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 & professionalism
- [00:33:41] Lightning Round
About Sue Malone:
Sue Malone is President of Strategies for Small Business and one of the most impactful SBA lenders in America. Since 2001, she has funded over 41,000 loans and helped entrepreneurs across all 50 states - with a mission to support underserved, minority, women, and veteran-owned businesses.
She is also the founder of NationalLienLaw.com, co-founder of VetPower.org, and sits on national boards including the Long Beach Accelerator, Ocra, and the National Forum on Diversity in Construction. A former commercial real estate executive and parking operator, Sue holds an MBA from St. Mary’s College and is a fierce advocate for entrepreneurs who are willing to work for their dreams.
Resources:
What is Harder Than It Looks: Parking Uncovered?
We as parking professionals know that parking is hard. However, we make it look easy to those from the outside looking in. The myriad technologies, processes and people that a parking operator has to wrangle on any given day is mind-numbing, and every parking facility is unique. While certain verticals share similar pain points, we know better than many how nuanced every operation can be.
We created this podcast to facilitate connections and illuminate solutions to common problems within the parking and mobility industry. We aim to do so by highlighting the voices of experts in the space, discussing trends and forward-looking technological innovations, and providing professional food for thought. All in an effort to help one another get better at what we know is harder than it looks…parking a car.