Food-delivery platform DoorDash Inc. is launching an accelerator to support 50 local consumer packaged goods businesses owned by women, trans folks, immigrants and people of color.
Beginning March 14 through April 1, eligible business owners in New York, Chicago and the greater Washington, D.C., area can apply for the program, which will provide education and funding to bring their products to market.
The program culminates with a guarantee that the businesses can sell their products via DashMart, a DoorDash-owned and -operated grocery and convenience store that sells products nationwide. San Francisco-based DoorDash (NYSE: DASH) said the platform, launched in 2020, already distributes products from more than 400 local and regional businesses.
The new DoorDash Accelerator for Local Goods program, designed in partnership with NextStreet, consists of a live and self-guided six-week course for 50 local entrepreneurs that covers six specific topics, including supply chain management, wholesale vendor relationship management, managing cash flow and business development.
At the end of the course, which runs from May 2 through June 17, participants will receive a $5,000 grant to support their business needs, access to marketing and sales support from DoorDash, and product distribution and sales through at least one DashMart location.
“Local businesses generate a substantial amount of economic return for the communities they thrive within, while also creating notable job opportunities for residents,” said Tasia Hawkins, head of DoorDash’s social impact program, in a statement. “By developing the DoorDash Accelerator for Local Goods, we are equipping aspiring entrepreneurs with the educational and financial capital to become wholesale-ready and create an even stronger relationship between local businesses and consumers residing in the community.”
Merchants in New York City, Chicago and Washington, D.C., can apply for the DoorDash accelerator if they are a registered and actively operating a packaged-food local business; have 20 or fewer employees; have generated less than $1 million in revenue in fiscal year 2021; and have been in business for at least two years. An active partnership with DoorDash is not required to participate in this program.
