Grants for black-owned businesses are a much-needed reprieve following the harrowing economic effects of the Covid-19 pandemic. Even before the pandemic, black-owned businesses faced challenges inherent to them, challenges that widened the racial wealth gap. Grants to black-owned businesses are indispensable if this gap is to be done away with. The following is information about current grants for black-owned businesses including their core requirements and links to the grants’ page.
- Grants by the Coalition to Back Black Businesses
The Coalition to Back Black Businesses is giving away grants worth $5000 to each black-owned business. To be eligible for the grant, the business needs to be black-owned, employ between 3 and 20 people, be situated in a community that is economically vulnerable and have been affected financially by the Covid-19 pandemic. Applications for this grant open in fall 2022. Once open, you can express interest in receiving the grant here: https://webackblackbusinesses.com/
- SoGal Foundation’s Black Founder Startup Grant
The SoGal Foundation is providing several $10K and $5K grants to black women entrepreneurs. Requirements include self-identification as a black woman, possession of a legal registered business and proof of need for funding. Applications are open all year round. Click here to apply this grant: https://www.iamsogal.com/black-founder-startup-grant/
- The Sage Invest in Progress Grant
This is an opportunity offering black women entrepreneurs twenty-five $10,000 grants. The requirements are that the business must be owned by a black woman entrepreneur and be in its first five years of operation. Application and deadline information can be found here: https://app.helloalice.com/communities/alice/applications/the-boss-network-and-sage-s-invest-in-progress-grant?modal=true
- Power Forward Small Business Grant
The Power Forward Small Business Grant is offering each black-owned business a $25,000 grant for economic empowerment. The businesses must be black-owned, have 1 to 25 employees and be located in Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island or select areas of Connecticut. Application and deadline information can be found here: https://hialice.co/Celtics-Power-Fwd
- Aveeno Skin Health Startup Accelerator
This program will award one black woman entrepreneur $100,000 for owning a business that meets the hair or skin care needs of black consumers. The black-owned business must only be using natural ingredients. The deadline for application is 30th April 2022. Application can be done by following this link: https://www.essence.com/aveeno/enter/
- HerRise Micro-Grant
HerRise awards a $500 grant each month to a business owned by a black woman. The business must be 51% owned by a black woman and be currently registered in the U.S. The application procedure can be found here https://www.hersuitespot.com/herrise/
- CCWC Women of Color Entrepreneur Grant
The Corporate Council Women of Color (CCWC) is awarding five $5,000 grants to women of color entrepreneurs. Their enterprises must be legal for-profit businesses, registered in the U.S and have generated over $25,000 in revenue since January 2020. Click on https://form.jotform.com/Laurie_info/5000-grant to view other requirements and apply.
- National Black MBA Association Scale-Up Pitch Challenge
This is a pitch challenge for black business owners that awards $1,000 to $50,000 in prizes. The requirement is that the applicant must be a member of the National Black MBA Association. The deadline for application is 20th April 2022. You can apply here: https://nbmbaa.org/scale-up-pitch-challenge/
- Bridge the Gap Fund
This grant provides financial assistance to black-owned businesses affected by the Covid-19 pandemic. The requirements are that the business must be black-owned, negatively impacted by Covid-19 and launched on or before January 1st, 2020. The grant runs in 3-month cycles and can be applied for through https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeGxfVIOpcC8rWzuSOyYOAqYZcjV3hXoXHbvOW5s3mCoJYtOQ/viewform
- Fast Break for Small Businesses
This program provides grants to black-owned and diverse businesses. The grants are distributed to about 5,000 businesses and add up to $6 million. The only requirement is that the businesses should be either black-owned or diverse. Application dates and deadlines are yet to be announced but you can find out more here: https://www.legalzoom.com/fastbreakforsmallbusiness
- Amazon’s Black Business Accelerator Program
This program provides black entrepreneurs with $400 in advertising credits, $500 for launching costs and free imaging services for 50 products. The black entrepreneur must have an Amazon Professional Sellers Account, a certified minority-owned business registration and a physical product ready to sell. Application is open all year round and can be done via https://sell.amazon.com/programs/black-business-accelerator
- Backstage Capital Investments
Backstage Capital invests between $25,000 to $100,000 in businesses with underrepresented founders which include black-owned businesses. The requirement is that the funding is converted into stock that Backstage Capital holds in the business. Applications are received on a rolling basis and can be done via https://backstagecapital.com/apply-2/
- Comcast RISE program
This is a program that assists technology assistance, marketing campaigns and creative media to black-owned enterprises. The requirements are that the business should be for-profit and owned and operated by a black person. Application can be done via https://www.comcastrise.com/rise-apply/ and closes on June 17th, 2022.
