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Rep. Kathy Castor spotlighted Black-owned businesses in St. Petersburg, VA, on Juneteenth amid ongoing bureaucratic hurdles, such as limited access to capital, systemic bias , barriers to business networks, and discriminatory lending practices. Castor led a bus tour on Thursday, organized with the Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority (PSTA), visiting local businesses, including Community Tech House, Successful Futures Tutoring Services, and Central Station Barbershop and Grooming, according to The St. Pete Catalyst. “We want to spend our Juneteenth out there telling their stories and encouraging our neighbors to support them,” Castor said. When the COVID-19 pandemic struck, exacerbating the digital divide in underserved communities , Lynn Harrell Johnson at Community Tech House repurposed her former salon into a tech hub . She now teaches coding, web development, and digital literacy, offering free laptops to those committed to using them. Johnson has a goal to hire more passionate...
Blavity Fest 2025 lit up Atlanta, GA’s Lee + White complex last weekend in celebration of Black innovation , cultural expression, and collective wealth-building. Attendees experienced inspiring panel discussions led by experts in entrepreneurship , personal branding, creative development, and financial empowerment, while hands-on workshops offered practical skills in areas including stock trading, book launching, and event planning. The event, held from May 31 to June 1, also featured networking opportunities at community meetups, a Black-owned small business market, and immersive installations designed to spark creativity and connection. The high-energy, high-stakes, and high-impact success of the 2025 Blavity Fest was no accident, as Atlanta is, for the third consecutive year, the nation’s leading hub for Black-owned businesses, as previously reported by AFROTECH™ . According to a LendingTree analysis, nearly 14,000 — or 11.3% of all businesses in the city — are Black-owned as of...
Silent churn is one of the biggest threats to small businesses , often going unnoticed until it significantly impacts revenue. Unlike active churn, where customers cancel their subscriptions or explicitly stop purchasing, silent churn happens gradually. Customers disengage, reduce usage, or stop buying without officially severing ties, leading to a slow decline in business performance. Identifying silent churn early allows owners and entrepreneurs to take proactive steps to re-engage customers before they are lost entirely. Recognizing The Early Signs Of Silent Churn Silent churn does not happen overnight. It begins with small shifts in customer behavior . If ignored, these shifts lead to long-term disengagement. One of the most common signs is a decline in customer interaction. Warning signals include: users logging in less frequently, reducing their purchases, or spending less time engaging with emails and content. A drop in feature usage or product engagement is another...
Editorial Note: Opinions and thoughts are the author’s own and not those of AFROTECH™. Trump’s tariffs have upended multiple industries. For bigger companies like Apple and Microsoft, or fast fashion behemoths like Zara, tariffs can be easily avoided by moving their distribution elsewhere. But for smaller businesses that don’t possess the same infrastructure, they don’t have that ability. Most Americans would agree that manufacturing should come back to the United States. Over the past decades, companies have moved their work abroad to take advantage of lower wages and the lack of unions that protect workers from abuses. In short, it’s easier to take advantage of the cheap labor offered in other countries like China, Thailand, and Vietnam. The whole system is inherently problematic, especially when we look at how workers in the United States are constantly berated and not treated properly. Moving manufacturing back to the states will also mean, unfortunately, that prices for goods...
Life can change at any given moment, and this was the case for entrepreneur Parker Barbee. In 2022, Barbee was laid off from his job just before the Christmas holiday. This moment of uncertainty led him to jumpstart his passion for a staple dessert in his family — banana pudding. KSL News reports Barbee is the founder of dessert sweet shop Parfé Diem, located in Salt Lake City, UT’s Sugar House neighborhood. According to its website, it features a variety of pudding parfait flavors, including banana, strawberry cheesecake, pistachio, and chocolate. It also offers shortbread cookies and a creative twist on the classic ice cream sandwich, using pudding as the filling. View this post on Instagram A post shared by parfé diem 😋 pudding parfaits (@parfediem) Now, just in time for the holiday season, Barbee’s venture has received a significant boost through the NAACP Powershift Entrepreneur Grant, established by investor Daymond John of “Shark Tank.” The grant is $25,000 and is funded with...
