Local chambers collaborate to highlight diverse businesses
ROYAL OAK — Several Detroit-area chambers of commerce and business organizations came together July 25 to highlight small businesses led by minorities, women and veterans.
Published August 10, 2023
“I think the barriers are a difference in perception and the lack of confidence or connections among these groups,” added Buddy. “They don’t have the cousin, the uncle, or the friend that is already a successful business owner and willing to take them under their wing.”
Grant said that while resources like the expo are becoming more common, they are still not regularly offered in a lot of areas.
“I still think resources like this are still a rarity,” he remarked. “I think they are kind of building and becoming more common. I think it represents some changes going on. Like at our business, African American art is the fastest growing segment in the art world right now. It’s sort of like, at museums, you only see African American art taking up about 1% or 2% of their collections, but that percentage is increasing just about everywhere.”
Johnson said he was happy to see veteran-owned businesses included, since veterans can face setbacks after leaving the service.
“I wouldn’t say there are extra hurdles that veterans have to face, but many are starting their businesses later in life, since they are only doing that after they leave the service,” he said. “They might be starting with less capital.”
Buddy stressed the importance of networking and connecting with other businesses when starting a new enterprise.
“We do anywhere between three and 10 networking events a week,” she said. “We just opened in November. That means that the name of the game for us right now is shouting from the rooftops about who we are and what we do. We even host some networking events.”
Holtyn added that supporting local businesses is a crucial priority for communities, since it helps local people in a variety of ways.
“Supporting local and small businesses not only helps the local community by putting money back into the community and employing local people, but it also helps us help the local community. Our mission is to remove junk and help communities, for instance. We contribute to programs that help veterans get on their feet and hire veterans, so it’s all connected.”
