Struggles of Black Business Owners

Starting a business takes a lot of work and it is not for the faint at heart. This is especially the case for black entrepreneurs stepping into this path. Find out what common struggles black business owners experience.

OWNING A BUSINESS

Entrepreneurship is definitely not for everyone. It requires an enormous amount of time, patience and capital to successfully get off the ground and even when you have all of those things, your business can and may fail if you aren't able to make and sustain consistent income.

STRUGGLES FOR BLACK BUSINESS OWNERS

• According to CNBC's most recent equity report, the ground level business woes are heightened for black business owners just getting started.

• In fact, in 2021 Forbes.com reported that more than half of the black business owners that they surveyed, cited lack of access to cash as their main hinderance to growth.

• Stanford conducted a similar study in 2021 reporting that capital still remains a big challenge for black business owners

“Lack of access to capital serves as a main hinderance to early business growth.”

NUMBERS DON'T LIE

• With a quick google search, you can find tons of articles reporting similar findings as the Stanford and Forbes studies. In fact, In 2021, the Federal Reserve reported that 80.2% of white business owners receive at least a percentage of the funding they request from a bank, whereas only 66.4% of BIPOC business owners receive a percentage of funding.

• The average loan size for small BIPOC-owned firms is over $30,000 less than the average loan of other ethnic groups.

With these type of statistics, it's no wonder that BIPOC business owners are discouraged from applying for loans as there appears to be an expectation of rejection. There is an added level of stress when trying to pitch your brilliant business idea but getting rejected because of the color of your skin.

WHAT CAN WE DO?

• THE PRODUCER: As a black business owner, we can continue to ensure that we provide superior customer service and quality products as we enter the marketplace.

• THE CONSUMER: The beautiful thing is that given the nature of social media, these challenges have been widely broadcast and can no longer be ignored. As a result, many consumers are purposely seeking to support Black Business Owners, in hopes to help circulate the black dollar amongst the community and further help address challenges that new business owners face. Think of Issa Rae saying "I'm rooting for everybody black"

Unfortunately, these lack of resource challenges aren't going to change overnight and they require institutional help along with community support. I've heard many people describe their unhappy experiences while "buying black", and so I say To My Fellow Business Owners: to continue to stay true to the black excellence that you strive to exemplify and don't ever compromise your business; and To My Fellow Customers: please be patient with us as we navigate this world of starting a business as a POC....IT'S ROUGH OUT HERE!

THANKS FOR LISTENING!