Business Resources

State Dedicated Grants

 

Beyond Open CLT grant – The Beyond Open grant program aims to help diverse small business owners in Charlotte-Mecklenburg build wealth by investing in capital assets such as equipment, technology, inventory, and real estate. Beyond Open grants in three categories of support from $5k – $250k+ and do not need to be repaid. Round 2 is opening on 8/1/23 and will close on 8/30/23.  Funding up to $25,000 – https://www.beyondopenclt.com/

Moore County Chamber of Commerce Small Business Grant – To be eligible for funding under the program, the business must employ less than 100 employees and have a storefront presence in the county. Nonprofits that meet these requirements may also apply if they operate a storefront small business, like a resale store or a café. Funding up to $5000. Apply by 8/31/2023 – http://members.moorecountychamber.com/news/details/moore-county-chamber-of-commerce-administering-100-000-small-business-revitalization-grant-program

NC Idea Micro Grant – NC IDEA MICRO grants are specifically targeted at companies headquartered in and that conduct a majority of corporate operations in the State of North Carolina. All publicly facing materials, including website, social media, and other marketing materials and channels should identify the business as a North Carolina company. Selected companies must agree to maintain the majority of corporate operations in the State of North Carolina for at least the 12-month period following completion of the grant. NC IDEA MICRO grants are awarded to companies bringing an innovative product or business model to market, and on a path to become a multi-million dollar company, have 50+ employees or be investable in 5-7 years.  Funding of $10,000.  Apply by 8/28/23 – https://ncidea.org/nc-idea-micro/

NC Idea Seed Grant – NC IDEA SEED grants are specifically targeted at companies headquartered in and that conduct a majority of corporate operations in the State of North Carolina. All publicly facing materials, including website, social media, and other marketing materials and channels should identify the business as a North Carolina company. Selected companies must agree to maintain the majority of corporate operations in the State of North Carolina for at least the 12-month period following completion of the grant. NC IDEA SEED offers early stage companies the critical funding they need to scale faster. Our $50K grants are awarded to innovative startups with a proven concept — even if they are not yet profitable. Funding of $50,000. Apply by 8/28/23 – https://ncidea.org/nc-idea-seed/

Amazon App Store Small Business Accelerator – The Small Business Accelerator Program allows developers that earn less than 1 million USD in total annual revenue in the previous calendar year to access additional benefits up to or equivalent to 20% of Appstore revenue. If eligible, you’ll receive a 10% increased royalty payment and AWS credits equivalent to 10% of your app revenue. – https://developer.amazon.com/apps-and-games/small-business-program

Antler Global Startup Program – Antler is a global early-stage VC that runs multiple programs for business startups around the world. See the website for more info about the program and application dates. – https://www.antler.co/platform/#apply-now

Awesome Foundation – Foundation distributes $1,000 grants, no strings attached, to projects and their creators. At each fully autonomous chapter, the money is pooled together from the coffers of ten or so self-organizing “micro-trustees”.  Awarded monthly – https://www.awesomefoundation.org/en

AWS Startup Loft Accelerator – AWS Startup Loft Accelerator equips your technical team with tech resources, guidance and a community of peers. From technical deep dives to round tables on day-to-day CTO challenges, including: recruiting, managing an engineering team, building a minimum viable product, and design principles for cloud architecture.  Provides $25,000 in AWS credits – https://aws-startup-lofts.com/emea/program/accelerator

Canva Pro For Nonprofits – If you are a nonprofit, you can register now to get Canva’s premium features for free. – https://www.canva.com/canva-for-nonprofits/

Charity Entrepreneurship Incubation Program – The Charity Entrepreneurship Incubation Program is a two-month, cost-covered training program that gives a small cohort of talented people from all over the world everything they need to launch a field-leading charity. $200,000 in seed funding is available. Apply by 9/30/2023 – https://www.charityentrepreneurship.com/incubation-program

