Help us get to our goal! Help us get to 200 people backing us! Since starting our $100,000 crowdfunding campaign, we have received some awesome media coverage and mentions, but we need you to keep pushing the message.
If you haven’t had a chance to donate yet, the campaign will end March 31. No amount is too small for our company. Why are we asking for funds?
We need the funds to grow our business and compete at a level many of our partners have been asking us to. When we first started Southern Roots Vegan Bakery, we knew we had a great product that we wanted to get in the hands of customers. Now that more customers are asking for our product, we are in a catch 22. It takes more money to mass produce, but as a Black-owned business, getting the investments was a lot harder than we imagined.
Did you know that only 1% of Black business owners were able to obtain loans in their founding year, compared to 7% of white business owners? Also Black entrepreneurs are denied or given lower bank loans at more than twice the rate of their white peers: 53% to 25%. We are no exception to these stats. We have plenty of stories to share that can add to these stats.
However, we are growing steadily as a micro business, but we have come to realize we don't qualify for business loans or COVID-related grant relief. Unfortunately, we have had to turn down retail and national television opportunities because we don't have the funds to buy all the ingredients and packaging we would need to fulfill orders. We love doing marketing campaigns with other partners but have to be selective since we are not in the position to always offer free shipping since it leaves little profit.
We are hoping this crowdfunding campaign will give us the boost we need to get in front of more customers. If you don’t know our back story, check out the article on VegNews or the story on KENS. And please share on your social media platforms that we could use some support at this link: https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/help-black-owned-southern-roots-vegan-bakery-grow#/
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Please share with your friends and family that once they try Southern Roots baked goods, they will think this is “So Good, You Won’t Believe It’s Vegan.” Follow us on social and tag us at @SouthernRootsBiz.
