Resilience of Black Women’s Businesses: 6 Entrepreneurs Offer Timeless Advice
Charreah Jackson, author, entrepreneur and member of the 50 Women Can Change the World in Journalism 2020 cohort, offers timeless advice on entrepreneurship.
August is Black Business Month in this country and it is prime time to check in on the effects of the last four months on Black women entrepreneurs. They have been hardest hit by the economic downturn nationally. It is also time to heed the advice of Black women who have started, maintained and succeeded with their businesses in good and bad times.
“August is #BlackBusinessMonth, and it is time to heed the advice of Black women who have started, maintained and succeeded with their businesses in good and bad times. #blackownedbusiness”
According to the Chicago Tribune, “The number of active Black-owned businesses in the U.S. plummeted 41 percent during the early months of the pandemic from February to April, more than twice the 17 percent level of white owned businesses, research by Robert Fairlie from the University of California Santa Cruz shows.”
This disparity is a result of a number of factors, including industries that been hard hit by the pandemic, such as retail and service industries. Relief packages from banks and the federal government have also demonstrated bias, this as the U.S. Senate proposed a $1 trillion relief plan, or CARES 2.
“Relief packages from banks and the federal government have demonstrated #bias, this as the U.S. Senate proposed a $1 trillion relief plan, or CARES 2. #blackownedbusiness”
“Large banks approved about 60 percent of loans sought by white small business owners, 50 percent of loans sought by Latino or Hispanic small business owners, but only 29 percent of loans sought by Black small business owners, according to a Brookings Institution April 2020 report. The report cited 2018 data from a small business credit survey conducted by 12 Federal Reserve Banks,” the Chicago Tribune reports.
Fast Company reports, “Black-, Latinx- and women-owned businesses have been hit the hardest, shut out for varying reasons from the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). So, when the loan program, designed to help small businesses keep workers on payroll, was recently extended to Aug. 8, it was still not reaching those who needed it most. And with the recent spike in COVID-19 cases around the country, President Trump is now acknowledging the worst is yet to come.”
Read more in Take The Lead on Black women leaders
Ms reports, “Only about 4.9 million businesses have received aid—15% of the country’s 30 million small businesses. And while those nearly five million companies employ 84% of the 58.9 million small business workers, the numbers show that federal aid went to larger businesses, while many of the smallest businesses were left out. According to the survey, just 12 percent of Black and Hispanic-owned businesses who applied got the loan.”
This downturn hit at a time when women-owned businesses and those owned by BIPOC women in particular were growing at a record fast rate.
“This economic downturn hit at a time when #womenownedbusinesses and those owned by #WOC in particular were growing at a record fast rate. #femalefounded #womenentrepreneur ”
Forbes reports, “According to the 2019 American Express State of Women-Owned Businesses Report, the number of women-owned businesses is growing two times the rate of all businesses nationwide, now representing 42 percent of all businesses.”
In addition, Forbes reports, “What’s more, women of color are starting businesses at a remarkable 4.5 times the rate of all businesses. While the number of women-owned businesses grew 21 percent from 2014 to 2019, firms owned by women of color grew an astounding 43 percent and Black women-owned firms grew even faster at 50 percent. As of 2019, women of color account for 50 percent of all women-owned businesses, and make a significant economic impact: an estimated 6.4 million women of color-owned businesses employ nearly 2.4 million people and generate $422.5 billion in revenue.”
National Day Calendar reports, “Black business owners account for about 10 percent of U.S. businesses and about 30 percent of all minority-owned businesses. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, that amounts to approximately two million companies owned by African Americans. Nearly 40 percent of black-owned businesses are in health care and social assistance, repair and maintenance, and personal and laundry services. Other categories include advertising firms, auto dealerships, consulting services, restaurants, barbershops, beauty salons, and more.”
Most if not all of those categories are the hardest hit by the pandemic. But they also may prove the most resilient.
Business News Daily reports, “According to the National Center for Education Statistics, Black women hold the most associate and bachelor's degrees overall, making them the most educated demographic. Those advanced degrees can provide the confidence and tools entrepreneurs need to launch and operate businesses of their own.”
“Our white counterparts are used to having capital, used to pricing themselves higher, and had the confidence to stand behind their prices, even when they were higher than the market rate. I realized that if they had the confidence to stand behind their prices, why couldn't I? I am confident in my expertise … so I should also be confident that I'm worth the price I set for it," Janna M. Hall, chief experience officer of Leap Innovative Group, tells Business News Daily.
