US: Black-owned businesses are beginning their post-pandemic boom up 38%

By Sabrina Lynch

The impact of COVID–19 caused immense financial distress for small businesses across the country, particularly African American entrepreneurs, who were one of the hardest hit groups at the beginning of the pandemic. However, the tides have turned as the number of Black business owners continues to rise, skyrocketing to being 28 percent higher in Q3 2021 than pre-pandemic levels, compared to 19 percent Latino and 5 percent Asian business owners. This is thanks to a record number of Black female entrepreneurs starting their own enterprises and becoming CEOs of their companies.

Why This Matters: In wake of the racial reckoning over George Floyd’s murder, sisters really are doing it for themselves to reignite the economy and spur new investments within the Black community. During the early months of the pandemic, Black-owned small businesses closed at twice the rate of other commerce shops, 58 percent of them were at risk of financial distress, with 41 percent shutting down. When the Biden administration sanctioned Fiscal Recovery Funds, African Americans received fewer business grants than their white-counterparts, and were five times more likely not to be a recipient of the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP).