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New Voice Fund Grants for Black Business [How to Apply]

The New Voice Fund Grant is a $100 million funding initiative set in place by SheaMoisture haircare and skincare products founder Richelieu Dennis. The fund is tailored toward women business owners of color. The financial support was founded to help close the financial shortfall among female business owners.

Black women’s entrepreneurship is rapidly increasing. Women of color-owned enterprises might have a huge influence on our economy, societies, and households if they had equivalent access to funding, knowledge, and channels. These business owners have a great deal of potential, but they often don’t have direct exposure to the tools they need to develop.

New Voices Foundation, founded in 2018, is fulfilling its commitment to assist women of color in building, growing, and scaling their enterprises while also creating a more integrated venture creation ecosystem.

The New Voices Foundation, a 501©(3) agency, is committed to providing these business owners with versatile funding, teaching, and collaboration possibilities through pitch contests, mobile business incubators, mentoring programs, online master classes, and communications outreach through social media, publications, and other streams.

New Voices provides direct financial assistance to women of color via pitch contests and grant initiatives every year. Every contest awards $100,000 in cash grants spanning from $5,000 to $25,000, as well as post-competition training, mentorships, and highly customized skills training.

To date, the Foundation has committed over $2.02 million in non-dilutive capital and paired assistance cash in women-owned businesses, sponsored eighteen pitch contests for upwards of 200 women at EssenceFest, CES, as well as other foremost national and regional anchor occasions, offered large numbers of training and peer support hours, and linked people to purposeful networking and collaboration prospects.

Eligibility Requirements for New Voice Fund Grants for Black Business

In order to qualify for this grant, you would have to meet the following requirements:

  • Be an incorporated company for at minimum three months
  • A Black woman should own a majority of the company
  • Would like to seek investor funding to expand, either now or in the future.
  • The company is headquartered in the United States
  • A minimum of one (1) employee is required.
  • The owner of a business should be at least 25 years old.
  • Should have customer traction and market confirmation evidence

How to Apply For The New Voice Fund Grant in the United States

The New Voice Fund Grants were designed to confront the financing gaps for black female-owned businesses. The following are the steps for applying for this grant:

  1. Check to see if you qualify

There are necessary questions you need to ask before submitting a proposal. For instance, does your business meet the criteria to receive funding from the New Voice Fund? Below are certain actions to consider taking.

  • Examine your strategic/business and financial plans to determine future plans.
  • Ascertain which initiatives require grant funding, why, and how much.
  • Do you have a new initiative in the works? Considering investing in an existing endeavor?
  • Which projects are most critical in resolving a major problem?
  • Which are you ready to start/extend/continue right now?
  1. Gather Necessary Documents

You will indeed be required to submit specific business documents, and you must collect them before the grant deadline. You will almost always need the following information:

  • Your given name and pronouns
  • The email address
  • The name of your company
  • Your company’s website URL or a brief description of your company.
  • IRS Determination Letter
  • List of Board of Directors (names and their affiliations)
  • IRS 990 Tax Form
  • Audited Financial Statements or an Audit Review (if you have them)
  • Budget for Operations (for your current fiscal year)
  • Budget to Actual or Year-End Financial Statement (that compares your actual budget figures to your projected budget for that year)

Operational Plan, Messages of Recommendation, Staff Resumes and/or Profiles of Top Personnel, Memorandum of Understanding (if working with other organizations), and Vendor Quotes are all items you should prepare because financial backers may require them.

  1. Visit the Grant Website

To fill out the application, go to the grant website. You can begin the application process once you have concluded all the previous steps. Before uploading your grant application, arrange it and have it evaluated by a friend or fellow entrepreneur. Keep deadlines in mind—you don’t want to apply at the last minute.

Conclusion

Black women business owners have a great chance of succeeding in business, but they regularly lack the tools they require to thrive.

As a result, New Voices offers them unlimited access, investment, and competence through Pitch Contests, Mobile Business incubators, Training and Mentorship for pitch finalists and other members of the New Voices community, Brokered Grants, Online Learning and Skills Development Opportunities, and Ongoing Communications Outreach through social media, newsletters, and other streams.