CIE Spotlight: Cultivating Black Entrepreneurship, Closing the Capital Gap in Flint Hills

By Corianne Rice, Originally published on NLC.org on May 25, 2023

Sheila Ellis-Glasper, founder and president of the Black Entrepreneurs of the Flint Hills (BEFH), has spent 13 years as an entrepreneur. When she sought financial assistance to expand her second venture, she discovered a lack of local options for supporting minority businesses. This led her on a journey across various cities in Kansas, only to find that she didn’t qualify for grants and reimbursement funds due to her non-resident status. Faced with limited choices, Ellis-Glasper realized that self-funding or relying on banks were often the only viable options. This realization inspired her to establish BEFH, a groundbreaking initiative aimed at addressing the capital accessibility challenges faced by Black entrepreneurs.  

Challenges Faced by Black Entrepreneurs 

Access to capital remains a significant hurdle for Black entrepreneurs. Statistics confirm that while Black entrepreneurs – especially Black women – are the fastest-growing group of entrepreneurs in the nation, they receive the least funding. Black-owned businesses are twice as likely to be denied loans compared to their white counterparts, and minorities face higher interest rates and other banking challenges. Ellis-Glasper recalls a client’s experience where 12 banks rejected their loan application for a child care center, prompting the owners to resort to using their parents’ retirement funds as collateral. Such extreme measures are not uncommon, highlighting the desperate need for improved capital accessibility.