Emergent Ventures Grant/Fellowship Application (through Mercatus Center at George Mason University) – Emergent Ventures, a fellowship and grant program from the Mercatus Center, seeks to support entrepreneurs with highly scalable, “zero to one” ideas for meaningfully improving society. Projects will either be fellowships or grants: fellowships involve time in residence at the Mercatus Center in Northern Virginia; grants are one-time or slightly staggered payments to support a project. https://mercatuscenter.formstack.com/forms/emergent_ventures

Etsy Disaster Relief Fund – Sellers will be eligible for a grant if they experienced a federally declared natural disaster within the past year, have been an active seller on Etsy for at least one year, and their Etsy account is in good standing. Grants for $2,500 – https://advocacy.etsy.com/etsy-emergency-relief-fund-at-cerf/

F6S List of Accelerators and Pitch Competitions – Provides a list of accelerators, contests and pitch competitions around the world. https://www.f6s.com/programs

Generative AI Skills Challenge Grant – A global grant for organizations training and upskilling teams on generative AI to drive social impact. $250,000 in kind funding. Apply by 8/15/2023 – https://data.org/initiatives/ai-challenge/terms-and-conditions/

LinkedIn Ad Grant – Ad Grants program provides free LinkedIn ads to nonprofit organizations that are focused on the following areas: Racial and gender equity, Economic opportunity for professionals facing barriers and Environmental sustainability Apply by 8/9/23 – https://socialimpact.linkedin.com/nonprofits

MediaTech Pitch Day – Have you developed an MVP or have a fully-operational business that can transform the media industry in its broadest sense? If so, this chance is for you. Apply to the First Global MediaTech Pitch Day and you will have the opportunity to pitch your idea in front of investors, mediatech industry experts, and potential clients. Funding up to €1,000,000. Apply by 8/7/2023 – https://pitchday.mth-conference.de/?utm_source=astra

Pollination Project – Grants to global non-profits. Annual budget for your group or organization must be less than $50,000. The total cost for the immediate project for which you are requesting funding must be less than $40,000 – https://thepollinationproject.org/apply/

Savvy Fellowship – Savvy is a 12-week virtual Fellowship program for young professionals seeking to be part of the new generation of impact entrepreneurs. Applicants should be 40 or younger – https://savvyfellows.com/team/

She Loves Tech Global Startup Challenge – All startups must be technology-based startups and for the avoidance of doubt, technology is defined as the use of science and innovation to invent useful things or to solve problems. This extends beyond digital, information or internet-based technology and covers everything from hardware to the creation of new products and solutions to existing problems. Apply by 9/21/2023 – https://www.shelovestech.org/competition

SheTrades Accelerator – SheTrades Accelerator Programme for women entrepreneurs and business support organizations in the Apparel, Accessories and Home Décor sectors is targeting women-led businesses (WLBs) and Business Support Organizations (BSO) in the Apparel, Accessories, and Home Decor sector from Iraq, Jordan, Kenya, Lebanon, Senegal, and South Africa. – https://shetrades-accelerator.converve.io/

Social Shifters Global Innovation – The Challenge is a thrilling opportunity for young trailblazers (aged 18-30) to unleash your creativity and drive. It’s all about exploring, nurturing, and bringing to life ideas that tackle the social or environmental issues that ignite a fire within you. Funding of $10,000. Apply by 8/20/2023 – https://challenge.socialshifters.co/

Techstars Accelerators – Techstars accelerators have one goal: to help entrepreneurs succeed. During each three-month program, they surround companies (companies should be based in North American time zones) with the best mentors and an unrivaled network of corporate partners, investors, and alumni.  Companies can receive $20K for 6% of company.  Various locations and due dates – https://www.techstars.com/accelerators/

We Make Change – Global initiative that matches small businesses (mainly not for profits) with volunteers who are professional individuals or are from companies (including blue chip) that have an interest in supporting not for profits. Helps impact startups build a remote volunteer team for free volunteer help –https://www.wemakechange.org/

