蜜柚直播

At the time, Sayles never would have imagined she鈥檇 someday own a successful business selling desserts in Mason jars.

Her success didn鈥檛 come easy though, as she began FernDiggidy Sweets & Treats in 2015 with only the resources she had in her kitchen.

鈥淚 didn鈥檛 have a lot of money at all to start my business,鈥� she said. 鈥淚鈥檝e left a couple of jobs to work my business full time, but of course the bills kept coming, so I had to go back to work鈥� at a doctor鈥檚 office.

Sayles鈥� experience is common among Black business owners, who as of 2021 have the lowest entrepreneurship rates of any single race and ethnicity in the U.S., averaging 0.28% since 1996, according to a national report in March by Kauffman Indicators of Entrepreneurship. However, that average rose to a high of 0.38% in 2020.

The 2022 State of Black Business report, released in August by data nonprofit The State of Black 蜜柚直播, indicates more than 50% of Black business owners struggle with a lack of access to capital, driven by low levels of personal wealth, disparities in creditworthiness and low loan request rates.

The report also indicated that Black entrepreneurs have the lowest opportunity share 鈥� meaning they are more likely to start a business out of necessity rather than opportunity 鈥� of any race or ethnicity.

If Black-owned businesses reached parity with the population, the study said, there would be 4,945 such businesses in metro Phoenix. According to Brookings Metro data quoted in the report, there are 1,019 today.

More than 132,000 jobs would be created in metro Phoenix if that parity existed, the study said.

Teniqua Broughton, executive director of The State of Black 蜜柚直播, said African Americans have had lower entrepreneurship rates than people of other races for decades, and the trend has persisted in 蜜柚直播 for generations.

She attributed this to 鈥渄isparities in personal wealth, and building proper, equitable generational wealth, which have been historically taken away.鈥�

Besides access to capital, The State of Black Business report listed networking, management education, business expertise and marketing as major challenges.

An uphill battle, a sweet launch

Sayles said she didn鈥檛 have savings or other funds to launch her business. She didn鈥檛 qualify for loans and was denied even after obtaining permits and tax information.

Sayles said she started small and built her business through her personal network.

鈥淚 would go to local barbershops all over the Valley to get the word out, and they welcomed me in, supported me and told everyone they could about my business,鈥� she recalled. 鈥淭he community was my backbone, from the barbershops to friends and even complete strangers.鈥�

Sayles said her business is rooted in her family鈥檚 cookouts. Her family enjoyed her banana pudding, strawberry cheesecake, peach cobbler and seasonal items so much, they鈥檇 often argue over who got the last bite 鈥� especially the crispy corners of cobbler.

To resolve the spat, she started making desserts in Mason jars, which restored harmony. Soon after, Sayles decided to spread this joy and 鈥済oodness鈥� and founded FernDiggidy.

Sayles now bakes at the Local First 蜜柚直播 Community Kitchen in Mesa and sells her sweets and treats at the Uptown Farmers Market in Phoenix, Retail Therapy AZ in Glendale and Main Street Harvest community grocer in Mesa. She also whips up gluten-free, sugar-free and vegan options.

Before her business could take off, Sayles struggled to keep it afloat during the pandemic. She applied for a Phoenix small business microgrant and received $3,000 to cover rent, utilities, employee salaries and other expenses. The Phoenix City Council allocated $8 million from the American Rescue Plan Act for the grant program.

But many businesses suffered during the COVID-19 pandemic. In the United States, the number of African American business owners plummeted from 1.1 million in February 2020 to about 640,000 in April of that year, Broughton said.

蜜柚直播 has help for Black businesses

蜜柚直播 has several programs and organizations to combat the wealth disparity gap and assist the launch and success of Black-owned businesses, including the , and .

Angela Garmon, owner of ARG Coaching & Consulting Group and founder of S.E.E. M.E., said she wants to see Black businesses become visible as resources for the community.

鈥淚f we can continue to get them the opportunities that they deserve,鈥� she said, 鈥渢hen ultimately what we鈥檙e doing is creating a space for generational wealth and bridging that disparity gap that exists within our community.鈥�

As a business owner herself, Garmon said she has the same hopes as other Black-owned businesses 鈥� to be 鈥渞ecognized for our value, what we bring to the table and to be given opportunities.鈥