The Black community is filled with an ample amount of of creativity, intelligence and drive. Within Durham Region, there are a lot of small, Black owned businesses built on a foundation of these values. In recent years, especially after racial protests in the United States in 2020, our society has begun to emphasize supporting Black businesses. It is important to note that supporting Black businesses is not a trend, it is a lifestyle. When you support Black businesses and entrepreneurship, you are supporting Black families and Black communities, closing the racial wealth gap, and creating jobs opportunities.

Within Durham Region, there is an organization committed to supporting Black entrepreneurship. AllBlkMarket is an online platform committed to helping Black owned businesses reach their fullest potential. Here is what AllBlkMarket’s founders, Karisha & Djimi, had to say about their organization when we reached out to them.

What is AllBlkMarket about? What are your organizations goals and objectives.

ABM is an online marketing platform used to showcase small and large black businesses.  

The thing is, there are thousands of black businesses out there that people have no clue about. We want to change that here at ABM. Our goal is to give black business owners the opportunity to reach out and connect with other like-minded individuals, and grow their customer base by featuring their business on ABM.

In addition, our mission is to provide resources to these small businesses in the long term. We’ve also recently partnered with several professionals within our communities who can help accomplish that mission.

We want to bridge the gap between professionals and small business owners. It’s not a secret our communities have always been deprived of information. There are countless of opportunities out there for new entrepreneurs to take advantage of and use to take their business ventures to the next level. However, due to lack of information and/or resources, we end up missing out on those great opportunities.

Who can access your services?

What’s great about ABM is that YOU can also shop All Blk. All individuals who are interested in supporting any of our businesses/entrepreneurs are welcome to browse and shop on our website. We want our people to understand the importance of shopping all black. Here at ABM, we strive to build a community of black excellence. That said, ABM is also open to collaborate/partner with various types of businesses/entrepreneurs & professional platforms as there’s at least one of us in every field and we would like to see more representation of us in our communities.

ABM is a one stop shop for all your business needs, and our ultimate goal is to have customers look nowhere else. With that said we’d like to welcome anyone from our community who has aspirations of entrepreneurship to join the ABM Family.

How do people access your services?

Our platform allows customers to place orders/book services directly on our website.

For businesses/entrepreneurs who are interested in collaborating with ABM, they have the option to apply to register (free of charge) directly on our website or via email. 

How has the pandemic impacted the delivery of your services?

The pandemic has been difficult for many small businesses as they were not able to operate as usual. Fortunately, ABM operates on online. There has been limited impact regarding the delivery of the services provided by ABM. However, we have had to postpone in person showcase and networking events. 

Alternatively, we have held virtual events during holidays such as Blk Fridays, Blk History Month etc. where we offer site wide sales, giveaways to the community and more.

Is there a cost to use your services? If so, is there a sliding scale or subsidized fee for individuals who experience financial barriers?

Due to the circumstances of the pandemic, ABM has waved all collaborative fees. There’s no cost to join the ABM Family at this time. We are devoted to help small businesses reach the next level. Therefore, we welcome all small businesses with open arms.

How does your marketplace accommodate individuals who need accessibility?

Customer service is our number one priority. To build that bond and community we call ABM Family, we value the demands and needs of each and every customer that follows, supports and buys from us. Periodically, we will offer free shipping to customers on behalf of the businesses partnered with ABM, which includes orders/packages being personally delivered by hand to each customer or paid for by ABM to be shipped between provinces and/or abroad.

How can interested applicants work with your organization?

Due to a high volume of applicants, those interested in collaborative opportunities with ABM must wait between 30-60 days before partnerships are made official and are published on the website.

Before we collaborate with any business and/or professional, interested applicants must follow the proper procedure by filling out a requirement form that can be found on our website. The requirement form allows us to understand all the basic information about how the interested businesses operates on a day-to-day basis to help us collaborate successfully.

Our application form was also created to help guide entrepreneurs on what is required to build and maintain a small business. The requirement form was created to encourage all small businesses to obtain all certifications & documents necessary to complete their brand.

Currently, ABM provides collaborative opportunities for businesses, entrepreneurs and creatives in our communities.

Additionally, we have recently released a grant that will help create more entrepreneurs within our communities. The initiative is called ‘Entrepreneurship With ABM’.

We are offering up to a $1,000 CAD to any individual in our community who aspires to enter the entrepreneurship world and create their own business.

We also want to use our resources on our platform to assist them with their business venture. For those who are interested in supporting the cause have the option to purchase an exclusive ABM Shirt on SHOP ABM. All proceeds will be donated to ‘Entrepreneurship with ABM’ and help expand this initiative.

We can be reached at [email protected] | Phone number: 647-894-6241.

GO TO: WWW.ALLBLKMARKET.COM

GO TO: WWW.ALLBLKMARKET.COM/SHOPABM