Today, community is more important than ever as emerging entrepreneurs have to navigate the changing economic and political landscapes. Started to support underserved entrepreneurs, the New Voices Foundation remains in the business of community, helping entrepreneurs continue to build community with each other, key stakeholders, and our Foundation staff virtually and in-person.
Throughout the year, countless New Voices Family entrepreneurs mostly connect and network through our very active Slack workspace, quarterly industry cohort calls and the annual Madam CJ Walker Institute PACE Bootcamp.
MADAM CJ WALKER INSTITUTE PACE BOOTCAMP
Our 13-week PACE Bootcamp represents the deepest opportunity for entrepreneurs to engage, learn and build community, with participants reporting significant learning and networking gains.
“The Madam C J Walker PACE Bootcamp opened my eyes to new ways of obtaining working capital and expanding my business without limits,” said Qiana O’Leary, Ed.D. of Minty Educational Services. “I learned how to leverage my champions to speak about my brand in rooms I don’t have access to yet, creating opportunities I hadn’t even considered.”
Community was the oft-cited benefit for several PACE Bootcamp participants, including TruFaceByGrace’s Grace Yeboah Ofori. “The sense of community was invaluable in the PACE Bootcamp. Our peers generously shared resources and insights, and I learned so much from their experiences.”
NEW VOICES FAMILY COHORT CALLS
We also host quarterly industry-specific Cohort Calls for our entrepreneurs, including health care, food and beverage, and beauty brands.
A recent New Voices Beauty Industry Cohort Call was a true reflection of what it means to build in community. Founders showed up not just for themselves, but for one another—offering resources, sharing wins and tackling challenges together.
For example, Tiffany Cartwright of G.L.A.M. Body Scrubs celebrated her success at the Golden Globes’ gifting suite and a 2025 Oscars’ opportunity, while also paying it forward by offering to mentor others on vending at the 2025 ESSENCE Festival of Culture.
Other founders shared insights on contract manufacturing and their interest in expanding retailer networks, and received recommendations for boutique stores, embodying the spirit of mutual support.
Each convening shows that when one founder wins, the community can win and grow together.
NEW VOICES AT ESSENCE FESTIVAL OF CULTURE
Our signature in-person community-building efforts will again take place at this year’s ESSENCE Festival when we will bring together hundreds of entrepreneurs to learn from business experts, network with peers, and showcase their products and services in the New Voices Village, Entrepreneur Hub and Health Innovators Hub.
Additionally, in partnership with ESSENCE, New Voices Family founders will speak on the SOKO MRKT, Wellness House, Author stages and other Festival stages.
We are so excited for the 2025 ESSENCE Festival and to open the Convention Center doors on Friday, July 4th, to the tremendous community-building opportunities for our New Voices Family founders and new, aspiring entrepreneurs.
As it is in life, the only constant in entrepreneurship is change. Since the New Voices Foundation’s inception, we have witnessed and worked with entrepreneurs from all industries to help them navigate new (and old) challenges and remain resilient in an ever-evolving market.
What sustains them through it all? Community.
“I learned how to leverage my champions to speak about my brand in rooms I don’t have access to yet, creating opportunities I hadn’t even considered.”
—qiana o’leary, ed.d.