Nothing of the likes of this existed before until Daymond John, the founder of FUBU and the Shark Tank investor, launched the Black Entrepreneurship Day in the wake of the unjust killing of black Americans by police. The famous 
black entrepreneur felt the need to do something to lift the spirits of the black business community who felt helpless and despondent.
Black Entrepreneurship Day Was A Free Live Event
This live free event presented by Chase for Business, hosted by Johns himself, is meant to celebrate and support Black Entrepreneurs. The event will choose seven black business owners who will be given $25,000 in grant and one on one mentoring with Shark. The grants were administered by the NAACP, founded by The General, Chase, QuickBooks, Cisco Webex, Robinhood, and Yappa.
The guests at the event included business leaders like Robert Johnson, LL Cool J, Shaquille O’Neal, Jamie Foxx, Gabrielle Union, and Arlan Hamilton. The event also featured performances from Chance the Rapper and Questlove because people don’t just like to learn; they also want entertainment. As John says, “this makes it easier for things to digest.”
The Recipients Of The Grant
The recipients of the grant will be ventures who are between their launching and sustainability phases. This time, John will be evaluating the applicants as a customer. The winners of the grant will get exposure as well as sponsors who could also bring them partnership opportunities. The free event went live on Facebook watch on John’s Facebook page along with 20 different platforms, which include YouTube, Twitch, TikTok, and others.
People of color need inspiration, and the centrepiece of the event was, hence, business leaders who went through challenges to succeed. The event talked about failures and challenges a lot of black people could relate to. John himself is an inspiration. He started his billion–dollar company with only a budget of $40. He was diagnosed with Dyslexia and didn’t have a college degree. Robert Johnson and LL Cool J were his inspiration when he launched his company. He even talks about it, which is truly inspiring for anyone who’s struggling to keep their business alive.
The Black Community Needs This Initiative
The Black Community desperately needs an initiative like this. Like any other business, the black–owned businesses need help to survive this pandemic, and grants will support the deserving entrepreneurs survive the economy plunged. Times are hard, but if black businesses capitalize on this, they cannot just survive the crisis but thrive as the pandemic ends. Every black business owner has faced financial barriers to expanding their business. Finding capital is hard. The economic decline has compounded the challenges presented to the black entrepreneurs. Hopefully, through this event, the community gets the support and upliftment they need to their businesses from shutting them down.
To apply, you can visit the Black Entrepreneur Day website. Your business idea will be thoroughly evaluated. If you have the potential, you can bag the grant and one-on-one mentorship, which is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
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