Several national organizations and retailers are celebrating Black History Month by offering new grants or highlighting existing grants available to Black entrepreneurs. Eligibility in most of these programs is also open to Indigenous and Female entrepreneurs. Most of the grants award credit for services rather than cash, and applicants compete against similar businesses nationwide.
The telecommunications company Comcast awards quarterly grants of marketing, creative, media, and technology services to small businesses owned by women or people of color under its Comcast RISE program. To be eligible, the business must be at least one year old; have at least 51 percent ownership by a person who identifies as Black, Indigenous, Female, or Person of Color; and operate within the Comcast service area. Some types of businesses are excluded. The next application deadline is June 17, 2022. Apply to Comcast RISE here.
Amazon’s Black Business Accelerator aims to enable Black entrepreneurs to sell on its platform. The accelerator offers coaching, credit for advertising, and promotional support. Learn more about Amazon’s BBA here.
Shipping-and-printing giant FedEx is accepting applications until February 28, 2022, for this year’s Small Business Grant Contest. The contest is open to a wide range of businesses that have a FedEx account, but minority-owned businesses are provided their own competition category. Winners receive up to $20,000 in credit for print services, with the grand prize providing $50,000 in credit. Apply to the FedEx contest here.
Black female founders interested in obtaining venture capital or private investments can apply to the Black Girl Ventures pitchfest, which provides coaching and a live crowdfunding platform for scalable, tech-enabled, revenue-generating businesses (under $1M) founded by people who identify as Black/Brown and woman. Apply to the BGV pitchfest here.
The SoGal Foundation also targets scalable businesses owned by Black women or Black nonbinary entrepreneurs by offering cash grants of up to $10,000. Awardees also receive tactical help navigating the fundraising environment. Apply for a SoGal startup grant here.
Business owners and entrepreneurs DO NOT need to apply to a contest to get help.
Some business advisors counsel that applying to grant programs squanders valuable time that could be spent starting or growing a business. Many nonprofit organizations in New Mexico offer workshops, counseling, and financial support, without the need to apply to a contest. Here are a few: