A CHICAGO WOMAN WANTS TO BRING BRICK-ANDMORTAR AFFORDABLE PRODUCE MARKET TO AUSTIN

Liz Abunaw, owner of Forty Acres Fresh Market, was awarded $50,000 as part of the Famous Amos Ingredients for Success program. Photo provided by Flowers Communications Group.
Liz Abunaw, owner of Forty Acres Fresh Market, was awarded $50,000 as part of the Famous Amos Ingredients for Success program. Photo provided by Flowers Communications Group.

 A Chicago woman wants to bring brick-and-mortar affordable
produce market to Austin

By Tia Carol Jones

“There are two very different cities going on, depending on where you live,” Abunaw said about the experience.

Once she was aware of the issue, she came up with Forty Acres Fresh Market as a solution. In 2018, Abunaw launched the first fresh fruit and vegetable pop up market. Now, she wants to open a brick-and-mortar grocery store, with the goal of selling high-quality fresh produce in underserved, food deserts.

Abunaw is one of three business owners who won $50,000 as part of the Famous Amos Ingredients for Success Entrepreneurs Initiative. The program assists Black business owners with capital and coaching resources. Participants receive mentoring, coaching, resources and tools from the National Black Chamber of Commerce.

There were more than 3,200 business owners who participated
in the pitch contest. To be eligible the business had to be a minimum of 90% Black owned and in operation for five years or less.

The initiative is named for Wally Amos, owner of Famous Amos, who opened his bakery in California in the mid 1970s. Now, Famous Amos is owned by The Ferrero Group.

Abunaw applied for the Ingredients for the Success Entrepreneurs Initaiative because the $50,000 is a significant amount of funding with the ability to make a very large impact on her business. Abunaw had applied for the grant previously but wasn’t selected as a finalist that time. This time, Abunaw refined the reason why she wanted the money, and she believes that made the difference this time. “To get it
on the second try, it feels very affirming that we were able to
make a compelling pitch for our business,” she said.

Abunaw believes letting the entrepreneurs decide how to use the funding is what makes the Famous Amos Ingredients for Success Entrepreneurs Initiative so unique. She wants to use the funding for the expenses that are difficult to find access for capital to. With some other local grants, they are assigned to capital construction projects. Things like salaries, inventory or marketing aren’t included in some of those grants.

“For this grant, it’s not just about getting the store built, we have to get it operational. We’re going to use this funding toward the operational expenses of the store opening, like inventory, employee training and marketing,” Abunaw said. “It’s not just about the funding … A lot of Black owned businesses are super small, you can’t know everything, you can’t do everything, so being able to tap into a network and resources that can help you with everything, is really important.”Until the Forty Acres Fresh Market is able to construct
and open its brick-and-mortar grocery store, Abunaw is at the
Austin Town Hall City Market on Thursdays. Delivery of fresh fruits and produce also is available on the website.

For more information about the Forty Acres Fresh Market, visit www.fortyacresfreshmarket.com, email info@ fortyacresfreshmarket.com, or call 847-497-5435.

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