02.29.24
NIIC and Fort Wayne Urban League Propel Black Business Owners to Success
Relationships and resources are essential for budding entrepreneurs need as they build their businesses, and that’s just what a recent partnership between the NIIC and the Fort Wayne Urban League provided to underserved members of our community.
Thanks to the Community Navigator Pilot Program, we were able to partner with the Fort Wayne Urban League to remove barriers to small business ownership, particularly among black and brown populations, and provide access to critical support.
This particular partnership focused on 8-week cohorts, which covered topics such as funding, licensing, insurance, and advertising a small business. In addition to providing necessary education, the cohorts offered another critical component for small business success: relationships.
Aisha Arrington, Fort Wayne Urban League President & CEO, explains. “Because the cohorts lasted eight weeks,” she said, “small business owners were able to build relationships with each other, bounce ideas off each other, and be vulnerable about their current needs.”
Some cohort participants had already developed a business and needed help addressing barriers such as operations and funding. Other people were just developing an idea. All received the support they needed to take that next step in the journey.
The program was especially impactful for minorities looking for new opportunities. “The Fort Wayne Urban League was founded in 1920,” said Arrington, “when African American people were fleeing the Jim Crow south. They were moving north, looking for jobs and opportunity. In 2024, unfortunately, we still have black and brown communities behind.”
That’s where the Fort Wayne Urban League comes in. In partnerships with organizations such as the NIIC, they are working to close that gap. “Entrepreneurship is a way people can make significant changes,” said Arrington. “It truly opens the door for everything else families need for life in a thriving community.”
Through the partnership with the NIIC’s Community Navigator program, childcare businesses were established and developed. A lawn mowing company grew. The program was so popular that as soon as the Fort Wayne Urban League announced the partnership with the NIIC, people were already signing up.
“We have connections with a lot of people and organizations here in central Fort Wayne,” said Arrington. “We’re always interacting with all community members, but particularly our black and brown neighbors. We mostly promoted the program through those connections, and we quickly developed a wait list for the cohorts.
“We saw a real uptick in communities supporting black-owned businesses after George Floyd and then that support began to decline,” she continued. “This partnership with the NIIC was a way for us to highlight the importance of black and brown communities, doing all we can to support people of color and provide the tools they need to make their dreams come true.”
