In 2016, civil unrest in Milwaukee left a stretch of the Sherman Park neighborhood extensively damaged and economically harmed. Businesses in the area, including BMO Harris Bank, were set on fire, causing over $5.8 million in property damage. Now, the city is making an investment in the same neighborhood to turn it into a place of burgeoning economic opportunity. Read More

Tropical Foods, located in Boston’s Roxbury neighborhood, has been around since 1974. It was founded by Pastor Medina, an immigrant from Cuba, who originally rented a small location and sold only plantains. At the time, plantains were not widely known in the U.S., but the Hispanic clientele who shopped there took to calling the store “El Platanero,” a name some customers still use. However, Tropical Foods has grown considerably since its days as a plantain shop. Read More

Yolanda Jones gets to the office at Yolanda’s Construction Administration & Traffic Control (YCAT-C), which she founded in 2010, every day at 6 a.m. There’s a lot happening. YCAT-C has $6 million in contracts earned or lined up for this year, its biggest year so far. She’s got something in the pipeline that could add another $10 million in annual revenues and perhaps 20 more employees in the next year. And, oh, NBA star LeBron James gave Jones a shout-out recently on Facebook and Twitter. She won a small business contest he held last fall. Read More

Small businesses are the engine of America’s prosperity and when they succeed, good jobs are created, economic opportunity is abundant and healthier communities are created. With this in mind, we’ve teamed up with the nation’s largest, nonprofit, integrated health care delivery system, Kaiser Permanente, to support urban businesses in Los Angeles and Oakland so our inner cities can thrive. Read More

This fall, small businesses in Greater Boston will have the opportunity to participate in a pioneering program: “Cultivate Small Business,” recently launched by Santander Bank in partnership with ICIC, Commonwealth Kitchen, and Babson College. This initiative will support entrepreneurs and their businesses in the food industry with resources and education to help them sustain and grow. Read More