Thanks to a number of innovations in the world of business, the global workforce is seeing a massive uptick in freelancing, gig economy gains , and other small business ventures. If you’re feeling the entrepreneurial spirit, there’s never been a better time to go into business for yourself. Still, one of the hardest parts of launching your business is coming up with ideas on what to sell, what services to offer, and where to market yourself. Here’s a brief but comprehensive list of small business ideas to get you started. Maybe you’ll glance over this list and have a major eureka moment, or maybe these ideas will spark your creative drive and assist you in developing something brand new. Either way, these options are teeming with possibility. Graphic Designer If you’re interested in launching your own small business, and you have a passion for art, why not try your hand at graphic design ? There are tons of outlets available for artistic people to work directly with individual...
As a business owner, bracing yourself for potential setbacks is a matter of survival. It’s necessary and a great business practice that allows you to plan for the future. In the meantime, you’re able to work towards that goal and stay abreast of everything else. Add in politics and you have some new possibilities to consider. You might be wondering what politics has to do with being a business owner. However, the ways in which certain taxes and tariffs waiver directly impacts business profit. No matter your party preference, politics have the power to impact how your business functions. And with steady success and growth being the ideal goal, there are steps that you can take now to ensure they come to fruition. Will the upcoming election shake up your business? Here’s how to get prepared now. Will The Upcoming Election Shake Up Your Business? The short answer is mostly likely, but educating yourself on policies is what will empower you to make the right decisions for your business....
Vice President Kamala Harris proposed a substantial increase in the tax deduction for startup expenses, raising the allowable deduction for new small businesses from $5,000 to $50,000. The Democratic presidential nominee announced the proposal during a speech in New Hampshire on Sept. 4 as part of her broader economic plan to make tax filing “cheaper and easier” for businesses, Forbes reported . “As President, one of my highest priorities will be to strengthen America’s small businesses,” Harris said, according to CBS News . “We’re going to help more small businesses, and innovators get off the ground.” New startups could either use the full $50,000 deduction in one year or spread it across multiple years as they become profitable. They also have the option to use the $5,000 deduction and spread the remaining startup costs over 15 years. The proposal aims to ease the financial burden of starting a business, covering costs such as advertising, employee training, consultant and...
As small business owners and corporations duke it out in customer competition, resources that can strengthen their connection with consumers become more attractive. Big corporations have, at their disposal, the funding to get creative about marketing. Yet, small business owners are doing the same at a higher risk. Tech, though available to both, has been leveraged by both parties, with small businesses coming out on top. It isn’t enough anymore for a customer to receive what they’ve ordered; a custom experience makes it that much better and, most times, ensures a return sale. Here’s is how small businesses use tech to outsmart big corporations—and win! How Small Businesses Are Using Tech: Artificial Intelligence Small businesses within e-commerce are using platforms with AI to create more personalized shopping experiences for consumers. Elements like data analytics allow companies to offer personalized recommendations that are as more tailored than those of a corporation. Beatrice...
The founders of Eastside Golf continue to build on their momentum in the golf apparel space while staying true to their roots. As previously reported by AFROTECH™, Morehouse College graduates Olajuwon Ajanaku and Earl Cooper founded the brand without a fashion background in 2019 after working full-time in corporate America. The company boasts products such as polo shirts, sweatshirts, pants, shoes, and accessories including bags, all tailored towards men and women. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Eastside Golf (@eastsidegolf) Beyond the product offerings, the founders have continued to pave their own way through their mission that centers moving the sport forward among the youth and non-golfers while increasing diversity in a predominantly white sport. Their vision has led to an increase in support as they scaled their annual revenue from $100,000 in their first year to $4 million in 2023. They kicked off 2024 with a $3.4 million raise led by EP Golf Ventures, and the...
