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Helping Black-owned businesses achieve their ambitions
Dedicated support for Black entrepreneurs
In partnership with Black-led expertise, access tailored opportunities to help you start, manage and grow your business.
Black In Business
We're proud to partner with Channel 4 on this initiative to elevate Black-owned businesses through the power of TV advertising. Last year's winners experienced significant growth, and we look forward to seeing the impact on this year's four winners.
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00:34 Speaker 1
I wanted people to know how good turmeric could taste.
00:39 Speaker 2
Super tasty, convenient food to fuel your lives.
00:42 Speaker 3
Wash Day does not need to be complex, so we simplified it.
00:47 Speaker 4
Dalgety teas are so good,
00:49
You’ll drink it anywhere.
00:52 Speaker 2
Since the TV ad went live, we've grown phenomenally, so we had no distribution in Sainsbury's. We weren't in the meal deal, whereas now we're in the meal deal in Tesco.
01:00 Speaker 4
We basically had about 1067% increase in viewership. Our sales went up by substantial percentage on just Amazon alone.
01:09 Speaker 5
Our Black in Business success has impacted us in the UK in terms of awareness,
01:13
on our socials, and just people generally emailing in saying they'd seen us. Definitely gave us more attention.
01:19 Speaker 1
So the heightened awareness that we had as a brand, led to increased traffic to our website. And that traffic allowed us to generate, one thousand new customers. That equates to over two hundred thousand pounds of extra revenue for the business.
01:34 Speaker 3
The day that the ad went live, our website traffic went up to three hundred percent. I don't know how we would emulate that with any other campaign.
01:41 Speaker 5
I think when people see stuff on television, they kind of think, oh, and they sit back like,
01:45 Speaker 5
Oh, this is a brand, they might take more note.
01:46 Speaker 1
Being able to say as a business, as seen on Channel 4 is a really unique thing to have. It helped elevate what we were trying to do as a business in terms of the messaging and reaching the audiences.
01:59 Speaker 2
So the TV ad did wonders in just being able to give us that platform to really grow from.
02:03 Speaker 4
The Black in Business initiative definitely give us the opportunity now to showcase our products to mainstream consumers.
02:11
And not just be pigeonholed to say, oh, it's just a small ethnic business as such.
02:14 Speaker 3
So to have two massive institutions, really able to get us that scale, get us that reach, and get us that visibility that we otherwise wouldn't inherit. I think together they're like a magical formula.
02:24 Speaker 2
This has been absolutely sensational.
02:27 Speaker 3
It's been really refreshing to see how many senior people truly care about the initiative. It's not a tick box exercise for any of them.
02:35 Speaker 1
For us, it was game-changing in terms of what we were able to achieve.
02:38 Speaker 5
Believe in what you're doing. Don't give up, really.
02:41 Speaker 4
Let's see how we compete with the big boys, because we are big boys now too.
Our journey so far
Discover what we’ve learnt, what we’ve produced, and who we’ve worked with to support Black entrepreneurs.
Learn. Connect. Accelerate.
Tailored support curated in partnership with Black-led organisations to help you build knowledge, community and confidence.
Building connections
Supported by the Black Business Network, BEECON provides easy access to the Black business entrepreneurial ecosystem.
Masterclasses with Jamii
This expert-led masterclass series covers everything from digital marketing to finance fundamentals.
Bite-size video learning
Choose from an online catalogue of quick-fire lessons on how to successfully start and grow your business, curated by Foundervine.
Setting up your start-up
10 steps to start your business
From planning a business, to setting up and launching one, we take your through the essential steps to get started.
Start-Up Scale-Up
Free and open to businesses of all sizes. This is your chance to join our online programme, free coaching sessions and get expert support in setting up or preparing your business for growth.
A helping hand into retail
Discover how Natalie Dinning, founder of Lesley’s Sauces is bringing passion and purpose to people's plates with the help of Foundervine’s Accelerator Programme.
The Early Stage Accelerator
Benefit from tailored mentoring, a network of investors, plus get to pitch to investors and a chance to access a £12k grant funding pot. Spaces are limited.
Ways to scale and grow your business
Supporting Flake Bake to scale up
Jamaican patty manufacturer and distributor has become South London’s largest supplier of handmade Jamaican patties thanks to the support form Lloyds’ Black entrepreneurs programme.
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00:01 Speaker 1
Hi, I’m Mike Williams
00:03
Co-founder of Flake Bake
00:04
We make some of the best
00:06
Handmade Jamaican patties in South East London
00:08
This time last year
00:09
I didn’t even think
00:10
We were going to be supplying Notting Hill Carnival anymore
00:13
But Lloyds Bank has been incredibly supportive during our growth
00:17
They’ve helped us to profile Flake Bake
00:20
And we’ve recently switched our business banking to them
00:21
Notting Hill Carnival is all about celebrating
00:24
Caribbean culture
00:25
And our patties are a staple
00:26
We’ve been supplying Notting Hill for the last 12 years
00:29
Last year, we supplied 40,000 patties
00:31
But this year, we’re supplying 150,000 patties
00:35
Notting Hill Carnival is not just our busiest time
00:37
But it’s actually the best time of the year for us
00:40
My favourite part of Notting Hill
00:42
Is meeting all my street food vendors
00:44
The biggest thing that’s happened to us in the last 6 months
00:46
Is winning a TV show
00:48
We’ve been able to supply to
00:50
Europe’s biggest retailer
00:52
We’ve sold out in less than 48 hours
00:54
And we gained so much exposure
00:56
That now we’re preparing for our biggest
00:58
Notting Hill carnival season ever
Funding and borrowing for your business
Whether you’re an established business, looking to expand, or just starting out, we can help in accessing finance.
How finance helped Uhuru botanicals
A West Midlands manufacturer quickly outgrew her premises after transforming £70 of ingredients into a thriving beauty brand with her very own factory.
Other funding
Take a look at the range of open funding programmes that support local charities and communities. Application window opens yearly.
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How we’re supporting women-owned businesses
Find access to supportive communities, resources, and products to help you manage and grow your business.