- The Freed Fellowship
The Freed Fellowship provides monthly grants of $500 to black-owned businesses. The also offer a year-end grant of $2,500. Applications are always open and can be done via https://www.freedfellowship.com/grant1
- IFundWomen of Color Grant
IFundWomen provides black women with access to $2500 funding through crowd-funding and grants. The required is that the business should be black-owned, located in the U.S and have an active website and social media account. Application can be done through https://ifundwomen.typeform.com/to/R6o6il?typeform-source=www.axishelps.org. There is no deadline.
- Wish Local Micro-Grants
Black-owned businesses can benefit from $500-$2,000 grants offered by Wish Local, an online platform. To qualify, the businesses must be black-owned, have 20 or fewer employees, be a brick-and-mortar shop within the U.S and have an average annual income under $1M. Applications are received on a rolling basis at https://www.wish.com/local/empowerment
- New Voices
Through pitch competitions, New Voices awards $5,000-$25,000 to black women. To receive this funding, the applicant needs to be a black woman with a convincing pitch. Application procedures and deadlines can be found at https://newvoicesfoundation.org/
- Northwestern Mutual Black Founder Accelerator
This program offers $100,000 investment in black-owned businesses. To qualify, the business needs to be a high-growth startup founded by a black entrepreneur. Application can be done via https://www.gener8tor.com/accelerator/nmbfa#page-section-61e85e49e5b6025705a41aba. Deadline for application is April 29th, 2022.
- Kinetic Business Black Business Support Fund
This program offers up to $2500 in grants to black-owned businesses. For eligibility, the business must be situated in Georgia, Charlotte or Lexington. The business must also be a for-profit organization with less than 26 employees. Applications can be made via https://business.windstream.com/bbsf on a rolling basis.
- Black Restaurant Accelerator
This program will provide direct grant assistance to 500 black-owned enterprises from select cities. The requirements are that the enterprise must be black-owned and in one of the supported cities. Deadlines and application vary depending with the city. To find out more, go to https://nul.org/program/black-restaurant-accelerator
- Black Girl Ventures (BGV) Pitch Program
This program provides crowd-funding to businesses owned by black women. The amount of funding varies. The deadline for application also varies with the location of the black-owned businesses. To apply and find out more, go to https://www.blackgirlventures.org/bgvpitch
- Fearless Fund, Tory Burch Foundation, Cru’s Women of Color Grant Program
This program awards grants of between $10,000-$20,000 to 150 deserving black-owned businesses. The deadline is in February of each year and applications can be made via https://www.fearless.fund/tory-burch-foundation
- Black Enterprise Elevator Pitch Competition
In this pitch competition, black entrepreneurs have a chance to win $10,000. The requirement is that those who pitch need to have an equity stake in the black-owned business. Further entry requirements, application and deadline information can be found at https://www.blackenterprise.com/es2022/elevator-pitch/
- Miller Lite Tap the Future Business Plan Competition
This competition lets urban entrepreneurs compete for black-owned business grants of up to $20,000. Application can be done at http://www.mltapthefuture.com/. Applications are received all year round.
- Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Grants
This program supports black-owned businesses through fostering technological innovation and participation in government contracting. This is done through issuance of black-owned business grants among others. Applications are received on a rolling basis at https://seed.nih.gov/?redirect_from=sbir.nih.gov
Have you started a business? Or are you currently looking for funding? Future millionares sound off in the comments!