$100,000 grant aims to economically empower KC’s Black community. How to apply
Kansas City Generating Income For Tomorrow (G.I.F.T.) program provides grants to Black-owned businesses in Kansas City’s urban core.
The program, which fosters economic power in the city’s Black community, is now accepting applications for its $100,000 grant, its largest one yet. The application period, however, closes soon.
“The 100k grant is designed to take an existing business and create an opportunity for expansion, growth, and the chance to become a significant employer,” said Karis Harrington, Chief Operating Officer of G.I.F.T.
The eligibility criteria include: must be at least 51% Black-owned; must be located in Kansas City, MO, must have been generating revenue for at least 1 year, must have annual revenue of at least $100k, must employ at least two full-time employees, and must provide a statement of financial activity and if available, tax return information.
The grant application deadline is July 8 and can be found here.
Helping Black business owners in Kansas City
To ensure the grant money is used effectively, G.I.F.T. teaches business owners to understand how to build a business with great policy and forethought for sustainability, said Harrington. The grant money includes monthly sessions with a business coach and the G.I.F.T. CEO, access to legal and accounting services, and more.
“We change what we can change, and we support in ways that are tangible and effective,” said Harrington.
The grant program, launched in May 2020, aims to foster economic empowerment within Kansas City’s Black community, focusing on historically underserved and economically disadvantaged areas. Economic empowerment, for G.I.F.T., means stimulating business growth, increasing revenue, and fostering local job creation.
“The way to do that is to stabilize and fertilize a community so that they have what they need, that businesses are thriving and that jobs are created,” Harrington said. “We also know that it takes this very continual, consistent effort.”
Organizational impact of G.I.F.T grants
Last year, the program awarded 63 businesses a total of $1,237,000 in grants. On average, grant recipients experienced revenue growth of 254%, according to its website.
Previously, G.I.F.T. offered two types of grants: growth grants of $25,000 & $50,000 for business expansion, and startup grants of $10,000 for new enterprises. G.I.F.T. announced its $100k grant in May.
“In my wildest dreams, what goes on in my head, I did want that to become a reality, but we just did not know when we would be able to do it or what that would look like, but we are super, super excited about it now,” said Harrington.
The impact of the grants goes further than just business. It plays a role in bridging the racial wealth gap, reducing poverty-related crime, and reversing the effects of systemic racism by ensuring more equitable economic opportunities, she said.
“We want to make sure people are able to leave those multi-generational businesses like other communities do, and a lot of times we are hampered from doing that because we don’t have the resources to aid us in sustainability,” she said.
KC was 5th most hyper-segregated city in the US
When the organization started, Kansas City was the fifth most hyper-segregated city in the country, said Harrington. With white neighborhoods in the west and poorer minority communities towards the east, the city’s dividing line is Troost Avenue.
“That’s a big sentence for a smaller city,” she said. “Our goal for Kansas City is to have an inclusive environment where everyone can thrive, a place where people can have access to the resources that they need without any barriers.”
These barriers could be the lack of education, systemic racism-based trauma, or more, said Harrington.
“Our mission includes making sure that we go right back to those corners, right back to those storefronts, right back to those business owners or potentials with ideas, and we help them to shape those ideas and create them into businesses that are thriving,” she said.
The vision for the city includes diverse successful businesses, and to make this a reality, the organization is focused on areas where divestment previously happened, said Harrington.
“We’re going back to those areas that got the least amount of resources and trying to flood those areas with capital so that they can help stabilize themselves, but then continue to support them along the way,” she said.
While the businesses they serve may not be attractive to bankers because of their location or other factors, they’re determined to support them fully and wholeheartedly.
Harrington wants to see other organizations help bring their vision for the city to life, said Harrington.
“We all have a great Kansas City in our head, and I think that’s one way to bring that realization to life,” she said.
