Celebrating Black Business Month in South Georgia

VALDOSTA, Ga. (WALB) – August is National Black Business Month, an annual celebration recognizing Black entrepreneurs and their contributions to America’s economy. Across the South Georgia region, the Southern Georgia Black Chamber has maintained a membership of over 80 Black businesses, nonprofits and employers – connecting them to resources on the state and federal level. According to the Small Business Administration Office of Advocacy, Black entrepreneurs own 3.5 million businesses and employ over 1.2 million people across the U.S., which is a 7% increase in jobs created by Black-owned businesses in the past year. “The resources that the Southern Georgia Black Chambers provides is invaluable as an individual or person looking to start a new business,” Shelbra McKnight, Bright Start Preschool and Learning Center owner said. “It gives you a head start and you don’t have to make a lot of the mistakes that lots of business owners make through trial and error, you have resources available to give you good guidance from the start.” Dewayne Johnson, president and CEO of the Southern Georgia Black Chamber, said that many businesses share the same struggles, but Black-owned businesses are 10 times more likely to fail due to the lack of resources...