NEW YORK – Forbes announces the launch of The State of Black Entrepreneurship, an ongoing project that aims to accurately define, rectify, and create Black history.
Driven by For(bes) The Culture, the world’s preeminent community for Black and Brown professionals, The State of Black Entrepreneurship incorporates historical research that will unveil decades of forgotten and omitted Black business successes. The platform will also draw from quantitative data and original multimedia storytelling to illustrate how Black entrepreneurship stands across industries today, and where it’s headed.
Key components of the State of Black Entrepreneurship include:
CultureX: The Forgotten, a series spotlighting decades of forgotten and omitted Black business successes through in-depth profiles of Black business titans from history.
The inaugural Culture X: The Forgotten profile spotlights Joseph Lee, one of Boston’s most successful hospitality entrepreneurs in the 1890s-1900s and the inventor of two machines that revolutionized breadmaking. Each profile will be printed alongside retro Forbes cover designs as if they had been celebrated back in the time compared to their contemporaries.
A Barometer Check on Black Entrepreneurship, which will highlight anecdotal testimonies from business leaders across industries, getting their personal takes on the state of Black entrepreneurship. The first Barometer check will be released in April. To accompany these checks, For(bes) The Culture will also power a State of Black Entrepreneurship Survey and will reveal the results at the end of the year.
For(bes) The Culture is a network for elite leaders of color who are breaking down barriers and impacting culture globally to connect, collaborate, and change. To further its mission of amplifying and accelerating Black entrepreneurs and businesses, and creating equitable pathways, in February the platform held its inaugural For(bes) The Culture Culturally Accountable Summit, in which an incredible roster of speakers discussed the best strategies to foster a productive year ahead for Black and Brown professionals, from lessons in wellness, best practices and workplace negotiations to vision board masterclasses.
“The contribution of Black Americans to business and entrepreneurship has often been forgotten from history, but so many of the products we use every day were dreamed up and brought to life by entrepreneurs of color,” said Brianne Garrett, Editorial Lead for For(bes) The Culture. “The State of Black Entrepreneurship is a vital part of For(bes) the Culture’s mission to create equitable pathways for Black and Brown professionals and entrepreneurs today, and exemplifies how we’re using our platform to compel change as the world builds back in 2021.”
“Black History is American History, and together with our community of trailblazers, we will change the narrative of Black business and entrepreneurship in the past, present, and future, said Rashaad Lambert, Founder of For(bes) The Culture.”
To learn more about For(bes) The Culture and The State of Black Entrepreneurship, visit: The State of Black Entrepreneurship.
