Effort underway in Columbus to help minority women have opportunities as entrepreneurs

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) -- Columbus is investing tens of thousands of dollars to support an event that will connect underserved entrepreneurs, primarily Black and Brown women, to high-growth industry opportunities.

The Women's Center for Economic Opportunity provides women of color with access to the tools needed to start a business. The center says that it seeks to help clients create generational wealth and a legacy of economic opportunity, with the goal of advancing economic equity, inclusion, and justice.

At a recent meeting, Columbus City Council approved a $50,000 grant for the center. It will go toward Advancing Innovation Momentum Bootcamps, which will connect people with support like business planning and network-building consultations.

Councilmember Lourdes Barroso de Padilla said the camps will help small business owners take another step.

"The boot camp really shows them, how do you take that business to the next level?" Barroso de Padilla said.

The camps will be the first of their kind held by the Women's Center for Economic Opportunity, according to Barroso de Padilla. However, she said the center has had other programming funded by the city and that the boot camps will be an expansion of what the center can do.

"This is understanding that the center could be doing much more for women," Barroso de Padilla said. "And what are the other opportunities that they could provide for them, knowing that now they kind of have a brand and they have a following."

The center and its boot camps are aimed primarily at women of color.

"We already know there's a pay gap that exists for women and people of color," Barroso de Padilla said. "We put forward pay equity to begin to close and narrow that pay gap for folks in the city of Columbus. This is just another effort to understand that, again, for our small businesses that are women-owned, that are minority-owned, that they might have some challenges."

Challenges that Barroso de Padilla said teaching these communities to build wealth and break generations of poverty is an important step toward supporting the prosperity of women and families.

"We know that big businesses will come in," Barroso de Padilla said. "But then how are we ensuring that our small businesses are really flourishing?"

The city recently launched Council Academy, which helps people understand how to navigate Columbus. Most recently, it gave info on how to become a vendor within the city.