Starbucks Community Resilience Fund intends to support businesses and community development projects in ethnic minority neighbourhoods across 12 major US cities
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Photo credit: Starbucks
Starbucks has committed $100m to support small businesses and community development projects among Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC) neighbourhoods. In a press release, the world’s largest coffee chain said it intended to allocate the funds to communities in Atlanta, Detroit, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, Minneapolis, New Orleans, New York City, Philadelphia, San Francisco Bay Area, Seattle and Washington D.C. by 2025.
In partnership with community leaders, Community Development Finance Institutions (CDFIs) and other impact-focused financial institutions, the fund will help provide access to capital intended to support small businesses and neighbourhood projects, including those addressing the inequitable impacts of climate change.
As part of the initiative, Starbucks said it will work with partners such as the Opportunity Finance Network (OFN) to allocate funds to local CDFIs that will provide borrowers with access to capital, on-going mentorship and technical assistance.
“Starbucks is investing in the survival of small business by working with CDFIs in key cities across America. CDFIs deliver affordable credit as well as training on disaster recovery and rebuilding – and that is exactly what small businesses need right now to withstand ongoing economic and climate changes,” said OFN President and CEO, Lisa Mensah.
The effort expands on Starbucks 2019 commitment to invest $10m in four Chicago-based CDFIs: Accion Chicago, Chicago Community Loan Fund (CCLF), IFF and Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC).