#WeAreMORTAR Giving Tuesday 2021

MORTAR aims to build diverse communities by providing Black and minority entrepreneurs with access to the tools and resources they need to successfully start and run a business. Our goal is to eliminate the racial wealth gap. In order to do that & build generational wealth in Black communities, we offer a 15-week Entrepreneurship Academy, an 18-month Alumni program, Brick Pop Up Shops to assist small businesses in finding space to test out their ideas, and The Iron Chest Fund that has put over $300k directly into the hands of our entrepreneurs in the form of loans, grants & equity investments. 

Entrepreneurship exists at a unique intersection for Black and minoritized populations. With the power to provide financial stability, create wealth, and decrease poverty rates, small business ownership is often the most (if not the only) viable option for families to attain their own version of the American dream. Since 2014, MORTAR’s mission has been to ensure that all entrepreneurs, regardless of background, race, gender, or socioeconomic status, are equipped to build businesses, contribute to community ownership, and create intergenerational transfers of wealth that leave legacies for generations to come. 

MORTAR offers underestimated entrepreneurs the opportunity to use their inherent talents to not only make a dollar but to create stronger families, communities, and a more vibrant region. To date, MORTAR has completed 31 cohorts of our nationally recognized Entrepreneurship Academy and has an alumni network of over 350 small business owners in our hometown of Cincinnati, Ohio! We are proud to report that 100% of our alumni operating their businesses at the onset of COVID-19 are still in business today. 

Under the leadership of our Co-Founder and Executive Director, Allen Woods, we are working diligently to develop diverse entrepreneurial ecosystems by providing Black and other minoritized entrepreneurs with access to the resources they need to start and run successful businesses in the neighborhoods they live in. We have also had the ability to garner the attention of Pharrell William's Black Ambition initiative as well as having the support of Michael Jordan & the Jordan Brand.

MORTAR is a small (but mighty) Black-led organization with an outsized impact that has helped Cincinnati to become one of the best places to start a business. With your support, MORTAR has the opportunity to exponentially increase our capacity to serve Black small business owners in Cincinnati and throughout the country. Thanks to a donor who has chosen to remain anonymous, when you donate to this campaign, every dollar will be matched up to $10,000!  

A few highlights from the past year (or so)...