- \n
- Groupon and National Black Chamber of Commerce survey for National Black Business Month found nearly 80%<\/b> of Black business owners say their businesses are better off than last year<\/i><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
- \n
- Nearly three of four<\/b> Black business owners say investment in Black-owned businesses still trails white-owned businesses<\/i><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
- \n
- Groupon is helping consumers discover and patronize local, Black-owned businesses<\/i><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
CHICAGO–(BUSINESS WIRE<\/a>)–Groupon<\/a>, the go-to destination for local experiences, and the National Black Chamber of Commerce<\/a> released their second annual survey of Black small business owners in recognition of August\u2019s National Black Business Month. Groupon and the chamber spoke with 500 Black-owned small businesses<\/b> and 1,500 consumers<\/b> to gain a better understanding of how consumers’ shopping habits have forever changed since the racial reawakening that began in the United States last summer. According to the results, consumers are largely keeping their promises to spend a greater share of their wallet at Black-owned businesses, but challenges remain.<\/b><\/p>\n
This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https:\/\/www.businesswire.com\/news\/home\/20210730005478\/en\/<\/a><\/p>\n
![\"Groupon](\"https:\/\/mms.businesswire.com\/media\/20210730005478\/en\/895305\/4\/NBBM_infographic_%283%29.jpg\")
<\/p>\nGroupon and the National Black Chamber of Commerce spoke with 500 Black-owned small businesses and 1,500 consumers to gain a better understanding of how consumers’ shopping habits have forever changed since the racial reawakening that began in the United States last summer. (Graphic: Business Wire)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\nNearly 80%<\/b> of Black business owners said their businesses were better off than they were last year at this time and nearly 60%<\/b> said their business is as good or better than it was prior to the pandemic. Seven out of 10<\/b> consumers said that they actively sought out opportunities to shop at Black-owned businesses and an equal number plan to continue to do so long term. Nearly 70%<\/b> of consumers also said they find it helpful when a business identifies as Black-owned and approximately 60%<\/b> said they would be willing to pay more if they knew a small business was Black-owned.\n<\/p>\n
More than half<\/b> of all Black business owners said that while there\u2019s more attention on the concerns and needs of businesses owned by people of color, the overall environment is still quite challenging. Roughly three out of four<\/b> Black business owners said capital investment still lags in comparison to their white counterparts. In fact, gaining access to capital investment was the number one concern among the businesses surveyed. Their ability to tap into government resources, recover from the pandemic, build a support network and hire enough staff, were the other top concerns cited. <\/b>Ultimately, black business owners indicated that the system that sets them up for success or failure still has a long way to go and more than 75%<\/b> of those surveyed feel as though they\u2019re held to a different standard, which makes launching and growing a business as an entrepreneur even harder.\n<\/p>\n
\n\u201cGroupon recognizes the importance of being a brand that lives by its values, taking a stand for what\u2019s right and leveraging our influence to drive positive change within our communities,\u201d said Aaron Cooper, Interim CEO, Groupon. \u201cEvery merchant has worked hard to build a business that they can be proud of, and it\u2019s important for us to understand the systemic barriers and biases that exist for marginalized communities. As a company, we\u2019re committed to highlighting and championing Black-owned businesses and connecting them to our diverse customer base. While we\u2019re making progress, we recognize that we have more work to do.\u201d\n<\/p>\n
\nGroupon is taking action in August and throughout the year to translate its support for Black-owned businesses into meaningful action:\n<\/p>\n
- \n
- \nThe company has curated a collection<\/a> of hundreds of Black-owned businesses across the United States and will be featuring these merchants across Groupon\u2019s mobile, online and social channels throughout the month of August. In 2020, Groupon saw searches for \u201cBlack-owned\u201d increase nearly 400%<\/b> for the full-year vs. 2019. During Groupon\u2019s 2020 Black Business Month campaign, units sold for businesses that identified as Black-owned and participated in the month-long event increased 44%<\/b> compared to the previous month. To find Black-owned businesses that you can support in your community, please visit gr.pn\/celebrate<\/a>. <\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
- \n
- \nIn addition, the company has partnered with Kiva.org<\/a>\u2013\u2013a renowned crowdfunding platform\u2013\u2013to raise funds<\/a> from consumers to support a Black-owned business fund that will help create opportunity and unlock investment capital for Black merchants across the U.S.\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
- \n
- \nGroupon is also working with the National Black Chamber of Commerce to offer an online marketing and technology education session at the Illinois Chamber\u2019s annual convention in September. The Groupon and chamber survey of Black-owned businesses identified social media, lack of a digital\/online presence, consumer awareness, upfront costs and foot traffic as their biggest marketing challenges.<\/b> Experts from Groupon will consult with business owners who are attending the convention.\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
- \n
- \nOn Aug. 22, Groupon is partnering with The Black Women\u2019s Expo – BWE Next<\/a><\/b>to feature 10 Groupon merchants as exhibitors. Each Black-owned business will have their own booth in the expo\u2019s marketplace and Groupon will help promote and advertise their presence. Groupon will also have its own booth at the expo to help the company recruit diverse applicants from the estimated 30,000 attendees.\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
- \n
- \nFinally, to help bring more attention to the disparities Black entrepreneurs face and resources available to help their businesses succeed, Groupon is joining forces with the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO) to host a virtual panel discussion: Building Back Better: Charting Economic Recovery for the Black Business Community & Crafting the Roadmap for Access to Capital for Black Entrepreneurs. The discussion will take place on Aug. 25, 2021 at 10:00 a.m. CDT and will bring together a national audience of business, government and community leaders. For more information about the Groupon and Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity virtual panels, please visit gr.pn\/webinar<\/a>.\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
\n\u201cOver the past year we\u2019ve made progress drawing attention to the needs and concerns of Black-owned businesses, but we know that we must do even better,\u201d said Larry Ivory, chairman of the National Black Chamber of Commerce and president and CEO of the Illinois State Black Chamber of Commerce. \u201cWe\u2019re grateful to companies like Groupon that are willing to listen to the concerns of our community and heed their responsibility to do more. By working together, we can help level the playing field for small Black-owned businesses, and we\u2019re excited for Groupon to provide actionable and useful insights to our members.\u201d\n<\/p>\n
About the National Black Chamber of Commerce
\n
<\/b>The National Black Chamber of Commerce\u00ae was incorporated in Washington, DC in March 1993. The NBCC is a nonprofit, nonpartisan, nonsectarian organization dedicated to the economic empowerment of African American communities. In essence, the NBCC is on the leading edge of educating and training Black communities on the need to participate vigorously in this great capitalistic society known as America. The NBCC reaches 100,000 Black owned businesses. There are 2.6 million Black-owned businesses in the United States. Black businesses account for over $138 billion in revenue each year according to the US Bureau of Census. The National Black Chamber of Commerce\u00ae is dedicated to economically empowering and sustaining African American communities through entrepreneurship and capitalistic activity within the United States.\n<\/p>\nAbout Groupon
\n
<\/b>Groupon<\/a> (NASDAQ: GRPN) is an experiences marketplace where consumers discover fun things to do and local businesses thrive. For our customers, this means giving them an amazing selection of experiences at great values. For our merchants, this means making it easy for them to partner with Groupon and reach millions of consumers around the world.\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
View source version on businesswire.com: <\/span>https:\/\/www.businesswire.com\/news\/home\/20210730005478\/en\/<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n
\nGroupon
\n
Nick Halliwell
\n
nhalliwell@groupon.com<\/a><\/p>\nFor more media assets, please visit here<\/a>.<\/i><\/p>\n
KEYWORDS:<\/b> United States North America Illinois<\/p>\n
INDUSTRY KEYWORDS:<\/b> Professional Services Online Retail Retail Consumer Small Business Women<\/p>\n
- \nFinally, to help bring more attention to the disparities Black entrepreneurs face and resources available to help their businesses succeed, Groupon is joining forces with the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO) to host a virtual panel discussion: Building Back Better: Charting Economic Recovery for the Black Business Community & Crafting the Roadmap for Access to Capital for Black Entrepreneurs. The discussion will take place on Aug. 25, 2021 at 10:00 a.m. CDT and will bring together a national audience of business, government and community leaders. For more information about the Groupon and Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity virtual panels, please visit gr.pn\/webinar<\/a>.\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
- \nOn Aug. 22, Groupon is partnering with The Black Women\u2019s Expo – BWE Next<\/a><\/b>to feature 10 Groupon merchants as exhibitors. Each Black-owned business will have their own booth in the expo\u2019s marketplace and Groupon will help promote and advertise their presence. Groupon will also have its own booth at the expo to help the company recruit diverse applicants from the estimated 30,000 attendees.\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
- \nGroupon is also working with the National Black Chamber of Commerce to offer an online marketing and technology education session at the Illinois Chamber\u2019s annual convention in September. The Groupon and chamber survey of Black-owned businesses identified social media, lack of a digital\/online presence, consumer awareness, upfront costs and foot traffic as their biggest marketing challenges.<\/b> Experts from Groupon will consult with business owners who are attending the convention.\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
- \nIn addition, the company has partnered with Kiva.org<\/a>\u2013\u2013a renowned crowdfunding platform\u2013\u2013to raise funds<\/a> from consumers to support a Black-owned business fund that will help create opportunity and unlock investment capital for Black merchants across the U.S.\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
- \nThe company has curated a collection<\/a> of hundreds of Black-owned businesses across the United States and will be featuring these merchants across Groupon\u2019s mobile, online and social channels throughout the month of August. In 2020, Groupon saw searches for \u201cBlack-owned\u201d increase nearly 400%<\/b> for the full-year vs. 2019. During Groupon\u2019s 2020 Black Business Month campaign, units sold for businesses that identified as Black-owned and participated in the month-long event increased 44%<\/b> compared to the previous month. To find Black-owned businesses that you can support in your community, please visit gr.pn\/celebrate<\/a>. <\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
- Groupon is helping consumers discover and patronize local, Black-owned businesses<\/i><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
- Nearly three of four<\/b> Black business owners say investment in Black-owned businesses still trails white-owned businesses<\/i><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
![\"Photo\"](\"https:\/\/mms.businesswire.com\/media\/20210730005478\/en\/895305\/3\/NBBM_infographic_%283%29.jpg\")
<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n![\"Logo\"](\"https:\/\/mms.businesswire.com\/media\/20210730005478\/en\/1162216\/3\/Groupon_Logo.jpg\"){kind=logo}
<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n