Grant programs offering free money are hard to come by, which is why many entrepreneurs frequently end up applying for small business loans or try crowdfunding to start or expand their companies. However, many organizations have recently created grants in an effort to assist companies that have been negatively impacted by the pandemic. Some of the grants are earmarked for businesses in certain industries, others for entrepreneurs in certain cities or states, and some are grants for minority women entrepreneurs, or to benefit business owners who identify as female and who are socially or economically disadvantaged. And while some may be one-time offerings, they’re worth investigating to see if you qualify.
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Here is a list of grants for minority women entrepreneurs:
Funded by the Boston Celtics, Vistaprint and the NAACP, grants of $25,000 are being given to Black-owned businesses in New England on a rolling basis, and will remain open until all funds have been dispersed.
Specifically, these grants are being offered to ”Black-owned small businesses with 1 to 25 employees based in Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Vermont, or select areas of Connecticut.”
Applicants must demonstrate the impact their small business has on their greater community, and interested entrepreneurs can apply here.
Rebuild the Block grants are issued monthly to Black-owned businesses. The application deadline is the third Friday of each month. Up to 15 winners are selected from a pool of up to 90 applicants. A total of nearly $63,000 in grants were made during 2020.
Interested entrepreneurs can find more information here about applying to upcoming cycles.
SoGal Black Founder Startup Grant
Did you know that Black female founders receive less than 0.5% of venture capital funding? SoGal is looking to change that with the Black Founder Startup Grant.
Sign up now to be considered for upcoming rounds of grants being issued to Black female and nonbinary entrepreneurs. Grants of $5,000 and $10,000 are being given to businesses that anticipate pursuing financing for growth for their “scalable, high-impact solution or idea.” The program is geared toward entrepreneurs aspiring to build a billion-dollar company.
To review full qualifications and to apply, click here.
The Visa She’s Next Grant Program will provide 60 businesses owned by Black women entrepreneurs with a $10,000 grant and one-year IFundWomen Annual Coaching Membership. The catch is that you must be doing business in one of six cities, which include Atlanta, Chicago, Detroit, Los Angeles, Miami or Washington, D.C.
The application deadline for this program is April 16, 2021. For more on this program, and tips for crafting a successful application, click here.
Coalition to Back Black Businesses
Starting in September 2021, Black-owned businesses harmed by the pandemic can apply to receive one of up to 300 grants of $5,000. Eligible businesses must be Black-owned, employing three to 200 people (including independent contractors), and be located in an “economically vulnerable community.” The program also includes mentorship, access to online resources and the opportunity to be considered for even larger grants.
The program is set to reopen in September 2021, so get a head start and find out if your business qualifies here.
Leading the global shift toward inclusive innovation, digitalundivided invested in over 1,500 Black and Latinx women entrepreneurs in 2020.
This year, they’re launching the Do You Fellowship program to continue that work. The fellowship will provide 10 Black and Latinx women innovators with a $5,000 investment in their business. Winners will also have access to resources and mentorship to propel their businesses forward.
Sign up here to be notified when applications open!
Related: 5 Tips for Writing a Winning Business Grant Application
Although the following programs are full or the application period has passed for 2021, they are expected to reopen for 2022:
The New Voices Foundation sponsors pitch festivals for women entrepreneurs of color, where business owners can qualify for a portion of the $100,000 prize money open to participants. New Voices is “focused on providing flexible funding, learning and networking opportunities to these entrepreneurs via pitch competitions, mobile accelerators, coaching and mentoring, online masterclasses, and communications outreach via social media, newsletters and other channels.”
The Asian Women Giving Circle supports “Asian American women-led organizations and individual artists in NYC” through five to eight grants valued at up to $15,000.
Proposals that bring about social transformation, raise awareness of issues affecting Asian women, girls and families, and that highlight and promote Asian women’s roles as leaders and initiators of such projects are considered.
Although the application deadline recently passed for 2021, be sure to keep an eye on this page to learn when 2022 applications are being accepted.
Merchant Maverick Opportunity Grants
Although closed for 2021, keep this grant on your radar for next year because Merchant Maverick offered four grants of $10,000 each to companies with Black women (cisgender or transgender) as majority owners in 2020.
Subscribe to the email list here to be notified when the program reopens.
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A few additional grant programs for entrepreneurs, but not specifically geared for minority women that are still worth considering include:
The IFundWomen x Neutrogena® Fund
While not specific to minority women, Neutrogena® and IFundWomen are teaming up to give women-owned businesses in the health and wellness space a fresh start. The program will provide 10 women-entrepreneurs across the U.S. with a $10,000 grant to support their “fresh start” after a challenging year in business due to the pandemic.
Applications are now open through April 26, 2021. Click here for the application and program criteria.
Nav’s Small Business Grant program
The application period for this grant program is now closed for 2021, but keep it in mind for 2022; the application window should open in January 2022. Although not specifically designed for minority women entrepreneurs, the $5,000 and $10,000 grants are worth applying for.
Monthly grants of $10,000 and an annual grant of $25,000 are given to U.S. and Canadian women business owners who demonstrate how the funds will be used to grow their companies.
FedEx Small Business Grant Program
Open to male, female and nonbinary entrepreneurs, the FedEx grant program awards grants of up to $50,000. Although the application period has closed for 2021, this has become an annual event worth applying to.
National Association for the Self-Employed (NASE) Growth Grants
Members of NASE have the opportunity to apply for up to $4,000 in quarterly business development grants. Annual members can apply immediately after joining, while other members must wait three months before being eligible to apply. The program is open to men and women entrepreneurs.
Shuttered Venue Operators Grant
Scheduled to begin accepting applications on April 8, 2021, the Shuttered Venue Operators Grant program is for owners of live event businesses that were in operation as of Feb. 29, 2020. Up to $2 billion has been allocated by the government for such grants, which are open to men and women entrepreneurs.
Sign up here to be notified when applications for this grant open up here.
Key takeaways
Since new grant programs frequently crop up, you may want to consider setting up a Google Alert to be notified when grants are announced, so that you never miss out on the chance to land some free money for your company!
Editor’s Note: All programs and funding availability are subject to change
The post 15 Grant Programs for Minority and Women Business Owners appeared first on StartupNation.
via https://www.AiUpNow.com/ by Marcia Layton Turner, Khareem Sudlow