Take The Lead, with the mission to reach gender and racial parity in leadership across all sectors by 2025, gathered this great advice from the Movement Blog archives to offer timely and timeless advice from Black women entrepreneurs. Here are some of the favorites.
“@Takeleadwomen, with the mission to reach gender and racial #parity in leadership by 2025, gathered great advice from the #MovementBlog archives to offer timely and timeless advice from #blackwomenentrepreneurs.”
1. “Resist the urge to be average. What I have found is that you give a woman a push, a chance, some capital, the amount of growth she gets from that is powerful. In my vision I see someone’s daughter saying, ‘I saw you change my mom’s life and now mine is changed.’ We can read that in fancy quotes, but to see it in action keeps me inspired. It makes me feel like I can change the world.”
— Shelly Bell, founder of Black Girl Ventures
““What I have found is that you give a woman a push, a chance, some capital, the amount of growth she gets from that is powerful.”—@Iamshellybell, founder of @BGirlVentures. #womenentrepreneurs #womenpower”
Read more on Shelly Bell in Take The Lead
2. “For any aspiring entrepreneurs, there are hard times and failures inevitably, but it is important to do something you love, and that is the feeling and the energy that keep pushing us forward.”
— Miko Branch, co-founder and CEO of Miss Jessie’s LLC
““For any aspiring #entrepreneurs, there are hard times and failures inevitably, but it is important to do something you love...”— @MikoBranch, co-founder and CEO of Miss Jessie’s LLC. #womeninbusiness”
Read more in Take The Lead on Miko Branch
3. “Waiting is not a strategy; waiting for your kids to graduate, waiting for X,Y and Z to happen, something else always comes up. You have to jump off the cliff. There will never be a time you are not waiting to move forward with whatever you dream.”
— Gwen Jimmere, CEO and founder of Naturalicious
““Waiting is not a strategy...You have to jump off the cliff. There will never be a time you are not waiting to move forward with whatever you dream.” —@Gwenjimmere, CEO and founder of @Naturalicious. #entrepreneurship #advice”
Read more in Take The Lead on Gwen Jimmere
4. “To be in the driver’s seat takes effort, commitment and strategy. There is inequity and the myth is we can’t do anything about it. Another myth is you cannot go back and change history. You can stop repeating the narrative and thinking there is nothing I can do and what I do won’t matter. You can take control; if you do this as a collective, and you can help other women rise. Success is imminent when you are clear about what you want and what success looks like to you. You have to be clear and intentional about surrounding yourself with people who will support you.”
— Felicia Davis, CEO and Founder of The Black Women’s Collective, author and Take The Lead Leadership Ambassador, Facilitator and Conference organizer
““Success is imminent when you are clear about what you want and what #success looks like to you.”— @Womenpoweredup, CEO and Founder of The Black Women’s Collective. #strongwomen #womenleaders”
Read more in Take The Lead on Felicia Davis
5. “Women feel the pressure to be like what they see. But if you talk to black women who make it to the C-suite, it is because they are their authentic selves and feel comfortable with who they are. It takes a certain level of self-confidence and self-worth to know what you bring to the table. Take the effort to be conscious of what you are communicating. From a career perspective, it does make a difference. For any under-represented community whether by religion, race or sexuality, you need to be the person who you are authentically and not just blend in.”
— Charreah Jackson, Global Messenger & Strategist, Executive Coach & Author of Boss Bride
““If you talk to #blackwomen who make it to the C-suite, it is because they are their authentic selves and feel comfortable with who they are.” —@Charreah, Global Messenger & Strategist. #success”
Read more in Take The Lead on Charreah Jackson
6. “You never can be afraid to ask because you don’t have it. As women we go through these mind games to put ourselves last from our first baby doll and Easy Bake Oven. And it continues through adulthood. We need to understand our value. Some women say image is everything and everything will go their way. These women have great value but do not know how to translate that value into money. Or they want to be of service and help everybody and they don’t help themselves.
— Donna Smith Bellinger, author, coach, speaker, and business accelerator.
““As women we go through these mind games to put ourselves last from our first baby doll and Easy Bake Oven...We need to understand our value.” —@GrpEndeavors, author, coach, speaker. #femaleempowerment”
Read more in Take The Lead on Donna Smith Bellinger
The experiences of BIPOC women in leadership is a priority for Take The Lead’s coverage, so please share your stories in Power To Change Stories here to be featured on the blog, in the newsletter and in an upcoming ebook.
“The experiences of #BIPOC women in #leadership is a priority for @Takeleadwomen, so please share your #PowerToChangeStories to be featured. Submit here: https://www.taketheleadwomen.com/stories#submit-your-story”