Western Union Foundation Fellowship with Watson Institute – The Western Union Foundation Fellowship is a venture and leadership accelerator program for entrepreneurs and community leaders from and working with highly marginalized, refugee, and forcibly displaced communities around the globe. This virtual and global program is designed to equip these next-generation entrepreneurs and leaders with the skills and experience to increase access to economic opportunity, build valuable networks and resources, and transform their communities. Funding up to $6000. Apply by 8/18/2023 – https://watson.is/western-union-foundation-fellowship/

 

OPPORTUNITIES ONLY WITHIN THE UNITED STATES

Amazon’s Black Business Accelerator – Dedicated to helping build sustainable equity and growth for Black entrepreneurs by enabling their success as sellers. Grow your business with access to financial support, strategic business guidance and mentorship, and marketing and promotional support. – https://sell.amazon.com/programs/black-business-accelerator

Antares REACH Grant Program US – Hello Alice and the Global Entrepreneurship Network (GEN), the Antares REACH Grant Program will provide $20,000 grants to small businesses, with an emphasis on businesses preparing for their next stage of growth; operated by historically underrepresented entrepreneurs; and providing important community services. Funding of $20,000.  Apply by 8/4/2023 – https://helloalice.com/grants/antares-capital/

Brookfield Properties Partner to Empower – Looking for business owners of color who are interested in opening a store within the Brookfield Properties U.S. mall portfolio, want to sign a license agreement — ideally for a minimum of two years and are available to attend the Retail Workshop, a virtual, expert-led course on all things business and brick-and-mortar retail. Apply by 8/11/23 – https://www.brookfieldproperties.com/en/our-businesses/retail/leasing/business-resources/partner-to-empower.html

Fearless Strivers Grant – Open to black women who are legal U.S. residents (including DC), 18+ and the principal owner of a U.S.-based small business. Grants for $20,000.  Apply by 8/31/2023 – https://www.fearless.fund/strivers-grant-contest

Freed Fellowship – Every month, one $500 grant is awarded to an underrepresented founder in the US to invest in their existing business. No strings attached. No equity required. Grant recipients are also eligible to receive an additional end-of-year grant of $2,500. https://www.freedfellowship.com/grant1

Google for Startups Accelerator: Black Founders – This program is open to black-led technology startups within the U.S. and Canada. The accelerator program is best suited for Seed to Series A revenue generating tech startups that are headquartered in the United States and Canada. Selected companies should have a minimum of 5+ employees and the founder and appropriate team members must be available to join all program elements of their cohort. Apply by 8/2/2023 – https://startup.google.com/accelerator/black-founders/

HerRise Micro-Grant ($10 fee to apply) – Each month a $500 micro-grant will be awarded to a for-profit small business owned by women of color. Past recipients used their growth grants for computers, equipment, marketing materials, software purchase, website creation and more. – https://www.hersuitespot.com/herrise/

Juntos Crecemos Hispanic Digital & Delivery Program (PepsiCo) – PepsiCo is inviting Latina entrepreneurs who work in food service to apply for eight weeks of personalized expert consultation, including best practices across operations, technology, marketing and digital presence. https://pepsicojuntoscrecemos.com/jefaowned/

Keep it Local Business Fund – Must be majority (51%) owned and/or operated by a person of color with less than $1MM in revenue and less than 25 employees. Grants for $5,000. Apply by 9/4/23 – https://about.nextdoor.com/nextdoor-kind-foundation/keep-it-local-business-fund/

Literacy Opportunity Fund – The Literacy Opportunity Fund is offering grants up to $6,000 to nonprofit organizations general operating expenses who provide literacy services and programs to youth in the community. Funding up to $6000. Apply by 10/1/2023 – https://www.proliteracy.org/Literacy-Opportunity-Fund

Manufacturing Hardware Accelerator at Rev: Ithaca Startup Works – The manufacturing hardware accelerator is designed for startups based anywhere in the U.S. that have already developed a fully functional prototype and identified its customer market. Hardware and physical product startups with innovations geared towards businesses or consumers that include electronics, plastics, enclosures, mechanisms, and or machines are encouraged to apply. Apply by 9/25/2023 – https://www.revithaca.com/manufacturing-hardware-accelerator/

