Successfully Starting and Growing Black Businesses

Abstract

This chapter helps define the state of Black entrepreneurship in the United States using knowledge from business, management, entrepreneurship, sociology, and economic literature. Challenges and opportunities are laid out for Black entrepreneurs to aid their success in starting and growing new businesses particularly in a post-pandemic world. Nuanced differences in Black business formalization, social networks, entrepreneurial financing, opportunity recognition, strategic planning, STEM foundation, and customer discovery and validation processes are each addressed in how they can help improve Black entrepreneurship and business ownership outcomes. Seven specific recommendations are provided and explained along with a checklist to aid primarily Black entrepreneurs to start and grow their new businesses. The chapter content can serve as a foundation for undergraduate and master's degree program Black entrepreneurship courses, and along with its reading list, as a doctoral seminar course on Black entrepreneurship.