{"type":"rich","version":"1.0","provider_name":"Transistor","provider_url":"https://transistor.fm","author_name":"Harder Than It Looks: Parking Uncovered","title":"EP 35: They Told Sue Malone ‘No.’ She Became the First Woman Operator in Parking and Funded 41,000 Small Businesses.","html":"","width":"100%","height":180,"duration":2710,"description":"In this episode of Harder Than It Looks, host Brian Wolff is joined by the extraordinary Sue Malone - the first woman to operate a parking garage in the U.S., and the nation’s most prolific small business lender. After being denied a loan for her own business, Sue took matters into her own hands. The result? Over 41,000 SBA loans funded to date - with a mission to reach 100,000. She shares unfiltered stories from her early parking days (car thefts, Bondo, and FBI calls), her journey into small business advocacy, and why she’s built a career on empowering veterans, women, and underrepresented entrepreneurs. This conversation is a masterclass in grit, civic leadership, and the power of saying “yes” when the world says “no.” Key Takeaways: Turning Loan Rejection into a Scalable Lending Model Identifying Underserved Markets at Scale Building Infrastructure for Capital Access Strategic Investment in High-Impact Startups Influencing Policy for Entrepreneurial Growth Episode Highlights: [00:00:00] Meet Sue Malone - SBA legend & parking pioneer [00:02:36] Childhood obsession with how business works [00:04:08] Running garages & launching a nonprofit ice cream stand [00:05:00] Russian car thieves and the “Killer Car” story [00:06:13] Denied a loan - and built a lending movement [00:09:00] Collaborating with local banks to expand access [00:10:56] SBA loans: What they are & why they matter [00:11:16] How she discovered Ocra and fought for their spot [00:15:40] Appalachia success stories: looms, knitwear, Greek food [00:17:34] Launching businesses for veterans - including a tattoo shop [00:19:40] Sue’s philosophy on fear - and how it limits us [00:21:16] Getting bipartisan legislation passed behind the scenes [00:23:32] Pushing to fix the R&D tax credit [00:25:00] Queen of Bondo: wild garage stories & labor negotiations [00:28:00] Her biggest missed deal - and why she’ll never play it safe again [00:30:24] Civility in business: competitors, kindness &...","thumbnail_url":"https://img.transistorcdn.com/Y0XKm5qIfx5wu96cc17w73uLDJ9g38v-oi18WqKq6hY/rs:fill:0:0:1/w:400/h:400/q:60/mb:500000/aHR0cHM6Ly9pbWct/dXBsb2FkLXByb2R1/Y3Rpb24udHJhbnNp/c3Rvci5mbS8zYmYx/ZTU1ZWMyZTdhMzFj/M2VkYTBmNjY5MWYw/NTQ3Ny5wbmc.webp","thumbnail_width":300,"thumbnail_height":300}