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Message from the President/Chair
I am truly excited to serve as your newly elected Chairperson/President of the East AL Black Chamber of Commerce!
I am also thankful to our immediate past Chairperson/President, Ms. Christine Berry for her leadership and dedicated service in moving the Black Chamber forward.
We have an AWESOME organization with limitless potential to promote and strengthen and lift our Black-owned business across the five (5) counties we serve.
We are seeing unprecedented times in our nation and now more than ever our communities need strong and healthy and sustainable small business owners. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that 20% of small businesses fail by the first year, 30% by the second, 50% by the firth, and 70% by the 10 th year. These are not good numbers. However, according to a Bloomberg report, approximately 80% of Black-owned businesses fail within the first 18 months.
Our goal is to greatly improve these numbers for Black-owned businesses in Bullock, Chambers, Lee, Macon, and Russell counties. We have already enjoyed and benefited from an incredible year of programming, from Tax Strategies to Business Insurance, to Cybersecurity, to Estate Planning and so much more.
I am also excited to share the Black Chamber has received an overwhelming amount of support from the mayors across our counties. Why? These men and women understand that strong Black-owned businesses mean stronger financial security for individuals and families who will use their stable buying power to improve the overall economic outlook for all businesses in the communities the Black Chamber serves. The bottom line here is that the East AL Black Chamber of Commerce serves the best interests of all businesses and all citizens in our communities.
However, we have work to do. There are too many Black-owned business owners who do not know each other. A focal point for the Black Chamber this year is to facilitate greater awareness and collaboration with each other. We need to build working relationships with one another; where we can learn from one another and grow through those relationships. I believe we can do it!
We just need your help and your commitment and your willingness to JOIN US! Help us make this Black Chamber something beautiful that pours a long and lasting legacy of inspiration and entrepreneurial activity into our communities.
May God bless us as we move forward.
Sincerely,
JArthur Grubbs, Jr.
Chairperson/President, East AL Black Chamber of Commerce