McBride Sisters SHE CAN Fund in Food and Wine – SHE CAN Fund invests in the professional advancement and career growth of high-potential, professional women, with a particular focus on women of color. Our mission is to close the gender and race gap in leadership positions in wine & spirits, hospitality, and finance industries by providing professional development – https://www.mcbridesistersfund.org/

Microsoft TechSpark Community Engagement Fellowship Grant – Community organizations focused on creating inclusive economic opportunities will have the opportunity to apply to receive a mix of funding and contextual technical assistance through in-person and virtual support. Awarded organizations will select a member of their team to represent their organization as a TechSpark Fellow. Applicant must be US-based non-profit. Funding up to $50,000 – https://customervoice.microsoft.com/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=v4j5cvGGr0GRqy180BHbRzqG-8hAJq1BsU8sgfjznelUQUpCUkJVOTgyTThESk1RTURRR1JUSldUWSQlQCN0PWcu

MIT Solve: Truist Foundation Inspire Awards – This challenge is seeking nonprofit organizations with innovative, tech-enabled solutions that address challenges faced by small business owners. Funding for $10,000. Apply by 8/4/2023 – https://solve.mit.edu/challenges/truist-foundation-inspire-awards-year-2

Nasdaq Foundation: Quarterly Grant Program to Empower Diverse Entrepreneurs – Only open to non-profits. Grants will be given in this area to organizations and programs that impact women and under-represented communities in one or more of the following ways: Enhance financial engagement and Improve access to knowledge and tools. Funding up to $75,000.  Apply by 8/11/23 and 11/10/23 – https://www.nasdaq.com/nasdaq-foundation/grant-program

Novae Grants Database – Novae Grants database are intended for small businesses with 6-100 employees, though some are also intended for larger businesses and sole proprietor startups – https://grants.novaegrants.com/

PublishHer Grant – Business Impact Grant (BIG) program for women of color whose businesses are making a difference in the lives of others and the world. Apply by August 31, 2023. Grants for $5,000 – https://publishherpress.com/grants-for-women-business-owners/

Pure Leaf “No” Grants – “No” grants (grants are $2000 and open to US residents – concept is that women have to say “yes” to so much – what would an additional $2K enable you to say “no” to?) Winners receive the $ and access to a support community and resources through SeekHer’s Community Care Program. Funding of $2,000. Due dates are 8/31/23 and 10/31/23 – https://www.pureleaf.com/NoGrants/

Shape Your Future Small Business Awards – Tarte Cosmetics – The program will offer two tiers of funding for Black female-owned businesses with 6 awards of $25,000 and 15 awards of $10,000 each, tailored to the unique needs and sizes of the selected small businesses. Applications are supposed to open on 8/1/23 on their social media site – https://www.instagram.com/tartecosmetics/

She’s Connected Grant – AT&T – Apply or nominate your favorite woman-owned small business to become a part of the She’s Connected by AT&T community and for a chance to win $20,000 for a women-owned small business, a free year of AT&T service and devices, along with the full support of the She’s Connected by AT&T platform. Apply by 8/31/2023 – https://about.att.com/story/2023/shes-connected-contest.html

SPUR (Shared Purpose, Unlimited Reach) Pathways – Through an integrated and collaborative approach, Macy’s, Inc. and Momentus will provide access to a range of capital options from microloans to growth capital to equity investments. This represents a commitment to underrepresented businesses and aims to galvanize the retail industry to invest in the next generation of entrepreneurs – https://www.macysinc.com/purpose/spurpathways

Start Path Small Business (Mastercard) – During the 4-month program, startups will have the opportunity to leverage Mastercard’s network and subject matter expertise to uncover product partnerships, scale their companies and power solutions that drive safe, secure and simple experiences. Companies should be in one of following industries: Customer Service, Banking, Security, E-commerce, Artificial Intelligence, Payment Processing, Digital Lending, FinTech –https://developer.mastercard.com/programs/start-path-small-business/

