Since early 2020, United Way of Greater Philadelphia and Southern New Jersey, the City of Philadelphia Department of Commerce, and PIDC have engaged local business owners, community-based organizations, business support organizations, and anchor and philanthropic institutions to assess the evolving state of small business in Philadelphia and identify opportunities to address historical inequities for the city’s entrepreneurs of color, magnified during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Supported by a team of professionals from Next Street, Urbane Development, Econsult Solutions, Inc., and SourceLink, this initiative aimed to elevate locally relevant insights and national best practices for building inclusive and holistic entrepreneurship ecosystems to level the playing field for entrepreneurs and small business owners of color.