organizations, this platform is the answer to a growing demand from consumers, businesses, and institutions who wanted to support BIPOC- owned businesses but lacked a centralized resource to do so.
The Vision Behind ShopBIPOC
“People have a real appetite for buying from local small businesses right now, but they can be hard to identify and find,” says Yessica Holguin, Executive Director of the Center for Community Wealth Building, one of ShopBIPOC’s founding organizations.”We care about closing the racial wealth gap and lifting entrepreneurs of color. We created ShopBIPOC to connect local BIPOC- owned small businesses with a wider market.”[6] This vision resonates deeply with the current economic climate. According to the U.S. Small Business Administration, Hispanic entrepreneurs comprise 11.1 percent of business owners in Colorado, while BIPOC entrepreneurs comprise 7.4 percent[2]. These numbers highlight the need for initiatives like ShopBIPOC that can amplify the visibility and reach of these businesses.
BlackTravelBox. Photo: ShopBIPOC.
individual consumers with these businesses and facilitate partnerships with “anchor”institutions such as universities, hospitals, and municipalities. Michelle Sturm from the Center for Community Wealth Building explains,”We’ve been working on building that appetite and that sort of mindset since about 2018. It was really the George Floyd murder, the social uprising, and the disparate impact of the pandemic that made it become really clear in 2020 and led to both institutions saying, ‘Yes, we do want to shift our spending and become part of the solution.’”[7] Addressing the Racial Wealth Gap The importance of ShopBIPOC goes beyond just connecting buyers and sellers. It’s a direct response to the racial wealth gap that persists in our society, particularly in Colorado. By providing
A Year of Growth and Impact
As ShopBIPOC celebrates its one-year anniversary, the platform’s impact is already evident. From its initial launch with nearly 200 businesses, the directory has grown to include over 630 BIPOC-owned small businesses across Colorado. This growth is not just in numbers—it represents real opportunities for entrepreneurs who have historically faced barriers in the business world. Take, for example, Edwin Sandoval of Xatrucho Concepts.”ShopBIPOC has been a valuable resource to Xatrucho in many ways,” Sandoval shares,”primarily in helping us reach and connect with government offices and organizations that are looking to diversify their purchasing.”[6] This connection between BIPOC-owned businesses and larger institutions is a key feature of ShopBIPOC. The platform aims to connect
13 The Acumen
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