Written by Marcus Randolph
I want to encourage everyone to celebrate and support Black businesses beyond Black Business Month, but I also want to change the narrative.
Yes, shopping Black matters. But if we want Black businesses to open, expand, employ people, own property, and create generational wealth, celebration cannot be the end of the conversation. We have to talk about capital. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce found that “Black entrepreneurs are nearly three times more likely than White entrepreneurs to have business growth and profitability negatively impacted by a lack of financial capital.”
Earlier in my career in banking and investments, I closed over one billion dollars in financing. Through that experience, and what I see working with businesses in Newark, New Jersey, now as president and CEO of Invest Newark, I understand just how important proper funding is. When it comes to a business’s success, it always comes back to the need for capital.
The City of Newark, under the leadership of Mayor Ras J. Baraka, has taken action to address this issue—and the results are real.
In 2024, under Mayor Ras J. Baraka’s leadership, the City of Newark and Invest Newark launched a unique program to help businesses and not-for-profit organizations locate to Newark’s burgeoning downtown core. Under this program, the City and Invest Newark made low- to no-cost financial assistance available to businesses looking to be located in the focus area. Business operators were eligible for up to $650,000 in support, depending on the storefront’s square footage. Funds could be used for exterior and interior improvements to the vacant space or to purchase furniture, fixtures, and equipment. This program was developed in collaboration with Bloomberg Associates, the pro bono consulting arm of Bloomberg Philanthropies, which works with cities and mayors around the world.
Invest Newark also runs a wide array of loan programs offering low-cost capital to business owners for inventory, equipment, construction, fit-out, and even predevelopment.
These grants and loans lead to real stories like Abdul Roberson, a Newark native who brought his deli Abby’s back to his hometown from a neighboring city. The special part — he bought and renovated a dilapidated mixed-use building with a loan from Invest Newark, and now he operates his restaurant on the first floor and receives rental income from apartments. Now that builds wealth.
Or Justin Williams, a comedian who saw a gap in Newark’s nightlife and gathered friends and fans to become investors to open Newark Culture Club. A Black-owned small performance venue and cocktail bar, he secured institutional bank financing, a retail reactivation grant, and participated in Audible’s unique Business Attraction Program.
