Dan River Region Black Chamber of Commerce Hosts Inaugural Event as Stand Alone Organization SWaM Strong Spring Procurement Fair

Danville, VA – The Dan River Region Black Chamber of Commerce (dba Black Business Collaborative-Dan River Region) launched with SWaM Strong Spring Procurement Fair, a huge collaborative event on Tuesday, April 26, 2022. SWaM Strong was held at the Institute for Advanced Learning and Research and hosted 19 Procurement Representatives and 76 small and minority businesses. This event was a collaboration with the City of Danville Office of Economic Development, ClayCo, RISE Collaborative, Danville Community College, Entrepreneur Ecosystem Dan River Region, and Danville Pittsylvania County Chamber of Commerce. The timing of this event aligned nicely with the re-branding and incorporation of the new entity.

According to RightToStart.org, the rate of new business formation in America has fallen by nearly half over the last 40+ years and rural America has seen a 44% decline in entrepreneurship since 1995. These facts in addition to other systematic barriers contribute to the difficulty Black people have experienced in building intergenerational wealth via starting and growing businesses. The BBC was formed to serve as the hub for black entrepreneurship in the Dan River Region and beyond by supporting economic development and wealth creation through organizing access to capital, centralizing resources and education, providing a pathway to opportunity and fostering business development.

The BBC, formerly a chapter of a regional black chamber, has established itself as a stand alone organization laser focused to serve Black owned and operated businesses in and around the Dan River Region. The BBC will continue to fortify the local grassroots effort started in 2020 on Facebook by increasing its efforts to serve its nearly 100 members, expanding membership, hosting monthly programming and more events like SWaM Strong. The Dan River Region Black Chamber of Commerce is proud to be in partnership with all organizations working to create a thriving business ecosystem. To become a member of the BBC please contact membership@drrbcc.org.

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If you would like more information about the Dan River Region Black Chamber of Commerce, or to schedule an interview with Crystal Cobbs or Lashawn Farmer please email CCobbs@DRRBCC.org or LFarmer@DRRBCC.org respectively. More information can be found on our website www.DRRBCC.org