The U.S. Black Chamber Helping Build Businesses

Washington D.C.

It’s no secret that 2012 is a critical year for our country politically and economically. In this election year, the U.S. Black Chamber, Inc. (USBC) intends to continue helping to energize the economy by ensuring that chambers and small businesses have access to resources needed to start, grow, and sustain businesses as well as create jobs. However, before we look ahead, we’d like to reflect on the past year and share some of the results that deserve mention for each of our Five Pillars of Service: Advocacy, Access to Capital, Contracting, Entrepreneur Training, and Chamber Development.

Advocacy

The USBC fights for legislation that promotes small business growth, particularly policies that address the challenges of Black business owners.  We understand the importance of maintaining a bipartisan approach to advocacy, and hence, collaborate with policymakers from all political affiliations to advocate for policies that best serve the interest of the Black community.  Over the past year, USBC addressed public policy issues pertaining to Quick Pay, Bag Taxes, American Jobs Act, Affordable Care Act, HBCU Budget Cuts, AT&T and T-Mobile Merger, Payroll Tax Cut, Counterfeit Drug Penalty Enforcement Act, HubZones, Payroll Tax Cut, and Small Business Saturday to name a few.

USBC also plays a vital role on the Council on Underserved Communities (CUC) under the direction of Deputy Administrator Marie Johns at U.S. Small Business Administration. And, USBC’s presence on the panel has already resulted in shortening the cycle of payments to 8(a) contractors from 30 to 15 days.

USBC endorsed the RLJ Rule in conjunction with Congressional Black Caucus and the National Urban League.  Introduced by Robert L. Johnson, The RLJ Rule (1) encourages companies to voluntarily implement a plan to interview a minimum of two qualified minority candidates for every job opening at the vice president level and above; and, (2) encourages companies to interview at least two qualified minority-owned firms for vendor supplier/services contracts before awarding a new company contract to a vendor.

In addition, USBC President, Ron Busby Sr, was appointed to the Board of Directors of the National Newspapers Publisher Association (NNPA).  “In this capacity, it will be easier for USBC to convey our message to African American communities through the more than 200 Black newspapers in publication,” said Ron Busby Sr, President of USBC. “Issues that concern the whole of our community can be discussed over a wider audience. This will certainly help us to better serve the business community at large.”

Access to Capital

Capital access remains the most important factor limiting the establishment, expansion and growth of Black-owned businesses. The USBC works with financial institutions to create avenues by which Black businesses can gain greater access to credit, capital and other financial instruments.

For example, in November 2011, the Beaufort County Black Chamber of Commerce (BCBCC) in South Carolina was approved as a Micro-Lender by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). As part of the Rural Micro Entrepreneur Assistance Program, the BCBCC was awarded $335,000 in Loan Funds as well as $40,000 in Grant Funds. The Chamber is also contributing $125,000 of in-kind support of this project, which will enable the Chamber to assist local small business owners with capital and business training support.

USBC partnered with Wells Fargo to host webinars on “How to Develop a Winning Loan Package” through their Insight Resource Center, which helps entrepreneurs gain the competitive edge to grow businesses with virtual coaching from experienced financial experts.

In the fourth quarter of 2011, USBC collaborated with Western Union and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) to disseminate information about the African Diaspora – a small-medium business enterprise development initiative. They jointly fund grants for African Diaspora (US citizens and permanent residents of African origin, from first generation immigrants to African Americans) to start up or expand businesses in select sub-Saharan African countries.  These businesses generally benefit US SMEs and trade by sourcing products, materials and expertise locally in the US and exporting them, as well as benefit employment and development in the country in which the business will operate in Africa.  Western Union is dispersing 15-30 $50,000 grants for qualified African American owned businesses. The deadline to apply is February 2012.  See more details here: www.diasporamarketplace.com

Contracting

At the USBC, our goal is to level the playing field by helping members gain access to business opportunities in the private and public sectors.  We accomplish this by educating members on contract opportunities, helping them increase their capacity to vie for large scale contracts, and offering resources and information that enhance Black owners’ ability to compete.

USBC engaged conversations with HUD, FDIC, EPA, SBA, DOT, the Pentagon, the White House and every other ear within our reach to deliver our message of the need for increased contracting opportunities for the businesses that we represent.

