Source: Twin Cities Business

How to Lift Up Diverse Entrepreneurs

March 30, 2023

In the wake of George Floyd’s murder at the hands of a Minneapolis police officer in 2020, businesses and nonprofits alike made plenty of promises to right historical wrongs. Many pledged to support Black entrepreneurs in the form of dollars, time, and talent. Nearly three years later, have we actually made meaningful progress?

Junita Flowers, founder of Junita’s Jar cookie company, suggested that the fate of diverse entrepreneurs still boils down to access. A lack of access to, say, investors and other influential business leaders, is still limiting opportunities for some entrepreneurs of color. “I can work hard, all day long” Flowers said, “but it’s still access at the end of the day.”

That means that BIPOC entrepreneurs still face a bit of an uphill battle in many respects. “There’s always that barrier you’re trying to fight to get over,” said Andre Creighton, co-founder and CFO of Minneapolis-based legal advice app TurnSignl. “I don’t have friends I can call and say, ‘Hey, let me get $3 million for this great idea I have.’ We have to fight a little bit harder. What it comes down to is access.”