Committed to Empowering Diverse and Black Women-Owned Businesses and Entrepreneurs

Committed to empowering diverse and Black women-owned businesses and entrepreneurs, Wells Fargo took center stage at the Woman Evolve Conference 2024 to highlight the importance of unlocking growth for small businesses and entrepreneurs.

Women are ready to learn, connect, and grow. It was a testament to Wells Fargo’s commitment to ensuring that diverse businesses have access to capital, financial education, mentorship, and community. 

The economic potential of women entrepreneurs is vast. The latest statistics show that women-owned businesses contribute significantly to the U.S. economy, generating $2.7 trillion in revenue and employing 12.2 million workers. 

As women-owned businesses continue to grow, it’s essential to recognize the progress made, particularly among Black women, during challenging times.

Black Women Entrepreneurs Make Significant Contributions to the Economy

According to the Wells Fargo 2024 Impact of Women-Owned Businesses Report, between 2019 and 2023, Black/African American women-owned businesses saw average revenues increase 32.7%, compared to 12.1% for all women-owned businesses. 

In spite of this impressive growth, systemic disparities in funding and mentorship opportunities persist. Fortunately, new programs are addressing these gaps.

Read on to learn how black women entrepreneurs make significant contributions to the economy.

Progressive Black Women Entrepreneurs Are Breaking Barriers

According to J.P. Morgan, Black women are the fastest-growing group of entrepreneurs, and there's no end in sight.  They are making a significant impact and shaping the world as we move through it.

For every Black woman who starts a business, a barrier is broken. An impressive 50,000-plus Black women are innovating in the United States — but not without the uphill battle of fighting bank funding denials, limited access to capital and systemic racism and sexism.

Despite the challenges, Black women are bringing their products and services to the market.

Here are four Black woman-owned businesses breaking barriers and sharing insights on business.

Buy From a Black Woman Entrepreneur

H&M is committed to using its platform to promote economic inclusion and spark growth for Black women entrepreneurs, because when their businesses flourish, entire communities thrive," Donna Dozier Gordon, head of inclusion and diversity for H&M Region Americas said in a statement. 

She goes on to say:  “Nikki Porcher has been instrumental in elevating these incredible businesses, ensuring they are poised for long-term success, and we are proud to stand with her and Buy From a Black Woman to make lasting change.”

Learn more about an event they are hosting today, July 8, 2023 in Charlotte, NC.  The multi-city, pop-up shopping event highlights local Black women businesses, rallies communities to shop local vendors and serves as a networking opportunity for business owners.

Path to Liberation: Entrepreneurship

Many people celebrate the impressive volume of Black women launching and running businesses.

JPMorgan Chase found that “[t]he number of businesses owned by Black women grew 50% from 2014 to 2019, representing the highest growth rate of any female demographic. Black females accounted for 42% of all women who opened a new business during that time and represented 36% of all Black employers.”

But what is seldom discussed about black women entrepreneurs:  Why are they starting the businesses?

According to this article, black women are leaving workplaces in record numbers due to racism, sexism, and an inability to bridge pay disparities between white men and white women.

As the article states at the end:  "Our workplaces need seismic shifts in policy, structures and society – shifts that specifically see and center Black women. Companies should not assume what Black women need; they should engage with us to co-create self-determinate solutions. In other words, ask Black women what we need, and be prepared to offer it."

Funding for Black Women Entrepreneurs

Dr. Cameka Smith, founder and CEO of The BOSS Network, announces the return of her organization’s 2nd annual BOSS Impact Fund. The Fund focuses on investing in Black women led businesses and preparing these entrepreneurs to build scalable, growth aggressive companies. Its goal is to raise investment funding for 500+ Black women entrepreneurs over the next three years.

Learn more about $500K in funding for black women entrepreneurs.

Black Women Entrepreneurs Give Their Best Startup Advice

These badass business owners featured in the article below are changing the game from skincare, to life coaching, to mental health-conscious apparel.

