For the first time, grassroots economic development organizations in San Antonio and Bexar County have come together in a network that strengthens their voice and magnifies their impacts. The members of the Business Development Organization (BDO) Alliance—American Indians of Texas at the Spanish Colonial Missions (AITSCM), Centro San Antonio, Culturingua, Maestro Entrepreneur Center, ProsperWest, SAGE, and Southside First—represent thousands of business owners and residents on the South, West, North, and East sides, the majority of whom are women or people of color. The BDO Alliance’s goal is to create a more equitable ecosystem in which economic success is not determined by geography, race or gender but, instead, is accessible to all and supported by strong, trusted relationships that deliver training, technical assistance, and funding to small businesses. With partners like the City of San Antonio’s Economic Development Department, the BDO Alliance is working on developing a comprehensive ecosystem model that provides a collaborative workflow between organizations to ensure long-term small business success.
The lasting success of small businesses is deeply dependent upon the strength of the local small business support ecosystem. Direct relief grants to small businesses are a necessary short-term measure, but allocations must include additional adequate funding to ensure that the hardest-to-reach “mom and pop shops” are served. The BDO Alliance has already successfully advocated for investment of American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds by the City of San Antonio for outreach and technical assistance by these community-based organizations. The next phases include attracting private-sector support to meet core capital and service needs of small business owners through the small business assistance network.
These types of investments and supports are needed now more than ever because Bexar County’s small businesses were hard hit during COVID and the recession, with revenue dropping by almost half during the past two years. Impacts fell disproportionately on businesses owned by women and people of color, who were already less likely to own businesses. Representing 7% of the population, African-Americans owned 4.5% of all firms in the Metropolitan Statistical Area but only 1.4% of firms with employees. Hispanic-owned businesses were also significantly affected, and they continue to be hit hard by supply chain and fuel cost disruption, given that they are heavily represented in industries such as construction, merchant wholesale, and truck transportation.
While these inequities are long-standing, they have been exacerbated by the shocks of the past two and half years. In fact, review of efforts such as the Payroll Protection Program have shown that well-capitalized firms with banking and other professional relationships snared the vast majority of funds. Catalytic investments are needed now to change this reality by empowering BDOs to weave strong networks supporting low-wealth individuals and micro-enterprises. BDOs address the most significant challenges facing under-resourced areas, bridging the “last mile” of language, family wealth, and digital divides to reach businesses outside of existing networks.
The BDO Alliance was suggested in the Small Business Ecosystem Assessment carried out by NextStreet and Common Future in 2020, utilizing generous grant funding from JPMorgan Chase. The assessment identified core capital and service needs of small business owners of color along with gaps in small business assistance, and it developed strategies to address historical inequities for local small business owners of color in response to the continued impact of COVID-19. The emergence of the BDO Alliance fulfills the report’s recommendation for a business development organization hub to share best practices, refer businesses to the right services, and track who is and isn’t being served—and it will allow us to secure additional funding from local and national sources to match existing investments. LISC San Antonio is proud to support the BDO Alliance and to work collaboratively with our place-based economic development partners.