HOPE Leads Discussion on Equalizing the Playing Field for Black Entrepreneurs

When three entrepreneurs launched their minority-owned firms, none received startup capital. The reasons varied, but all cited barriers to access to capital during a recent panel discussion moderated by HOPE CEO Bill Bynum.

Hosted by the Association of Black Foundation Executives (ABFE) in New Orleans, La., the event was the second in a series of sessions focused on entrepreneurship in the black community. The sessions have grown out of the Expanding Black Business Credit initiative (EBBC), which consists of 11 investor organizations, including eight community development financial institutions. The EBBC supports more strategic investment in black-owned CDFIs as the institutions are viewed as important wealth-building engines in the black community. One of the reasons is that CDFIs help level the playing field for black-owned businesses because they’re adept at recognizing the value in businesses that might appear high risk on paper.

Marcus Bullock, one of the panelists, is the owner of Flikshop, an app that connects families with incarcerated loved ones and the Flikshop School of Business, which trains returning citizens in soft skills, coding and mobile development. Bullock’s road to entrepreneurship took him from selling candy as a student to selling drugs and stealing cars. He was arrested at age 15 for car theft and served eight years in prison. Upon his release, he began work on his businesses.

Bullock says he’s been courting investors for the last three years of his career. He’s usually turned down for reasons that include the perceived limited size of his team and unclear marketing.

The other panelists were Aaron K. Saunders, owner of Clearly Innovative in Washington, D.C., a company that creates digital products, including the app for the National Museum of African American History & Culture;  and Corinne Villavaso of the Villavaso Group, an urban planning consultant firm in New Orleans.

Saunders said education and knowledge about business are important, especially when it comes to forging strategic partnerships. Saunders said he had been running his company’s education arm, Luma Lab, as a for-profit for years because he didn’t have anyone to write grants and he didn’t know of any nonprofits with whom he could partner. He wasn’t aware of CDFIs before he got started.

Villavosa explained that she and her then-partner didn’t pursue a loan when they started the company because they didn’t think they would qualify without any clients.

After the three shared their startup stories, citing obstacles and successes, Bynum and Ivye Allen, president of the Foundation for the Mid-South, pointed to strategies for black startups to access capital and resources, including seeking financing from credit unions and workforce training assistance from other black businesses or organizations.

Marcus Bullock Flikshop		Aaron K. Saunders Clearly Innovative		Corinne Villavaso The Villavaso Group