Leaving a Tough Year Behind and Preparing for What’s Ahead

2020 has been a year that we definitely want to forget and leave behind. It has been an incredibly devastating one, with all the people who were sadly taken away from us. Hundreds of thousands of people lost their jobs and continue to face bleak uncertainty for the future. People from all around the world are still living under some form of government lockdown and restrictions to their normal lives. While we shouldn’t focus on the negatives, it is important to remind ourselves of what we have endured, understand that we are going through extraordinary times, which fact alone is a testament to all of our strength.

While the spirit and hardships of this year are not going to go anywhere anytime soon, we can still find some comfort and hope in our power to persevere. While the struggles of this year have been profound and unique for each person, humanity has shown great resilience to keep our lives going forward. By balancing the responsibility to protect the people around us and the need to also protect ourselves, we have still continued to give love and support to our families, friends, colleagues, and communities.

And the world still continued to innovate through technology in order to increase cooperation among us and continue the essential parts of our lives until a cure for the deadly virus can be found. In this environment of uncertainty, supporting the small businesses was critical, as they form the bedrock of the U.S. economy. Of all small businesses, roughly 1.1 million of them are owned by minorities. They employ 8.8 million workers and generate $1 trillion in economic output. 300,000 of them are owned by women.

While the pandemic has put to test small businesses the most, there were hidden layers of challenges and added pressure for minority-owned small businesses. A research report by McKinsey revealed that minority-owned businesses didn’t get the same level of access to commercial loans, were twice as likely to be at risk or distressed before the pandemic started, and were asked to provide extra documentation of their financials by banks — compared to the applications of similar businesses owned by non-minority owners.

Some further findings of the report were that only 1% of black-owned small businesses could get a bank loan in their first year compared to 7% of white business owners. 30% of white business owners used business credit cards during their first year compared to 15% of black owners. Further research by the Brookings Institution found that large banks approve around 60 percent of loans sought by white small-business owners, 50 percent of those sought by Hispanic or Latinx small-business owners, and just 29 percent of those sought by black small-business owners.[1]

Here is a chart from the McKinsey report that shows that minority business owners and minority workers have been the demographic most impacted by the pandemic:

Despite these facts, the pandemic also gave minority entrepreneurs a chance to prove their ingenuity. Lots of minority-owned small businesses managed to keep their businesses afloat while supporting their communities through pragmatic solutions such as free deliveries, adjusted hours for the elderly, and special communications with safety guidelines. They remind us that, in these hard times, it is possible to help one another by making these small sacrifices.

We know that the pandemic is still far from being over. Next year holds new and fresh challenges. As we move into the new normal, though, access to technology is going to be vital, as always. Several non-profit organizations and individuals have volunteered to help the small businesses in their communities go digital. The technology companies that can provide affordable or free access to digital tools and solutions can play a critical role in helping the most vulnerable small businesses become more competitive and grow stronger out of this pandemic.

As UpTech, we understand the value of finding technology solutions that will alleviate the pain points of small businesses and address their needs through these tough times. Next week, we are planning to publish a detailed overview of the different technologies that small businesses can use to put themselves in a position to succeed and empower their communities this upcoming year. Thank you for bringing your courage and tenaciousness to our journey and we feel excited to return that with our hard work and smart

[1] Sifan Liu and Joseph Parilla, Businesses owned by women and minorities have grown. Will COVID-19 undo that?, Brookings Institution, April 14, 2020, brookings.edu.

NOTE FROM THE EDITOR

GOPLUTUS the first enterprise-level system crafted by women built for women and minority business owners. Learn how you can be the first to try out or beta! Sign up on the waitlist to learn more. — A publication by 7QUBES