In honor of Black History Month, 3C invited Aerica Banks, the Founder and Principal of Shiso LLC, to host a panel discussion on Black small business owners’ personal journeys in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The panel featured Mimi Striplin of The Tiny Tassel and Shennice Cleckley of Smart Cookie Coaching. The discussion centered around the struggles and rewards of being minority business owners and the responsibilities that come with success:
The webcast featured findings from 3C’s 2020 Digitally Driven Report, which indicated that Black small business owners reported the highest positive relationship to digital tools across several metrics regardless of receiving less federal small business funding and PPP loans throughout the pandemic.
For each of our panelists, the COVID-19 pandemic provided unexpected challenges – however, the pandemic also presented opportunities to step back and reevaluate their business priorities, including investing in and leveraging effective, affordable digital tools. Shennice reintroduced digital skills training into her coaching curriculum; for Mimi, this looked like shifting priority towards The Tiny Tassel’s digital marketing efforts:
All of our panelists shared the hope that America keeps seeing and intentionally supporting and sponsoring minority-owned businesses. As Shennice Cleckley stated,
“It is my hope that America will see business and in general with race, that we are better as a mosaic instead of a melting pot because in a mosaic you keep your individual shape and piece. But when you step back you see a whole beautiful picture.”
Interested in hearing of this conversation? Click here to watch the webcast today.
