Backing BIPOC Businesses in Canada with Amex
Backing BIPOC Businesses in Canada with Amex https://northstrategic.com/wp-content/uploads/AMEX_BluePrint_0033.png 1024 683 Jonathan Forani https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/0224c5ae9357da0ca0dcbe96be87c430?s=96&d=mm&r=gBy Deanna Natalizio, Senior Account Manager
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As a PR agency, we have the privilege of working with clients daily on a range of innovative, thought-provoking campaigns. As most agency folks can attest, there’s no greater feeling than witnessing the final product cross the finish line.
When a campaign has been purposefully designed to create positive change, it makes that end-of-campaign feeling of fulfillment even sweeter, right? And when a client’s values mirror those of the agency? Nothing better. This was the case with a project we launched with Amex Canada.
In 2020, Amex enlisted our help with creating a mentorship and grant program designed to support the advancement of BIPOC-owned businesses in Canada. BIPOC stands for “Black, Indigenous, and people of color,” a group experiencing unprecedented challenges due to the pandemic. A first for both North and Amex, we immediately got to work on sourcing a skilled partner to provide program infrastructure support, designing a robust go-to-market plan, and engaging community organizations to help guide and validate the program’s value.
In June of 2021, we launched year one of Blueprint: Backing BIPOC Businesses™, powered by the DMZ, a world-leading business incubator.
A boost for BIPOC-owned businesses in Canada
The program gave 100 business owners in the BIPOC community across Canada access to 15 weeks of comprehensive mentorship and training, in addition to $1,000,000 in grants, with each receiving $10,000 to fuel their business. To help us make a big splash, we leveraged the profile of star basketball player and business owner Fred VanVleet (pictured above).
When applications for year one of the program surpassed 1,000, we couldn’t help but reflect on the proven need for a program of this kind, designed to support a community of entrepreneurs who experienced barriers to growth at a rate much higher than their white counterparts. First-year program positioning was informed by the results of an Amex-commissioned survey into the experiences of Black entrepreneurs, Indigenous entrepreneurs, and other people of colour who own a business. We found that 53 per cent of BIPOC respondents described the barriers they face as “significant” compared to 37 per cent of white business owners.
Mentorship and funding to start a business
To get a clear sense of the program’s impact, we surveyed the 100 program participants following the end of the 15-week mentorship component. Close to 95 per cent of companies reported that Blueprint was “significant or vital” to their business success in the past year. Nearly one in three companies introduced new products, services, or offerings over the course of the program, and testimonials from recipients included phrases such as “a light at the end of the tunnel” and a “great source of encouragement, experience, and knowledge.”
It’s why we are so thrilled to launch year two of the Blueprint program. This year, an all-new cohort of 100 BIPOC entrepreneurs will be introduced to the 15 weeks of mentorship and $1,000,000 in grants. This year’s cohort will also benefit from even more tailored programming from industry-specific mentors. Our launch plan includes the return of Fred VanVleet as program spokesperson, featured across campaign creative, social, and earned media, and an influencer campaign featuring fellow BIPOC entrepreneurs, to rally and engage the community.
At North, we share a similar commitment to advancing diversity and inclusion and believe that real progress requires meaningful corporate action. Our efforts to ensure a more diverse and equitable world go beyond client work, such as with our collaboration with Humber College on scholarship funding for BIPOC students. Having the opportunity to work on projects that enable us to live out our own values while flexing our passion for PR is not only a privilege, but an honour. When these special projects arise, our work at North becomes the truest labour of love. Our collaboration on the Amex Blueprint program to date has been just that.
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