As a way to support Black entrepreneurs in Chicago, startup incubator 1871 is launching a new accelerator program designed specifically for Black-owned businesses.
Called BLK•Tech with Verizon, the 12-week accelerator will give participants access to mentoring from prominent Black business and tech leaders in Chicago, as well as business training through 1871’s PYROS education program.
The accelerator, however, doesn’t provide any funding to entrepreneurs. An analysis by Inno found that lack of funding is often the largest hurdle Black entrepreneurs face when launching a business.
Betsy Ziegler, 1871’s CEO, said the organization has been having internal discussions about launching an accelerator program for Black founders for about two years. But after the Black Lives Matter protests last summer and increased calls for social and racial justice, 1871 accelerated plans, putting together a group of seven Black founders at 1871 to help conceptualize what the accelerator would look like.
“We’ve been talking for a long time about wanting a Black accelerator, always under the guideline of having another partner do it with us,” Ziegler said.
Now with sponsors like Verizon and William Blair, 1871 is officially launching its first cohort of BLK•Tech on Feb. 2. The program, which will include up to 15 people in each cohort, is designed for Black founders with early-stage startups.
“This program is really pointed at those that are at the very beginning of their journey,” Ziegler said. “They have an idea but don’t know if that idea has the potential to be a business.”
1871 is still taking applications for the upcoming cohort. A second cohort is slated to start in June. BLK•Tech costs $175 per month, but 1871 is offering need-based scholarships, Ziegler said.
BLK•Tech joins 1871’s other minority-focused accelerator programs, such as its WiSTEM accelerator for female entrepreneurs, which launched in 2015. A year later, 1871 launched the Latinx Incubator with the Illinois Hispanic Chamber of Commerce.
1871, which acquired the Illinois Tech Association in 2020, employs more than 30 people. Last year, 1871 launched two pilot programs, DGTL (pronounced "digital") and Small Business Initiative, to help local small-business owners through the Covid-19 pandemic.
Of 1871’s 400 member founders, about 80 of them are Black, Ziegler said. And to support all of its Black members, whether they participate in BLK•Tech or not, Ziegler said 1871 is working on other initiatives. The tech hub is also creating a directory to highlight its Black founder members, as well as creating special events around Juneteenth every year.
“This is continuing the history that we’ve had over the last five or six years of supporting founders from all backgrounds, but it builds on the successes we’ve had with WiSTEM and with Latinx,” Ziegler said.
