Wall Street Journal: New Efforts Aim to Support Black Businesses and Entrepreneurs

A number of companies and nonprofits have been expanding efforts to help Black founders start and grow businesses. While entrepreneurship has always been big in-the Black community, experts say the highly publicized murder of George Floyd, coupled with heightened attention on socioeconomic issues facing the community, has accelerated efforts to support programs and resources for Black startups.

The National Black Chamber of Commerce has its own effort, created in partnership with the technology platform TagFi. The program—the American Dream Fund & Marketplace —is designed to help the Black business community recover from the pandemic. There’s an online membership-based platform where about 3,000 pre-launched and recently launched Black businesses are accessing grants, business-related advice and support, according to Roby Mercharles, vice president of partnerships at the American Dream Fund.

Membership typically costs between $100 and $300 a year.  American Dream is also trying to make early-stage funding easier through its CrowdFit Program. A 12-week free course, which kicked oɽ in September, teaches Black founders the basics of crowdfunding and how to use it, and includes a weekly Q&A session. For a fee of $1,625, business owners can also receive 0 days of hands-on coaching to help them set up and optimize their campaign. Many of these programs are still works in progress, but the goal, says Mr. Morial of the National Urban League, is to scale the funding programs that exist so more Black founders get the capital resources they need. “If you want a plant to grow, you have to give it soil and water. These businesses have been trying to grow in rock, in sand, in gravel and soil that has not been adequately watered,” he says.

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