When Black women are still making 63 cents for every dollar a white man makes, it’s imperative that we support each other – whether that’s through a purchase, a referral, an Instagram follow, or a retweet. When one of us comes up, we all come up!

Here, five entrepreneurs are asked about their mission, and what it means to them to be a Black woman entrepreneur.  They also share  advice for the next class of melanated moguls.

Helping Black Women Entrepreneurs Start and Expand a Business

A growing number of firms have opened their treasure chests to Black woman entrepreneurs. They, in turn, are often using the financing to help other Black women start or expand a business.

The median seed funding raised by a Black woman founder is $125,000, nowhere near the national median of $2.5 million in 2020, according to ProjectDiane. In the first half of 2021, Crunchbase data revealed that only 0.34% of capital went to businesses run by Black women.

The article for Black Enterprise Magazine goes on to say that more efforts are surfacing to provide funding to Black women, or people of color in general, such as the Goldman Sachs’ One Million Black Women initiative, Fortune reported. One firm that is seeing the capital flowing steadily is the Fearless Fund, which works to increase Black representation in venture capital and support women of color.

Ensuring Black Women Entrepreneurs Come Out On the Other Side of COVID-19

Everyone needs to be thinking about how do we make sure that black women entrepreneurs come out on the other side of the COVID-19 crisis – not just survive but thrive afterwards.  They need critical information and resources to sustain themselves.  The Black Women’s Roundtable is investing in these women entrepreneurs with the launch of its Take It to The TOP Entrepreneurship Challenge.

The three-month program will provide resources—and cash prizes—to promote social innovation and develop business leadership skills for black women and girls across the Midwest and Southeast.

Learn more about the Take It To the Top Challenge.

The Fearless Fund for Black Women Entrepreneurs

A $5 million venture capital fund to support startups created by women of color has been launched by Actress Keshia Knight Pulliam.  She has teamed with entrepreneur Arian Simone to make this happen.

“The Fearless fund is designed to change the narrative as it relates to funding allocated to women of color,” says Simone.

Read more about the venture capital fund for black women entrepreneurs.

Black Women Vintners Are Changing the World of Winemaking

Indianapolis, Indiana-based women wine makers from Sip and Share Winery and Wine and Candles differ from other wineries.  While both women enjoy making and sharing their wines, they also love educating consumers on wine etiquette, different wine varieties and the winemaking process.  And the two owners are Black women.

In her research, Kearney [owner of Sip and Share] said she’s found about 100 Black and Latino winemakers throughout the country. The wine industry is ripe for more people of color to get into winemaking. Revenues from wine sales are $62.7 billion worldwide.

Read more about how these Black women entrepreneurs are changing the world of winemaking.

How Opening a Business Can Be Surreal

According to the Center for American Progress, black women comprise 13 percent of the female population in the United States.  Between 1997 to 2013, the number of companies created by black women nationwide grew by nearly 258 percent — and the trend is growing in Shreveport-Bossier City, Louisiana.

The [Shreveport] Times recently sat down with four black women entrepreneurs driven by past experiences, hardship and unique circumstances.

Learn more about their stories:  Four Inspirational Women You Should Know

Screenshot courtesy:  Suite 9 1 Six (the business of one of the four women interviewed in the article)

Are Black Women Entrepreneurs Not Getting Investors?

Despite Black women being the fastest-growing group of entrepreneurs in the U.S. —owning 1.5 million businesses and generating $44 billion a year— the initial support to launch is not there.  Why is that?

“They weren’t getting the seed funding they needed,” Finney [research lead by Kathryn Finney with Dr. Marlo Rencher was published in “The Real Unicorns of Tech: Black Women Founders” and examined 60,000 startups 88 of which were Black women led ...] told Forbes. “We don’t have lead investors. We don’t have people willing to write that first big check.”

Black women entrepreneurs only received 0.2 percent of all venture funding in the past five years.  It's as if black women entrepreneurs are not seen as innovators or women who can run successful businesses.

Read more:  Study Discovers Black Women Entrepreneurs Not Getting Investors