As part of my weekly segment on Warren Ballentine’s Truth Fighters radio show, we have discussed and will continue to review over the next month the best ways to empower our audience given the current environment. I told him one of the areas that continues to be a a major focus for our editors has
been entrepreneurship. And for good reason: According to the recently released data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s Survey of Business Owners: Black-Owned Businesses: 2007, the number of firms owned by African Americans increased by a whopping 60.5% to 1.9 million, more than triple the national rate of 18%. Over that same period, the report stated that black-owned businesses showed an increase in revenues of 55.1% to $137.5 billion.Although Census data — the survey is conducted every five years — does not include the growth of black businesses since the brunt of the Great Recession, it is a good bet that there has been more business creation and self-employment out of necessity.
That doesn’t mean that the same challenges of gaining contracts and financing hasn’t continued to serve as an anathema for black firms. One way for African American entrepreneurs to get a leg up on the competition or find new business strategies and funding sources is by registering for the BLACK ENTERPRISE Entrepreneurs Conference + Expo hosted by Nationwide and held in Atlanta from May 22-25. Our theme, Rethink:Business, gives you an idea of the type of information you will receive during the course of that event.Are you an entrepreneur looking for some power moves to expand your business? Click here for 10 tips that can give you the edge you need.