Client Spotlights: Meet Our Clients

“If we want to impact the places that we feel like need help, we need to roll up our sleeves and just get busy and do it with partners,” said Fantastic Negrito, “Because we can’t do it alone. No team, no dreams.”

“[CBB’s] very interested in creative problems. I think they’re interested in people who have big, bright ideas, but maybe do not exactly know the route to take them. I think that’s another really special part about the partnership,” says John McNeil, founder of John McNeil Studio.

“After being introduced to Community Bank of the Bay, we were able to set up a meeting and go in and have a great conversation, and I totally felt like our values were absolutely aligned,” says Bisa Grant, President and CEO of Anchor.

“We appreciate CBB’s values around not only investing locally and investing in small businesses, but also putting that investment towards businesses that are green that might be within the Certified Green Business network or that are doing things in such a way that they are contributing to the community—both environmentally and socially.” — Laura Byrd Porter, owner of Byrd’s Filling Station. 

“I was very, very happy that Community Bank of the Bay was even open to talking with us. And they looked through our business plan, asked the right kind of questions and set the right kind of tone. That was something I really appreciate about Community Bank of the Bay,” says Priti Narayanan, owner of Koolfi Creamery.

“Community Bank of the Bay is actually my first time banking locally, and I’ve seen the benefits,” owner Rita Forte said. “I love it. I can always be in touch with somebody. Everyone is really trying to help. They’re always like, ‘Hey, we’ll help you out.’”

“This [pilot] project that we did with Community Bank of the Bay, we… financed in 65 days!” totes Kathy Chao Rothberg, CEO of Lao Family Community Development, Inc. 

CBB along with NCIF co-sponsors community-focused entrepreneurship with a joint total of  $20,000 donation to Oakland Black Business Fund

“We wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for the Community Bank of the Bay. At a time when it was very difficult, we had to buy our building,” said Gary Riekes, Founder and Executive Director of the Riekes Center. After more than 20 years in its Menlo Park location, the center’s home—an old industrial building—went up for sale in 2017 and Gary had one month to purchase it or move.

“[Our partnership with CBB is] why we stayed open and provided this community with the mental health support they needed through the pandemic,” said former Executive Director Kathy Chiverton.

“We trust Community Bank of the Bay as our banking partner. They truly support the community, and that is seen in how they act as an organization,” said Duane Bay. The central goal of the Housing Program of EPA CAN DO is to create and maintain long-term affordable housing that improves the quality of life for the residents of East Palo Alto, CA. 

Entrepreneur Tegsti Woldemichael says her future is bright. This month she is opening an Italian-inspired bakery and deli called La Dolce Vita near the MacArthur BART station in Oakland. New countertops, floors, and baking equipment were purchased with an SBA small business loan. “I’m very excited for people to come into my place,” she said. Her current optimism is born from the months she struggled to navigate last year after Covid-19 food service rules shuttered her other retail business, spice company Shamden Spice. Headquartered in Oakland, Shamden Spice represented four years of hard work to grow it into a national retailer of Ethiopian and Eritrean spices. Pandemic food service closures shut down Ms. Woldemichael’s warehousing and operations.