America’s Black-owned businesses represent the best hope for any meaningful strategy implemented to address rampant un-and underemployment among African Americans.

According to the Survey of Business Owners released by the U.S. Census Bureau:

• Of the 1.9 million black-owned businesses in 2007, 106,824 had paid employees, an increase of 13 percent from 2002. These businesses employed 921,032 people, an increase of 22.2 percent; their payrolls totaled $23.9 billion, an increase of 36.3 percent. Receipts from black-owned employer businesses totaled $98.9 billion, an increase of 50.2 percent from 2002.
• In 2007, 1.8 million black-owned businesses had no paid employees, an increase of 64.5 percent from 2002. These non-employer businesses’ receipts totaled $38.6 billion, an increase of 69 percent.
• The number of black-owned businesses with receipts of $1 million or more increased by 35.4 percent to 14,507 between 2002 and 2007.

Despite these increases, federal contracts with African American firms totaled $6 billion — just over 1% of the $500 billion total of government contracts.  So, there is more work for us to do in this area!

Entrepreneur Training

Through our ongoing relationship with the University of Phoenix, we provided Small Business Management Series and Workforce Solutions workshops and webinars that covered topics pertaining to Accounting, Taxation, Business Law, Marketing, Human Capital, Strategic Investing, and Business Ethics.
In 2011, we also partnered with Maggie Anderson, CEO of the Empowerment Experiment and author of “Our Black Year”. The Empowerment Experiment is a movement that the African American community needs to embrace!  As African American entrepreneurs and consumers, we must have a better understanding of the business segments that offer the greatest economic opportunities. Maggie Anderson chronicles her own family’s commitment to patronize only Black-owned businesses for a whole year in this phenomenal book.

For more details, see here: http://eefortomorrow.com/uploads/new_cover_ad_copy2.pdf

The book tour will begin in February 2012 in honor of Black History month and will include seven major cities in the country

Chamber Development

USBC grew its national footprint by increasing its membership base from 80 chambers to 100 chambers in 17 states, thereby supporting 240,000 Black-owned businesses nationwide.

In July 2011, USBC also hosted its inaugural School of Chamber Management.  It was a four-day professional development conference with prominent business leaders that represented Black businesses and offered unique opportunities for sponsors to enhance their brand awareness in Black consumer markets, build relationships with Black business owners, and increase its involvement in the Black community. Further, participating in the USBC School offered attendees the opportunity to connect with the White House and government officials from Capitol Hill.

Save the Date: 2012 School of Chamber Management – July 24th – 27th at Georgetown University Hotel and Conference Center in DC.

The growth and development of Black chambers of commerce is a core focus of the U.S. Black Chamber, Inc. As such, we leverage our role as a national organization, provide technical assistance and leadership training to member chambers, assist with the establishment of new Black chambers, and facilitate the sharing of best practices and industry data among our members. To do this, we utilize a variety of mechanisms including, training, web-based tools, peer networking, coaching, and other informational products.

Last year, none of these achievements would’ve been possible without the support of our major corporate sponsors: University of Phoenix, Wells Fargo, AT&T, Community Financial Services Association of America, Pfizer, Caesars Entertainment, Black Enterprise, Hilex, Dell, IBM, Nationwide Insurance, Southern California Edison, and ConocoPhillips. And our national partnerships included organizations such as the National Urban League, Congressional Black Caucus, National Minority Supplier Development Council, RLJ Companies, Billion Dollar Roundtable, Western Union, U.S. Aid for International Development, the National Minority Business Development Agency, U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, SBA Council of Underserved Communities, National Newspaper Publishers Association, Democratic National Committee, MoneyWise, and the White House.

In 2012, join us on this journey through membership or sponsorship to fuel America’s economy and create new jobs.  Learn how at www.usblackchamber.org

About the U.S. Black Chamber

The U.S. Black Chamber, Inc. (USBC) provides committed and visionary leadership and advocacy in the realization of Black economic empowerment.  Through the creation of resources, education, and initiatives, we support Black chambers of commerce and business leagues in their work to develop and grow Black enterprises.  We are an economic force and represent a powerful constituency. There are 1.9 million privately held Black-owned businesses across every industry sector in the United States. We employ over 921,032 persons, and generate $137.5 billion in annual revenue.

To learn more about the USBC, our advocacy agenda, and our national network of Black chambers, visit www.usblackchamber.org.