Sabrina Thind Inspires Economic Opportunities for Minority Entrepreneurs in the U.S.

Sabrina Thind, a Florida-based financial consultant, is working to guide women and minority entrepreneurs toward successfully launching new companies. Starting a business can be extremely overwhelming for anyone and even more so for those who struggle to get the financing they need. There is a major lack of awareness about how to find the right resources in often non-traditional avenues, and this lack of awareness leads to a lack of confidence that can hold people back from going after their business goals.

For over 20 years, Sabrina worked at a business development bank with a focus on small to medium-business growth by means of consulting and financing. There, she worked directly with Indigenous and other minority entrepreneurs and began to uncover her passion for giving those in marginalized communities the information and financial resources they need to launch companies. This is where she learned how wide that gap in the market truly was.

“We see that aspiring minority entrepreneurs don’t have the equity or access to personal loans to invest into their project,” Sabrina says. “We need to see more non-traditional forms of financing such as grants and micro-credit that analyze projects in a more holistic way and not the same way a traditional bank will.”

Sabrina grew up watching her father, a minority entrepreneur, take big risks to start his company. He had minimal access to financing from traditional lenders and had no choice but to get scrappy and imaginative in order to get off the ground. Witnessing this firsthand allowed her to experience the disparity she has now devoted her career to overcoming.

Sabrina recently became a minority entrepreneur herself after helping her husband acquire a roofing business where she manages daily operations such as payroll and project management. Through this venture, Sabrina has come across many of the struggles that she’s seen others go through in her position, like little to no access to financing. This has only motivated her further to close the gap, and she is well-positioned to offer valuable insight and assistance to those she works with.

Additionally, her experience volunteering as a mentor with SCORE Broward, a local non-profit organization aimed at supporting entrepreneurs in underserved markets, has afforded her knowledge of local market trends and financial consulting best practices within economically depressed areas. This work motivated Sabrina to begin creating a micro-credit program to assist in filling these cavities where minority entrepreneurs were lacking.

She encourages any new entrepreneur trying to access financing for their business to have a well-thought-out business plan at the ready, containing practical projections that are clear about the product or service being offered, the target market, and a realistic forecast founded on actual expenses. It’s also important to have good credit and pertinent industry experience, or at least the subject knowledge and support to carry it through. She also encourages people to do their research and prepare to get creative about accessing financing.

“If you are ready to launch your new business and looking for funding, start by inquiring with the economic development department of the city where you will run your business,” Sabrina says. “They may find grants that are tailored for local minority owned businesses.”

Sabrina aims to fill gaps in the market by providing her specialized consulting services to diverse communities. According to the National Minority Supplier Development Council, minority businesses bring in over $400 billion in annual revenue and provide jobs for more than 2.2 million people. On top of that, these businesses factor in nearly $49 billion in tax revenues. Sabrina’s substantial merit in the industry allows her to offer substantial economic benefits to diverse communities, bettering the national economy along the way. Her work continues to be fueled by passion and real-life experience, and she is optimistic about the future of minority entrepreneurs and all the progress to be made.