Artificial intelligence (AI) can sometimes seem unpredictable and even scary, but Cliff Worley wants to help business owners understand how it can help them take their companies to the next level. Worley stresses the importance of taking the time to learn AI tools rather than immediately running away from the ever-evolving technology without ever attempting to understand it . As an accomplished marketing leader and growth advisor to startups, he has an affinity for helping entrepreneurs elevate their businesses. Worley is on a mission to do so by teaching them how to use AI to the advantage of the business they’re looking to grow and scale. View this post on Instagram A post shared by AFROTECH™ Conference (@afrotech.conference) Currently, Worley is the head of portfolio growth marketing at Kapor Capital. He provides strategic coaching to venture capital-backed companies on how to effectively go to market and scale customer acquisition. He also curates a newsletter called “Cliff...
A community-driven project is coming to revitalize Charlotte, NC. According to a press release provided to AFROTECH™, The Whitaker Group — the creative company behind brands such as A Ma Maniére, Social Status, APB, and Prosper — has revealed its plans for The Collective on Tuckaseegee , a 13,000-square-foot compound and retail campus with 10 retail units located in Charlotte. The Collective aims to stimulate economic development in many ways. The venture will feature local entrepreneurs as well as The Whitaker Group’s existing brands, partners, and experiences, including APB Skatepark, the first privately held, Black-owned, publicly accessible, non-DIY skatepark in the country. This skatepark was developed in collaboration with The Boardr, which encompasses three firms with expertise in skateboarding facility design and construction, event production and consulting, and athlete management, its website mentions. Additionally, The Whitaker Group plans to launch the in-house apparel...
Kevin Hart’s Gran Coramino Tequila has officially reached a new milestone. According to a press release shared with AFROTECH™, since its inception in 2022, the ultra-premium tequila company has provided more than $1 million in grant funding to over 100 Black and Latinx small-business owners and entrepreneurs through its Coramino Fund. The fund, powered by the company founded by Hart and 11th-generation tequila maker Juan Domingo Beckmann, has made giving back to the community its main priority from the very beginning, honoring its “vision to celebrate life’s hard-earned moments” by donating $1 from every bottle sold to support underrepresented entrepreneurs in the United States and Mexico. “As an entrepreneur myself, I’ve seen how early financial support can impact the long-term success of the business,” Hart said in a statement. “The Coramino Fund was created to provide support to some of the hardest working people out there — entrepreneurs and small business owners.” View this...
A Baltimore, MD-based juice bar helping the youth will be expanding to its second location. As AFROTECH™ previously reported, Rich Juice Bar opened its doors to the South Baltimore community in 2023. Co-founder Michael Battle had experienced health issues such as diabetes and high blood pressure, and after adopting a healthier diet he saw improvements, reports The Baltimore Banner. Now, alongside his wife, Danielle, they are making it their life’s mission to make affordable and healthful food options such as juices, smoothies, and acai bowls accessible. View this post on Instagram A post shared by RICH JUICE BAR| POURING LIFE INTO THE COMMUNITY (@richjuicebar) What’s more, Rich Juice Bar’s mission extends a hand to the youth, offering job opportunities as well as training in communication, entrepreneurship, banking, and financial advocacy. “This social enterprise will provide wellness and economic vitality, health and delicious cold-pressed juices, nutrient rich smoothies, and...
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) hopes to inspire people to look into the skies and to their communities. Recently, Black individuals in NASA’s workforce took social media by storm after sharing their headshots from the independent agency. The heartwarming posts reminded everyone of the importance of representation and fostering inclusivity, particularly in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields. Joining #BlackAtNASA . After 15 years this is my headshot. pic.twitter.com/qDTMbGprZ2 — K Renee Horton,PhD (@Reneehortonphd) March 17, 2024 Despite the fleeting nature of viral moments, NASA’s efforts for diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) are far more than just a snapshot. In 2023, the agency released an equity action plan supporting a presidential executive order focused on dismantling “inequitable barriers and challenges facing underserved communities.” “We at NASA, as an administrator, never tell our story,” Shahra Lambert, NASA’s...
