The Enterprise Center

Did you register for #MEDWeekPHL events and workshops happening until Friday this week yet? Check out today's events. Don’t miss out. Time to elevate your business success and reach new heights. ???????? The Philadelphia Minority Enterprise Development (MED) Week equips minority-owned businesses with supportive connections and resources to help them grow. Register for events that will cover topics like: ? How to create a business plan ? Startup basics ? Succession planning for family-owned businesses ? Accounting basics and so much more. Learn more ?? phila.gov/med-week

veder reddick and yours truly had the pleasure to join The Enterprise Center Ian Lawrence and @Neighborhood Progress Fund’s Reco Owens, CFA at the Philadelphia Association of Community Development Corporations Equitable Development Conference to discuss how CDFI’s have been fostering growth in Philadelphia’s neighborhoods economy. The conference focused on Immigration: A Tapestry of Philadelphia.

Meet the ADVOCATE! Meet Victoria L. Hosendorf, MS, EVP Business Team at The Enterprise Center, a resource organization that promotes racial and economic equity by supporting the growth of diverse small businesses! ??Philadelphia ??New Jersey Learn more about The Enterprise Center and it's wealth of resources and programs at https://lnkd.in/eeBmBRz4. EVERY business needs an ADVOCATE rooting for them to SUCCEED! ~ Sharon Manker #ImAnAdvocate ??Share to spread the word about these resource organizations! EVERY business needs an ADVOCATE rooting for them to SUCCEED! ?? Follow Advocate for Change Partners LLC for more like this

They've done it again! Congratulations to Della Clark, Bob Palmer, and Blessy Thomas on completing Innovate Capital Growth Fund's second portfolio investment!

In an effort to map the federal contracting landscape as well as the small business service provider landscape in the city of Camden, New Jersey, The Enterprise Center of New Jersey leader Victoria L. Hosendorf, MS commissioned Drexel University's Nowak Metro Finance Lab's elijah e. davis and Milena Dovali and Kevin Lyons at Rutgers School of Business–Camden to create The Camden County Playbook for Diverse and Small Business Growth. As the playbook was unveiled by Davis, the business leaders, financial institution representatives, and small business service providers in the room hung on every slide, frequently chiming in with questions and comments as their own observations and experiences often mirrored and added nuance to the data unearthed by the teams at Nowak Lab and Rutgers-Camden. The data shows a daunting situation for diverse firms in Camden hoping to contract with the Federal government. Federal contracting with minority-owned firms is disproportionately low, with only 12 Black and Latino vendors winning contracts; these firms ultimately captured only 15.5% of Camden County's Federal spend. Of that 15.5%, only .3% was spent with Black-owned firms. (Source: USAspending.gov ) In a county where over 40% of residents are people of color, that low % of spend represents a huge disparity. These numbers, coupled with the low SBA 7a loan numbers for the county, led many in the audience, including Ray Jones, Capital Revolutionary Della Clark, Nichelle Pace, and Ray Lamboy, to entreat those in attendance to come together and spur action, as no one organization or financial institution can improve the Camden small business ecosystem alone. Indeed, increasing collaboration and enhancing coordination between service providers was one of the study's key recommendations. Victoria closed the presentation by thanking JPMorganChase's team for their generous support in funding this critical research and playbook, with special shoutouts to Camden native Josué Figueroa ?? as well as Jac Rivers and Michele Lawrence. Our team at The Enterprise Center and The Enterprise Center of New Jersey would also like to thank key study partners Camden Business Association and LAEDA, Inc., as well as everyone who contributed to the research and this event, as your contributions are integral to improving the small business ecosystem in Camden. #CamdenNJ #NewJersey #SmallBusiness #diversebusinesses #federalcontracting

