Coastal Enterprises, Inc. (CEI) is an expert in rural business funding, development, and financing as a private, nonprofit Community Development Corporation (CDC) and Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI). CEI was founded in 1977 to develop job-creating natural resources and small business ventures in rural regions of Maine, and has grown to serve business funding all of Maine, its primary market, and areas of northern New England and upstate New York.
CEI embraces a comprehensive approach to building assets, linking business financing to job creation, entrepreneurship, sustainable development, policy advocacy, and research. The organization operates in primarily rural markets where financial returns are not sufficient to attract traditional investment, but where CEI's goal of achieving economic, social, and environmental benefits can be satisfied. We have a focus on nautral resources; our earliest investments were in community-based, natural resource enterprises, such as fish processing plants, farmers' markets, and forestry cooperatives. Extending our interest in sustainable resources, we are also focusing attention on renewable energy development in Maine.
| States/Provinces Worked: |
Northeast US (other than Maine) |
| Number of Employees: |
0 |