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An investment by KeyBank is driving efforts to assist the business community in New York’s Capital Region become more diverse, access resources in an equitable way and grow.
In 2022, KeyBank invested $500,000 in a new “Accelerating Inclusive Economic Opportunity“ Initiative by the Capital Region Chamber in Albany, New York to provide no-cost business growth services to Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC)-owned enterprises and to support the implementation of diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) practices in the greater business community. Since its inception, the program has yielded the following results:
- In 2023 from January-June, 26 additional businesses have been onboarded for one-on-one technical assistance. In addition, the initiative served 89 small businesses through educational programming and networking events, of which 59 were BIPOC-owned.
- Since the start of the project in May 2022, more than 120 unique BIPOC-owned businesses have been engaged. Of that, 63 have been served with one-on-one support, with 28 receiving on-going, project-based, technical assistance and consulting services.
- Six of the chamber’s BIPOC businesses completed its 10-week Entrepreneur Bootcamp course this past winter/spring.
In May 2023, KeyBank and SCORE also took part in a Business Finance workshop in partnership with the Albany Black Chamber of Commerce. The event titled ‘Are you making money or not?’ covered: building business credit, how to use credit properly, the 5 Cs of credit, what lenders look for, how to create financial projections and the profit and loss statement.
“Our partnership with KeyBank with delivering meaningful results for BIPOC-owned businesses through targeted, customized assistance and growth acceleration support, which is helping drive inclusive economic growth,” said Mark Eagan, President and CEO of the Capital Region Chamber.
One specific success story the chamber highlighted involved a BIPOC-owned restaurant that began operations in 2022 without a business plan. They bought a building and did some renovations but needed funding, a business plan, marketing, and business processes. The owners were referred to possible sources for funding. Through the “Accelerating Inclusive Economic Opportunity” Initiative, the chamber spent considerable time providing one-on-one assistance on the restaurant’s business plan, financial projections, tax filings, menu pricing, setting up point-of-sale (POS) system, as well as helping the owners obtain licenses and permits specific to the restaurant industry. The owners attended the chamber’s educational workshops and summits to expand their business knowledge. This business was able to secure a $84,000 loan and had revenue of $86,000 in its first three months of operation.
“We are excited to learn of the successes that have come out of the Capital Region Chamber’s program and the many businesses in our community that have benefitted from their efforts” said Fran O’Rourke, KeyBank Capital Region Market President. “Our investment and commitment to supporting diversity, equity and inclusion in the communities we serve is making a difference now and in the future.”
