In its first year alone, Comcast RISE has
provided over $60 million in grants, marketing, and technology
services to support more than 6,700 small businesses owned by
people of color
With the expansion to all women-owned small
businesses, the program is on track to support 13,000 businesses by
the end of 2022
Comcast Corporation announces today a major expansion of Comcast
RISE to all women-owned businesses nationwide, furthering its
efforts to advance digital equity and help provide underrepresented
small business owners with access to the digital tools and funding
they need to thrive.
In its first year alone, Comcast RISE has provided more than $60
million in grants, marketing, and technology services to more than
6,700 small businesses owned by people of color - including Black,
Indigenous, Hispanic, and Asian Americans. Of the 6,700 Comcast
RISE recipients to date, nearly 70% have been businesses owned by
women of color, spurring Comcast to take a deeper look into the
unique challenges faced by women entrepreneurs.
According to a study by the National Association of Women
Business Owners, 42% of businesses in the U.S. are owned by women,
with more than 1,800 new businesses being started every day. That’s
nearly five times the national average. However, according to the
same study, women-owned businesses are growing at only half the
rate of those run by men, namely because women struggle to access
capital and other resources to help them succeed.
Karen Cahn, Founder & CEO of IFundWomen echoes this
important point, “The data about how women, a rapidly increasing
number of whom are small business owners, have fared during the
pandemic is stark. Women business owners tend to have limited
access to capital and debt-free funding options, yet they represent
a tremendous opportunity. Women-owned businesses deliver two times
higher revenue per dollar invested than those founded by men,
making them great investments.”
“As we continue to rebuild and emerge from the effects of the
pandemic, small businesses will continue to be the backbone of our
economy – and we must take every opportunity to help them thrive,”
said Teresa Ward-Maupin, Senior Vice President, Digital and
Customer Experience, Comcast Business. “Looking forward, this
expansion will enable Comcast RISE to further empower and
strengthen even more small businesses that are the heart of our
local communities across the country.”
Comcast RISE, which stands for Representation, Investment,
Strength, and Empowerment, is part of Project UP, Comcast’s
comprehensive initiative to advance digital equity and help provide
underrepresented small business owners with access to the digital
tools and funding they need to thrive. Over the next 10 years,
Comcast has committed $1 billion to programs, like Comcast RISE,
and partnerships that will reach an estimated 50 million people
with the skills, opportunities, and resources they need to succeed
in an increasingly digital world
Comcast recently announced its fifth round of Comcast RISE
recipients, which includes 1,400 small businesses owned by people
of color, that will receive a TV campaign, production of a TV
commercial or consulting services from Effectv or computer
equipment, internet, voice or cybersecurity from Comcast Business.
In addition, as part of round two of the Comcast RISE Investment
Fund, 600 additional small businesses in Houston, Miami, Oakland,
Seattle, the Twin Cities, and Washington, D.C. will each receive
$10,000 grants, bringing the total Comcast RISE Investment Fund
recipients to 1,100.
Comcast RISE, which just celebrated it’s one year anniversary,
will continue to be open to racially and ethnically diverse small
business owners and the expanded Comcast RISE eligibility to all
women-owned businesses will be effective on January 16, 2022. More
information and the applications to apply for either the grant
program or marketing and technology services are available at
www.ComcastRISE.com.
About Comcast Corporation
Comcast Corporation (Nasdaq: CMCSA) is a global media and
technology company that connects people to moments that matter. We
are principally focused on broadband, aggregation, and streaming
with 57 million customer relationships across the United States and
Europe. We deliver broadband, wireless, and video through our
Xfinity, Comcast Business, and Sky brands; create, distribute, and
stream leading entertainment, sports, and news through Universal
Filmed Entertainment Group, Universal Studio Group, Sky Studios,
the NBC and Telemundo broadcast networks, multiple cable networks,
Peacock, NBCUniversal News Group, NBC Sports, Sky News, and Sky
Sports; and provide memorable experiences at Universal Parks and
Resorts in the United States and Asia. Visit
www.comcastcorporation.com for more information.
About Comcast Business
Comcast Business offers a suite of Connectivity, Communications,
Networking, Cybersecurity, Wireless, and Managed Solutions to help
organizations of different sizes prepare for what’s next. Powered
by the nation’s largest Gig-speed broadband network, and backed by
24/7 customer support, Comcast Business is the nation’s largest
cable provider to small and mid-size businesses and one of the
leading service providers to the Enterprise market. Comcast
Business has been consistently recognized by industry analysts and
associations as a leader and innovator, and one of the fastest
growing providers of Ethernet services. For more information, call
866-429-3085. Follow on Twitter @ComcastBusiness and on other
social media networks at http://business.comcast.com/social.
About Effectv Effectv, the
advertising sales division of Comcast Cable, helps local, regional,
and national advertisers use the best of digital with the power of
TV to grow their business. It provides multi-screen marketing
solutions to make advertising campaigns more effective and easier
to execute. Headquartered in New York with offices throughout the
country, Effectv has a presence in 66 markets with nearly 35
million owned and represented subscribers. For more information,
visit www.effectv.com.
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version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20211123005822/en/
Media: William Bell 347-730-7758
William_Bell2@comcast.com
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