Unleashing Opportunities: Empowering Women Veterans and Underrepresented Entrepreneurs
In the latest episode of the Dallas, Texas: What's Good Podcast, hosted by the dynamic Brianna Jovahn, the spotlight is on forging pathways and providing resources for women veterans and underrepresented entrepreneurs. Brianna is joined by two influential guests: VR Small, the CEO and Founder of the Veteran Women’s Enterprise Center (VWEC), and ShaKeia Kegler-Gray, the Program Manager at Black Ambition. Their powerful collaboration promises to pave new avenues for growth and empowerment.
A Mission to Empower
The episode kicks off with VR Small introducing her venture, the Veteran Women’s Enterprise Center, a national initiative born to empower women associated with the military to scale their enterprises successfully. Headquarters are based in Dallas, but the reach is global, including over 35 states. VR highlights VWEC's commitment to strategic growth, having engaged over 4,000 individuals in its programs and reinvested substantial funding into entrepreneurs through various grant and pitch competitions.
The spotlight is on VWEC's signature program, the Next Level Business Transformation (NLBT), and the forthcoming Dallas Strategic Growth Accelerator (DSG), both designed to fortify business acumen and offer substantial monetary grants to participants.
Elevating Ambition in Black Communities
Enter ShaKeia Kegler-Gray, offering an in-depth overview of Black Ambition, Pharrell Williams’ visionary nonprofit aimed at closing the wealth gap by providing access to opportunities for underrepresented entrepreneurs. Black Ambition has successfully invested over $13 million into 131 founders through its prize competitions, fostering businesses that generate significant economic impacts.
The highlight of Black Ambition’s initiatives is the annual Black Ambition Prize Competition. With focused verticals such as technology, media, healthcare, and consumer goods, this competition extends investments from $20,000 to $100,000. ShaKeia details the comprehensive application process and emphasizes the importance of showcasing innovation and potential in a 90-second pitch video.
Strategic Collaboration and Resource Sharing
Brianna celebrates this collaboration between VR and ShaKeia, emphasizing the synergy and shared goals of empowering underrepresented entrepreneurs and women veterans. The dialogue underscores the commitment to providing robust support networks and resources, ensuring that these entrepreneurs are not navigating these challenges alone.
VR conveys her appreciation for the impactful work being done and advocates for the necessity of investing in businesses. She passionately argues for this investment as a catalyst for enhancing community vibrancy, economic strength, and societal growth.
Joining Forces for Success
Both VR Small and ShaKeia Kegler-Gray invite all listeners to engage with their respective platforms, encouraging them not to miss out on life-changing resources. Whether it’s the invaluable support from VWEC or the groundbreaking opportunities at Black Ambition, both reiterate the importance of connectivity and participation.
For those eager to step into this circle of growth and opportunity, VR and ShaKeia emphasize timely participation—specifically noting the upcoming deadlines for the Black Ambition Prize applications.
Connect and Transform
With technology and entrepreneurship as engines for change, this episode of "What's Good Podcast" empowers listeners to think big, act strategically, and tap into powerful networks of support.
For further engagement, listeners are encouraged to visit the Veteran Women’s Enterprise Center at their website and social media, as well as explore Black Ambition’s platforms for more information on their transformative programs and deadlines.
Whether you're reading this in the morning, noon, evening, or night, the opportunities to connect, grow, and succeed are wide open. For those aspiring to be at the forefront of economic change, there's no better time to act than now.