Start Small Think Big is a nonprofit that helps small businesses with high potential and limited access to the resources needed to create thriving businesses. They partner with small business owners, providing personalized business support and building connections with local communities.  If you are interested in being considered as a “client” for free services, you can fill out this form https://partner.startsmallthinkbig.org/bofainstitute (for English) or https://partner.startsmallthinkbig.org/bofainstitute-esp (for Spanish)  They also offer free webinars (in Eng and Span).  See this link for their upcoming events: https://www.startsmallthinkbig.org/events-for-small-businesses

Startup Collective by Aveeno – The Startup Collective by Aveeno is an initiative designed to empower Black female-identifying entrepreneurs with a product, brand, or technology that meets the skin or hair care needs of Black consumers. They will be enabled to achieve business growth by providing them with access to grants, education, and resources. Funding up to $100,000. Apply by 8/13/2023 – https://www.aveeno.com/startup-collective

Summer Causality Brand Grant Canada – Grant offers both full (pro bono) and matching (partial, funding requirement of 50%) services grants to help nonprofits and good causes access branding, graphic design, creative services and web site design and development services at no or low cost. The grants are open to non profit organizations, government agencies, and educational clients in the U.S., Canada and Mexico. Apply by 8/11/2023 – https://www.causalitybrandgrant.com/

TL Effect Mentorship Program – The TL Effect is an in-house mentorship program geared towards women-of-color entrepreneurs looking to take their consumer-focused early-stage start-up to the next level. One recipient will receive a $20,000 grant – https://blog.thirdlove.com/the-tl-effect/

TRANSFORM Business Grant – The TRANSFORM Business Grant is designed to support individuals in systemically oppressed groups who demonstrate financial need. This includes, but is not limited to, BIPOC individuals, individuals who have a disability, formerly incarcerated individuals, and queer, trans, and nonbinary folks. Grants for $1,000.  Apply by 8/20/2023 – https://www.transformgrant.org/

Truist NonProfit Grant – The Truist Foundation supports nonprofits with grants that target leadership development, economic mobility, thriving communities and educational equity. Quarterly deadlines – https://www.truist.com/purpose/truist-foundation/grant-application

Vela Educaion Fund Grants – ELA supports thousands of independent operators who facilitate learning outside the traditional bounds of ‘school.’ Must be US based and serve K-12 learners or programs outside of traditional public, private, or charter schools. Funding up to $10,000. Apply by 8/11/23, 10/6/23 – https://velaedfund.org/microgrants/

Venmo Small Business Grant – Applicants must have a Venmo business profile with a business description as well as profile and background photos on their accounts. Must have less than 10 employees and less than $50,000 in revenue. Grants for $10,000. Apply by 8/7/2023 – https://venmo.com/business/small-business-grant/

Veterans Business Outreach Center – The Veterans Business Outreach Center (VBOC) program offers resources to veterans who are interested in starting or growing a small business. There are 22 locations (soon expanding to 35) and they offer workshops, training, counseling, and mentorship opportunities. – https://www.sba.gov/local-assistance/resource-partners/veterans-business-outreach-center-vboc-program

Warrior Rising Grant – Warrior Rising strives to accept and assist veterans at any point in the process of starting their own business, whether it is only a concept or if they have actual operations. Funding of $20,000 – https://www.warriorrising.org/apply/

Wish Local Empowerment Program – You must be a Black-owned business with a brick-and-mortar shop within the United States and less than 20 employees. If selected for the program, you must join Wish Local (which is free). Grants for up to $2000 – https://www.wish.com/local/empowerment

Women and Minority Business Owner Down Payment Grant (Bank of America) –  Non-repayable grant is for up to $25,000 on SBA owner occupied commercial estate loans for business locations within select opportunity zones (Atlanta, Charlotte, Chicago, Dallas and Los Angeles) Program may expand based on pilot. – https://promotions.bankofamerica.com/smallbusiness/downpaymentgrant