Comerica Bank Contributes $150,000 in October to Fuel Women’s Small Business Growth
Community organizations supporting female entrepreneurs across Comerica’s geographical footprint will receive donations during National Women’s Small Business Month
Comerica Bank is celebrating the builders, growers and barrier-breakers who are shaping what’s next this National Women’s Small Business Month by contributing $150,000 to organizations across its geographical footprint that provide technical assistance and micro-lending to female entrepreneurs. October’s contributions will bring this year’s total to over $300,000 to support women in business.
Additionally, Comerica will host a variety of local events across its markets to engage with female entrepreneurs in honor of Women’s Small Business Month.
“Women-owned small businesses play a vital role in our economy, and it is a privilege and a continued promise to support them in our local communities every day,” said Wendy Bridges, Comerica Bank Executive Vice President and Executive Director of Corporate Affairs. “Community organizations are powerful resources for spurring women’s small business growth because they recognize the opportunities to make a real impact on their future.”
Exploring the state of women-owned small businesses
Today, there are more than 12 million women-owned small businesses nationwide. According to the first edition of the Comerica Small Business Pulse Index™, female business owners report a high level of confidence in the future success of their business and a moderate degree of optimism in the market conditions.
The national survey of 1,010 small business owners, conducted August 1-13, 2025, delves into small businesses’ confidence level, market outlook, AI adoption and more. Key insights from the 444 female small business owners who participated in the Index include:
Confidence Remains Strong: 81% of female small business owners say they are somewhat or very confident about the future success of their business.
Inflation Tops the List of Concerns: 23% of female small business owners report inflation is their number one issue of concern – the same level as the all-business owner average – followed by tariffs and cash flow challenges.
- AI Adoption Is Accelerating: 46% of surveyed female owners report using AI tools today, with another 30% reporting they plan to adopt AI within the next 12 months.
- Investing in AI: 74% of female business owners report spending up to 5% of their annual budget on AI tools, technologies and platforms.
- AI Job Displacement: Only 36% of all female business owners surveyed predict AI will replace jobs in their industry in the next 5 years. This is identical to the all-business owner level of sentiment.
- Government Oversight of AI: 53% of female business owners surveyed support stricter government regulations on AI for business use. This is marginally lower than 57% of male owners who believe the same.
“The vast majority of women small business owners surveyed expressed a confident business outlook,” said Larry Franco, Comerica Bank Executive Vice President and National Director of Retail & Small Business Banking. “This survey gives us a valuable glimpse into the state of women’s small businesses today.”
Swinging big for small businesses in 2025
Comerica’s contributions for Women’s Small Business Month quickly follow its week-long Small Business Week celebrations in May featuring customer and community-focused activities. The bank contributed $250,000 to five community organizations in Comerica markets focused on entrepreneurial development, growth, education and empowerment. Each nonprofit organization was additionally honored as a special guest during a check presentation at Comerica baseball-themed small business events in Detroit, Dallas, Houston, Los Angeles and San Francisco.
Comerica has prioritized bolstering its commitment to small businesses and entrepreneurs as well as supporting small business growth in the communities it serves over the past few years. By establishing dedicated small business banking teams across its markets and creating several innovative initiatives and services, Comerica aims to simultaneously elevate customer experiences and positively impact the community.
“From contributions to community organizations to creating unique resources and solutions for small business customers, we’re committed to going above and beyond to provide real value to entrepreneurs and small business owners across our footprint,” said Jim Weber, Comerica Bank Executive Vice President and Chief Experience Officer.
About the Survey: The Comerica Small Business Pulse Index™ surveyed 1,010 small business owners across the U.S. between August 1-13, 2025. The survey has a margin of error of ±3.1% at a 95% confidence level.
She Means Business
On October 9, the Comerica Women’s Forum Impact team hosted small business clients, prospects and guests at the bank’s Great Lakes Campus for a networking event, She Means Business: Finding Power in a Shifting Economy, which presented economic insights and an overview of the bank’s recent small business survey on artificial intelligence.
Comerica’s Senior Vice President and Michigan Director of Small Business Meghan Storey reviewed the survey on AI and discussed topics pertaining to demographics, AI adoption and overview, top AI uses and motivations, AI challenges and sentiment, AI future outlook and regulation, sales growth projections and regional outlook, and capital investment plans.
Bill Adams, Comerica’s Chief Economist, also delivered an economic forecast for the months and year ahead.
Comerica also took the opportunity to recognize two long-time community partners who are impacting the growth of women’s entrepreneurs and small businesses throughout the state.
GROW (formerly Grand Rapids Opportunities for Women) and T. Rose Foundation were honored for their contributions and commitment to supporting and cultivating women-owned businesses throughout the state.
GROW (growbusiness.org), led by Chief Executive Officer Milinda Ysasi, supports the economic development activities in the community by providing training, counseling, and mentoring programs to attract new industry and encourage the development of business and other community resources. GROW provides loans and financial assistance to promote community development and combat community deterioration and economic blight.
“We’re honored to celebrate one of our strongest community partners, GROW — led by the incredible Milinda Ysasi since April 2021,” said Kevin Watkins, Vice President and External Affairs Market Manager. “Milinda currently serves on our Community Development Advisory Council, and under her leadership, GROW has truly lived up to its name, empowering entrepreneurs across West Michigan with accessible microloans and small business technical assistance.”
In 2022, GROW was selected to participate in the ASPEN Institute microloan accelerator program, helping them to increase their loan volume and create a more sustaining organization as a Community Development Financial Institution.
In 2023, they deployed over $1 million in small business loans, which helped them be recognized as the Michigan Micro-Lender of the Year from the Small Business Administration in 2024.
Comerica Vice President and Retail District Manager Karen Brittner currently serves on GROW’s board of directors and Senior Vice President and Retail Regional Director Debra Hanes is a past member of the board.
The T. Rose Foundation (t-rosefoundation.org) reaches youth, primarily girls, early in their social developmental years to promote positive self-esteem and self-image. The foundation, founded by Theresa Randleman, provides support in personal development through social etiquette, health and wellness, and life skills; advancing a sense of self-mastery while building a meaningful relationship with their personal and professional gifts and talents, embracing entrepreneurship and leadership as future leaders and courageous changemakers.
“Comerica understands that small businesses are the life’s blood of our economy,” said Mike Cheatham, Vice President and External Affairs Market Manager. “We partner with organizations like the T. Rose Foundation to help us provide the type of support small businesses need to be more financially successful.
Comerica recently sponsored and supported the T. Rose Foundation and the organization’s Girlprenuer Summit in Lansing this summer.
Additionally, Comerica will be partnering with Randleman and her foundation on an upcoming Women’s Business Spotlight Series in Jackson.
The first half of the evening will provide participating entrepreneurs with information designed to help them better navigate the challenges of running a business. During the second half of the series, a local small business owner will share their entrepreneurial journey.
The goal of the series is to educate and inspire, while also providing visibility to businesses in the community.
