$3 MILLION PROGRAM FOCUSES ON AFRICAN AMERICAN ENTREPRENEURS

Chicago Neighborhood Initiative Micro Finance Group has partnered with Matt Forte’s What’s Your Forte Foundation to create “Your Forte, Our Finance” to provide African-American entrepreneurs with financial and educational resources. Photo courtesy of Matt Forte
Chicago Neighborhood Initiative Micro Finance Group has partnered with Matt Forte’s What’s Your Forte Foundation to create “Your Forte, Our Finance” to provide African-American entrepreneurs with financial and educational resources. Photo courtesy of Matt Forte

$3 million program focuses on African American entrepreneurs

BY TIA CAROL JONES
     Retired Chicago Bears player Matt Forte’s What’s Your Forte Foundation and Chicago Neighborhood Initiatives Micro Finance Group have come together to create a new program that will focus on African American entrepreneurs.
      The “Your Forte, Our Finances” program will provide $3 million in the form of loans, grants and educational resources, with the goal to invest, grow and build underserved communities on Chicago’s South and West sides.
      Chicago Neighborhood Initiatives Micro Finance Group (CNIMFG) throughout the last eight years has provided capital to 167 businesses. And, the average loan is a little more than $21,000. What’s Your Forte Foundation was founded by Forte and his wife, Danielle, to provide resources and programs as a way to empower young people.
     Erica King, founder and president of Chicago Neighborhood Initiatives Micro Finance Group, said small businesses aren’t aware that CNIMFG is an option for financial resources. She said she hopes that the partnership will bring more visibility to the organization.
       “So that folk can know about the wonderful resources that we have to offer to empower small businesses, having Matt’s network and his visibility and his exposure will amplify that message, so we can really attract Chicago area businesses to our organization,” she said.
      Forte said it was a perfect partnership because it is hard for people from low-income neighborhoods and underserved communities to find capital to start their businesses, expand their businesses or continue their entrepreneurship endeavors.
     “This is an amazing tool to be able to help those people out and they (CNIMFG) have been doing this work for years. With the platform I have and having played with the NFL and people love the Chicago Bears, to be able to use that platform for something that’s good, was definitely a no-brainer and something that was a pleasure of mine to do along with my foundation,” he said.
     Forte said the What’s Your Foundation organization looks to do outreach in many different ways and this is a new way to reach people. He said it is really important right now as businesses, including small businesses - because of the pandemic, continue to struggle.
     King said the missions of both organizations are in perfect alignment with each other. And, that Forte is very much concerned with economic development, as is CNIMFG, so it made sense to team up. She added, businesses always need access to capital in order to start.
       King pointed out that it’s businesses which drive our economy and keep us all going. At every level, in all that we do, she said there’s a small business behind the scenes “doing what they do.” King continued: “They’re also working to empower and employ folk from the communities that they’re serving and that’s a really important driver for us,” she said.
       King added the work CNIMFG does to provide resources to small business owners and entrepreneurs for them to start is a really important part of what the organization does. She said that work is even more impactful because it assists businesses in underserved communities.
      Forte said the program will also create sustainable jobs in those underserved and low-income communities. “To be able to provide capital in a way that’s not a predatory loan or actually, just to provide the capital, because most of them get denied capital - so, it’s a huge step in the right direction of building up our communities that are underserved. That is beneficial,” he said.
     Entrepreneurs and small business owners who are interested in applying to the program can email loans@cnimfg.org.

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