NEW YORK, May 30, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The National Minority Supplier Development Council (NMSDC) and Founders First Capital Partners are partnering to develop a series of on-demand video modules through Founders First Capital Partner’s Passport for Funding education program, designed to help SEDI-owned companies understand and overcome common obstacles to funding readiness. Participating MBEs will receive a comprehensive assessment, and depending on the firm’s needs, the opportunity to connect with mission-aligned capital providers. These on-demand educational modules will prepare these businesses to grow and raise funding by making them aware of potential gaps preventing them from receiving business funding or financing.

NMSDC received a multi-year, $3 million Capital Readiness Program grant from the Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA) and has launched the MBE Center for Accelerated Growth and Innovation and Resiliency. This transformation center aims to scale historically underrepresented, certified socially economically disadvantaged individuals (SEDIs) with a focus on minority business enterprises (MBEs). The MBE Center for Accelerated Growth and Innovation and Resiliency includes three pillar programs:

• Contract Readiness: A capacity initiative that will prepare certified MBEs for doing business with the federal government and national/global corporations.
• Access to Capital Program and Platform: A program focused on creating a powerful network of capital options for certified MBEs, both private and State Small Business Credit Initiative (SSBCI) programs.
• NMSDC Matchmaking and Marketplace Tool and Opportunity Connections: A tool that integrates with NMSDC’s customer relationship management and certification platform to bring certified MBE profiles to an open, online marketplace, connecting them to corporate members and government entities actively seeking suppliers and sourcing solutions.

NMSDC Senior Director of Strategic Partnerships and MBE Services Jetheda Hernandez said, “We find ourselves at an unprecedented moment in history. Despite the progress that has been made in supplier and business diversity, we know that we still have a long way to go if we are going to create the thriving, equitable business environment that is the key to not only achieving generational wealth for communities of color but also for the long-term growth and sustainability of our nation’s economy. We are incredibly grateful for what is to come on the horizon thanks to engaging in strategic partnerships with organizations like Founders First Capital Partners that will help to drive the overall mission of advancement of entrepreneurial equity at the MBE Center for Accelerated Growth Innovation and Resiliency.”

Founders First Capital Partners, CEO, Chair and Founder Kim Folsom said, “Founders First Capital Partners, a co-lead for the Initiative for Inclusive Entrepreneurship, launched the Supplier Innovative Finance Program in support of the State Small Business Credit Initiative. The program aims to empower small, certified suppliers, enriching their capacity and deepening their understanding of innovative finance and capital access. In collaboration with NMSDC, this partnership continues the expansion of the mission-aligned partner ecosystem essential for small suppliers to efficiently secure growth capital.”

For more information, visit funding.foundersfirstcapitalpartners.com/sifp-nmsdc or contact NMSDC’s MBDA Program Director Maleeka Catron at maleeka.catron@nmsdc.org.

About National Minority Supplier Diversity Council
Founded in 1972, the National Minority Supplier Development Council (NMSDC) is the longest-operating business growth engine for the broadest group of systematically excluded communities of color (Asian-Indian, Asian-Pacific, Black, Hispanic, and Native American), and our impact goes far beyond the supply chain. It’s about upward mobility for the emerging majority of Americans, an equal shot at participating in the American experiment of free-market capitalism and entrepreneurship. Its work is about correcting the unequal access to wealth-building opportunities.

About Founders First Capital Partners
Founders First Capital Partners is building a comprehensive ecosystem through its proprietary platform to empower underrepresented founders to become leading, premium-wage job creators within their communities. The firm provides revenue-based funding and business acceleration support to service-based small businesses located outside of major capital markets such as Silicon Valley and New York City. Founders First Capital Partners focuses on supporting businesses led by women, people of color, military veterans, and LGBTQIA+, and businesses found in low-to-moderate income areas as well as companies dedicated to inclusive hiring practices. For more information, visit https://foundersfirstcapitalpartners.com/.

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Jered Weber
National Minority Supplier Development Council
701.388.7283
jered.weber@nmsdc.org