Excited to be back in my hometown of Camden, NJ today with Jac Rivers for the public presentation of The Camden County Playbook: An Ecosystem Approach to Developing Diverse Small Businesses in Camden. This JPMorganChase funded study focused on: ? How local and minority-owned businesses can leverage federal spending opportunities ? Assessing the effectiveness of the current Entrepreneurial Support Organizations (ESOs) ? Providing actionable recommendations for stakeholders to create more opportunities for local entrepreneurs A special thank you to elijah e. davis for leading an important conversation and to Nichelle Pace for her call to foster a “collective will to collaborate” for a brighter future for Camden’s small businesses. Through JPMorganChase’s Coaching for Impact program, we’re helping support this ecosystem with complimentary executive coaching for established businesses. Learn more: https://lnkd.in/eAs29rTY, or feel free to contact me directly. It was also good to walk around City Hall for live music and a resource table hosted by Camden Special Services District. #SmallBusiness #Entrepreneurship #MinorityOwnedBusinesses #BusinessGrowth #CamdenNJ #ExecutiveCoaching #CommunityDevelopment #InclusiveGrowth #EconomicEmpowerment #CoachingForImpact #EntrepreneurSupport #JPMC #ChaseForBusiness Michele Lawrence Jac Rivers Sean Ramsaywak Kevin Hopkins Logan M Cino, MBA Jason Mancivalano Chase for Business Vaughn Lucas Deb Lawrence Mahmud Siddiquee Dr. Chandra Williams Nika Corbett Alban Corbett The Enterprise Center Della Clark Elizabeth Felt Victoria L. H. Ray Lamboy Ray Jones Nichelle Pace Jamila Powell, MBA Jeffrey Nash Raymond Romo Sean M. Brown, MPA Osiris Jackson Rutgers University - Camden Rutgers Business School Nowak Metro Finance Lab

Great information shared today from The Enterprise Center Nowak Metro Finance Lab and Rutgers School of Business – Camden funded by Chase about the Camden County Playbook for Diverse and Small Business Growth. Great to see so many great people in the room Alban Corbett Jamila Powell, MBA Ray Lamboy Josué Figueroa ?? Jac Rivers Victoria Hosendorf Malyka Sankofa Dr. Chandra Williams elijah e. davis

?? Congratulations to the members of the PA CDFI Network who recently received Financial Assistance Awards from the Community Development Financial Institutions Fund (CDFI Fund) through the FY 2024 CDFI Program! Together, they’ve brought a remarkable $15,768,000 to Pennsylvania to support community development, small businesses, and economic growth across the state. ?? ?? Special shoutout to: Bridgeway Capital, Inc. - $2,250,000 Community First Fund - $5,535,000 The Enterprise Center Capital - $925,000 The Progress Fund - $800,000 Reinvestment Fund, Inc. - $5,535,000 Women's Opportunities Resource Center - $723,000 This funding will create meaningful opportunities and drive lasting change in our communities, promoting inclusive economic development and uplifting neighborhoods across the state. ?? #CDFI #CommunityDevelopment #EconomicGrowth #InclusiveCommunities #PACDFINetwork

While loans play an important part in financing for small businesses, companies that fund their growth through only loans end up on "the hamster wheel of debt", using their proceeds to pay back the loans instead of using them to fuel their growth. In this Op-Ed piece for the The Philadelphia Tribune, our Capital Revolutionary Della Clark lays out the case for The Enterprise Center's next evolution: a Capital and Investment Center model that will help fill the "hole in the doughnut" (capital) and catalyze diverse business growth. What is a Capital and Investment Center? "Capital and Investment Centers can address these issues by providing comprehensive support, including business valuations, earnings reports, investor connections, and due diligence resources. These centers should serve as balance sheet builders, helping diverse businesses develop the financial acumen and capital structure needed to compete effectively in the market." Read more: https://lnkd.in/eJ_GERxC #capital #equity #diversebusinesses #philadelphia

This weekend was absolutely epic! We hosted the UEZ Small Business with partners from PBCIP Columbia Bank New Jersey LAEDA, Inc. Fulton Bank (formerly Republic Bank - PA, NJ, & NY) The Enterprise Center Buy Camden 1st Small Business Development Center of NJ Alban Corbett Ryan Thompson Small Business Development Center New Jersey Mark Rizzo, Ed. D. We will be hosting our next mini-expo in October and our focus will be about opening the doors to helping small businesses obtain grants. We will be hosting a serious of worships to assist will researchin, applying and acquiring grants. We are always open to partnership. Reach out.