Black youth and entrepreneurs: A guide to opportunities

By Aziah Siid
Word In Black

From hair products mogul Madame C.J. Walker to Pinky Cole, CEO of Slutty Vegan Foods, the Black community has a long tradition of inspiring and nurturing entrepreneurs. 

The creativity and determination to build a successful business from the ground up — and seeing a venture shine — can be immensely satisfying, and the call to create one is enduring.  According to the most recent official numbers from the U.S. Census Bureau, there are nearly 3.6 million Black-owned businesses, employing millions of people nationwide. 

Now, with platforms like TikTok, Shopify and other methods, Black youth are turning their interest and passions into profits. For students with an entrepreneurial spirit, there are organizations across the country specifically designed to help them plan a venture, fund it and more. Check out five of them here:

1. Black Girl Ventures Foundation

In its mission to provide Black women and girls with access to “community, capital and capacity,” Black Girl Ventures has funded hundreds of thousands of small businesses across the nation, helping transform dreams into realities. 

Founded in 2016 by entrepreneur and computer scientist Shelly Bell, the nonprofit foundation has multiple programs targeting tech-enabled businesses generating under $1M. Their funding model uniquely combines the premise of hit television shows Shark Tank and Kickstarter by activating “community participation in donating to support women-owned businesses directly”.

BGV currently has three signature programs: BGV Pitch, BGV NextGen, BGV Emerging Leaders. It is currently the largest ecosystem builder for Black and brown women founders on the East Coast.

2. The Hidden Genius Project 

The Hidden Genius Project trains and mentors Black boys  in technology creation, entrepreneurship and leadership, skills that can help transform their lives and communities.

Founded in Oakland in 2012, the Project is the brainchild of five Black men who were unnerved by the juxtaposition between high Black male unemployment and the abundance of career opportunities in nearby Silicon Valley.  

To bridge that gap, the founders established a program to connect young Black males with the skills, mentors, and experiences that they need to become high-performing tech-sector workers and entrepreneurs.

3. The NAACP Powershift Entrepreneur Grant 

Along with  fighting social injustice, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People also aims to build Black entrepreneurial pipeline. 

In conjunction with Medium Rare and The Shark Group, the NAACP is in its fourth year of the annual NAACP Powershift Entrepreneur Grant. The grant empowers Black entrepreneurs and businesses through funding and resources and, in previous years, has contributed immensely to the growth of Black businesses across the nation.

4. Center for Black Entrepreneurship

The Center for Black Entrepreneurship stems from the long-standing history of creative programming at Spelman College and Morehouse College, both in Atlanta. 

In partnership with Spelman and Morehouse, the Black Economic Alliance Foundation founded the first-ever academic center of its kind to directly produce, train, and support young Black entrepreneurial talent.

According to the site, the CBE seeks to “eliminate the access barrier between Black entrepreneurs, professional investors, and business builders by leveraging education, mentorship, access to capital and opportunity.” 

Building on an existing culture of strong entrepreneurship programs at both historically-black colleges, the CBE is intended to help expand the ecosystem and continue to grow the pipeline of Black innovation. 

5. The Young Entrepreneurs of Color Pitch Competition

A creation of The Abercrumbie Group, the Young Entrepreneurs of Color Pitch Competition launched in 2021 to connect African American and Latinx high schoolers and would-be entrepreneurs to training, resources and mentorship for highschool students in grades 10-12. 

The program features an interactive one-week paid internship in July for students and young professionals. They’ll work together in teams and learn about entrepreneurship, team building, pitching business ideas and providing solutions for real-life scenarios when running a company.

This article was originally published by Word in Black.