Tag: underserved

The Urban League of Rochester is launching a new business development program.

PowerShift: Building Small Business is a partnership between the Urban League and bobrochester.com to launch a directory that spotlights minority, women and veteran-owned small businesses in Monroe County. By encouraging business owners to list their companies in the free directory, the Urban League is creating a one-stop shop for the community to support them.

The PowerShift: Building Small Business program is hosted under the Urban League’s Business Development Division and offers local business owners a platform to share their story, services, products and other offerings, amplifying their visibility and presence within the community.

Five businesses will be selected annually by the Urban League of Rochester Business Development Division staff to be spotlighted in the program. Each selected business will be interviewed to capture their business story. Each selected business will have its story captured by a professional videographer or photographer at its business location, and each business story will be featured on the Urban League of Rochester website, social media platforms and other Urban League communication channels.

Five local selected businesses were identified for the first round of the annual program:

• Terrell Mclean, owner of Bubby’s BBQ — bubbybbqroc.com
• Shamar Floyd, owner of Diamon Renee Academy & Dance Studio
• Jnicolle Glover and Charletta Broome, owners of Urban Euphoria LLC — ueroc.com
• Tonia and Marquis Butler, owners of Honey B Home & Essentials LLC — honeybstore.com
• Monique Chatman, owner of the Groom Room Men’s Spa & Lounge —groomroommensspa.com

“We all must shift our focus and support minority-owned businesses,” said Seanelle Hawkins, president and CEO of the Urban League of Rochester. “Minority-led small business contributions to our community are invaluable, and the Urban League is proud to help minority entrepreneurs grow their businesses to improve economic vitality and close the wealth gap. When minority-owned businesses thrive, so does our community.”

The division’s mission is to support entrepreneurs and small business owners looking to launch or grow their businesses through providing resources and education, classroom instruction and one-on-one technical assistance and mentorship.

The PowerShift: Building Small Business Program increases the visibility of often-overlooked businesses in our community by sharing their stories and services with the Urban League network and the broader community as a whole. PowerShift empowers entrepreneurs and small business owners and encourages the community to support local small businesses.

The Urban League of Rochester provides resources and programs to enable African-Americans, Latinos, the poor and other disadvantaged to secure economic self-reliance, parity and power and civil rights

[email protected] / 585-653-4021
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