-Pix
In November 2012, the Brooklyn SBDC met with Mohammad Ikhmines and his partner Frank Iqbal; owners of Eye Graphics, a business located in the Red Hook neighborhood of Brooklyn. The thriving printing and graphic design company sustained significant damage from Hurricane Sandy. The owners struggled through the rebuilding process, which involved applying for an SBA disaster assistance loan. Their 50 hours of work with SBDC Advisor Pascual Castano to assemble the loan application was rewarded when the owners of Eye Graphics finally received approval and eventually disbursement of an SBA loan for $750,000. Mohammad and Frank lost significant business due to down time caused by Hurricane Sandy, and decided to restructure their organization by re-naming it and moving it to a new location. The rejuvenated enterprise is now called Squar-Pix, and it is located at 384 Broadway in Brooklyn. During the early part of 2015, the Squar-Pix owners recognized they needed further capitalization. With help from Advisor Castano, they applied to New York City to secure funding made possible by HUD’s Community Development Block Grant program for businesses impacted by the disaster. In September 2015, they were approved for a loan of $200,000, which they immediately used to upgrade the equipment in their restored graphic design shop. While this dynamic duo is making great strides in the rebuilding process, they are still experiencing growing pains as they re-group and re-brand. The assistance they have received from the SBA, SBDC, and the NYC Sandy Assistance programs have been instrumental in their evolving success story!
New York Congressional District 7 includes parts of Brooklyn, Queens, and Manhattan.
U.S. Congresswoman Nydia Velázquez currently represents this federal district.
SBDC Centers Serving Congressional District #7:
Manhattan
Pace University
163 William Street, Room 328
New York, NY 10038
Tel: (212) 618-6655
Midtown Manhattan
Baruch College
55 Lexington , Suite 2-140
New York, NY 10010-0010
Tel: (646) 312-4790
Columbia-Harlem
Columbia University – Harlem SBDC
3022 Broadway
310 Uris Hall
New York, NY 10027-6902
Tel: (212) 854-6444
NYC College of Technology
25 Chapel Street, 11th Floor
Brooklyn, NY 11201
Tel: (718) 797-0187
Queens—LaGuardia
LaGuardia Community College
30-20 Thomson Avenue, B Bldg, Suite BA02
Long Island City, NY 11101-2940
Tel: (718) 482-5303
Queens—York
Small Business Development Center
York College
The City University of New York
94-50 159th Street, Room 107
Jamaica, NY 11451-9902
Tel: (718) 262-2880
SBDC Impact in Congressional District #7:
Program Inception (1984) - 2015
Small Business Consulting Clients: 5,727
Total Funding: $62,259,119
Jobs Created: 1,172
Jobs Saved:
1,095
Counseling Hours: 50,785
Each dot = one client