Originally from Caracas, Venezuela, Zurilma Anuel moved to Asheville in 1998. Her professional background is rooted in banking and finance: she spent more than a decade with Wells Fargo before moving into small-business development. She later worked with Mountain BizWorks as a program coordinator and a small-business lender before joining Carolina Small Business Development Fund (CSBDF), where she led a program providing business services in Spanish to the Latino community. In 2020, she became director of CSBDF’s Western Women’s Business Center (WWBC). 

In her current role, Anuel oversees the center’s day-to-day operations and ensures its staff has the resources necessary to serve entrepreneurs throughout a 22-county region. The center provides technical assistance to small businesses as well as flexible lending for entrepreneurs who may not be able to secure financing through a traditional financial institution. For Anuel, the value of a resource designed specifically for women goes beyond business plans and financing.

“Women are so talented,” Anuel says. “We have superpowers, and we don't discover that until we actually [discover] them. There is a connection that happens when you are in a room full of smart, entrepreneurial women.” 

Having worked across the state, Anuel has seen how strongly organizations in the western part of the state collaborate and support one another and create a strong ecosystem of opportunities for the region’s entrepreneurs. The challenge is making sure entrepreneurs know those resources exist, and how to utilize them. 

“There are a lot of mentors and resources in the area that people can take advantage of at no cost or low cost,” Anuel says. “People have a basic knowledge of some of their resources, but they don’t know where to start—which is a valid reason to get stuck, and that’s where programs like CSBDF’s Western Women’s Business Center become so vital.” 

Her advice to aspiring entrepreneurs reflects her years spent working with business owners at different stages of development.

“Don't say no or deny your business idea,” she says. “Talk to the experts. Find a mentor that can guide you through that business idea and to help you develop that business idea.”

For entrepreneurs who think they are ready to meet with a business consultant, Anuel recommends first doing enough research to clearly define the idea. Business development organizations can help someone figure out how to reach a goal, she says, but they cannot decide what that goal should be.

“We're here to help you get to where you want to be,” Anuel says. “So, when you come to us with a clear idea of what you want, then it is easier for us to guide you.”

While concrete advice is easier to come by when a client has clarity, Anuel notes that sometimes her work is more about being a sounding board. 

“Just to be sitting at the table and listening to them—that is success for me because they needed that moment to talk to someone, and we were that person to them,” she says.

Anuel loves the ever-changing nature of her work at the WWBC, where she learns something new everyday. After working for a large corporation, she also values being part of a smaller organization where employees at every level can contribute.

“I feel like I have a voice,” she says. “I feel like I'm at the table where we make decisions, and I think everyone on this team—even if they don't have a management position—they will tell you that their voice matters, their opinions matter.”

Anuel’s connection to two cultures also shapes how she moves through her work and community. After more than two decades in the United States, she describes herself as existing somewhere between her Venezuelan roots and her American life.

“It's a blessing to be able to be out of two different worlds,” she says, “and be able to connect with both. I love my Venezuelan culture. I also love my American culture.” 

Outside of work, service remains a central part of her life. Anuel and her family created Relief Box, a nonprofit that began by sending clothing, shoes and food to families in Venezuela and later expanded its support locally after Hurricane Helene. She also enjoys hiking, walking, going to the gym, spending time with her children, and having quiet evenings at home with her husband.

Whether she is advising an entrepreneur, connecting someone with a resource or simply listening across a table, Anuel’s approach is rooted in the same principle: people are stronger when they have access to others who can help them move forward. 

“It has been a blessing to be able to do this as my full-time job,” she says. 

Learn more at WWBCNC.org. Read about CSBDF’s and WWBC’s Annual Conference and Awards on page XX.