GoodBread, AWBC, & Kansas City G.I.F.T. Win $1.38 Million Kauffman Foundation Grant to Expand Microloan Access in Kansas City

Three-year award backs a new program model designed to reach entrepreneurs shut out of traditional financing, with the Association of Women's Business Centers serving as the institutional grantee

KANSAS CITY, Mo., April 7, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- GoodBread Innovations, Association of Women's Business Centers (AWBC), and Kansas City G.I.F.T. have secured a three-year, $1,386,285 grant from the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation to pilot a new model for delivering microloans to entrepreneurs in Kansas City. The grant is awarded through the AWBC, which serves as the institutional grantee and fiscal sponsor. Kansas City G.I.F.T., named in the grant as the program's on-the-ground delivery partner, will bring the community infrastructure and local relationships essential to the program's reach.

The program launches May 1, 2026 and will run through April 30, 2029. It is designed to connect early-stage founders in the Kansas City region with credit readiness support that leads to microloans, reaching entrepreneurs who have historically been underserved by traditional financial institutions.

GoodBread Innovations designed and developed the program model and wrote the grant application. Kansas City G.I.F.T. will provide the on-the-ground delivery infrastructure and the community trust that makes the program executable at the neighborhood level. AWBC's role as fiscal sponsor provides the program with the institutional accountability structure to operate at scale. The Kauffman Foundation selected the application through its Spring 2026 Project Grant cycle.

"We built GoodBread to solve a specific problem. Entrepreneurs with strong businesses and real potential are turned away from capital every day because the system was not designed for them. This grant gives us the resources to prove that a better model is possible, and to prove it in Kansas City," said Noa Simons, CEO & Co-Founder of GoodBread.

The grant will fund personnel, technology development, capital deployment, and program evaluation over the three-year term. GoodBread and AWBC will report on outcomes annually to the Kauffman Foundation throughout the grant period.

"GoodBread brought forward a program model worth backing and asked AWBC to be the institutional partner to help bring it to life. That is exactly the role we are built to play. As the national voice for women's entrepreneurship, AWBC exists to ignite and expand access to opportunity—and this partnership is a powerful example of what that looks like in action. We are proud to support Noa and her team as they build a model that can open doors for more entrepreneurs across the country." said Corinne Goble, CEO of the Association of Women's Business Centers.

Over the next three years, the program will deliver both capital and insight — funding businesses while generating data on what drives access and repayment. By pairing technology with community-based delivery, the partners intend to show that better-designed capital leads to stronger outcomes for entrepreneurs and more resilient local economies. The Kansas City program is the first step in proving that model at scale.

About GoodBread

GoodBread Innovations is a financial technology platform and microlender dedicated to expanding access to capital for entrepreneurs underserved by traditional financial institutions. Through underwriting innovation and its Knead to Grow knowledge and network platform, GoodBread delivers the capital, connections, and business support that small business owners need to grow. For more information, visit goodbread.net.

About the Association of Women's Business Centers

The Association of Women's Business Centers (AWBC) is the leading national voice and resource for igniting the economic power of women's entrepreneurship. AWBC advocates for and supports a network of over 140 Women's Business Centers across the United States. These centers provide entrepreneurs with free coaching, networking opportunities, small business resources, training, and more. For more information, visit awbc.org.

About Kansas City G.I.F.T.

Kansas City G.I.F.T. is a Kansas City-based organization dedicated to fostering economic empowerment within the Black community through grants, technical assistance, and business development resources. Since launching its grant program in 2020, Kansas City G.I.F.T. has awarded more than $1.2 million to 63 Black-owned businesses in historically underserved areas, supporting the creation of 108 jobs and an average revenue growth of 254% among recipients. For more information, visit kansascitygift.org.

About the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation

The Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation is a private, nonpartisan foundation based in Kansas City, Missouri, that seeks to build inclusive prosperity through a prepared workforce and entrepreneur-friendly ecosystems. For more information, visit www.kauffman.org.

Media Contact:
Laura Henson
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SOURCE The Association of Women's Business Centers (AWBC)