PURCHASE, N.Y.,
Aug. 31, 2021 /PRNewswire/
-- PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) today announced Juntos
Crecemos, (Together We Grow), a $50
million platform aimed at strengthening Hispanic-owned
businesses, specifically restaurants, bodegas and carnicerías (meat
markets), addressing foundational business challenges, and
supporting business growth over the next five years. Juntos
Crecemos is part of PepsiCo's Racial Equality Journey Hispanic
Initiative, a $172 million set of
commitments launched in October of last year.
According to a study by the U.S. Hispanic Chamber of
Commerce, Hispanic-owned businesses alone contribute over
$800 billion in
economic activity and play a central role in their communities.
According to a Stanford
University survey, as a result of
the pandemic, 86% of Hispanic small business owners reported
significant negative impacts, including complete closure, and were
only half as likely as their white counterparts to receive Paycheck
Protection Program (PPP) loans. This, coupled with the historic
systemic barriers affecting wealth and educational attainment,
contributes to smaller business income
among Hispanic business owners according to research
conducted by the Small Business Association.
"Juntos Crecemos and The PepsiCo Foundation IMPACTO
Hispanic Business Accelerator bring our Racial Equality Journey and
PepsiCo's values to life," said Esperanza
Teasdale, VP & GM, Hispanic Business Unit, PepsiCo
Beverages North America. "We're proud and committed to supporting
and elevating the voice of the Hispanic small business community
that is impacted by systemic inequality."
Benefits for Hispanic Small Business
Owners
Small business owners participating in
Juntos Crecemos will have access to the Hispanic Digital
& Delivery Program, a customized eight-week consultation
curriculum tailored to meet their specific needs, including helping
them improve their online presence, delivery logistics, online
ordering, and marketing practices. Participants will also have
access to consultation from experts via office hours, where they
will receive coaching and guidance on devising solutions for
business challenges.
"Providing these resources is critical to delivering on
our ambition to drive long-term change and address systemic
barriers in communities that too often have been overlooked," said
Antonio Escalona, SVP & GM,
Hispanic Business Unit, PepsiCo Foods North America. "This is only
the beginning, and we are committed to working alongside these
restaurants, bodegas, and carnicerías to propel their businesses
forward."
As part of the program, participating bodegas and
carnicerías owners will also receive store essentials, including
safety kits, consumer promotions and targeted digital media
support. To help raise awareness of Juntos Crecemos and
assist with implementation, PepsiCo has partnered with the Latino
Food Industry Association (LFIA).
"Hispanic small business owners have disproportionately
been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, which is why we are excited
to work with PepsiCo in bringing this much needed support to our
community," said Lupillo Ramirez,
LFIA president. "Juntos Crecemos will provide valuable
guidance and mentoring while connecting and uniting business owners
across the country in sharing best practices."
PepsiCo Foundation Support
As part of the
Juntos Crecemos platform, The PepsiCo Foundation is
officially launching the IMPACTO Hispanic Business Accelerator
which will provide $10 million in
funding to help 500 Hispanic small food and beverage business
owners in 13 cities across the U.S. grow their enterprises over the
next five years. It will also help these owners overcome systemic
economic disparities and create economic opportunity within the
community by providing business coaching in English and Spanish and
other resources.
Today, The PepsiCo Foundation is announcing the first 150
IMPACTO grant recipients, including:
- La Peña Restaurante in
Chicago, IL,
- De Mi Fogón in Houston, TX
- Cuernavaca's Grill in
Los Angeles, CA
- 8 Burger in Miami, FL, and
- Claudy's Kitchen in
Bronx, NY
"The contributions of Hispanic communities are an integral
part of the fabric of American culture. Unfortunately, the
community has also long faced systemic barriers to success – a
divide only deepened by the impact of COVID-19," said C.D. Glin,
Vice President, The PepsiCo Foundation and Global Head of
Philanthropy, PepsiCo. "Supporting long-term solutions that drive
economic equity in the Hispanic community isn't just right – it's
imperative. The IMPACTO Hispanic Business Accelerator and Juntos
Crecemos are about more than just saving businesses; it is
about investing in the people that bring life, culture and vibrancy
to our communities and ensuring that they continue to grow, thrive,
and prosper today and for generations to come."
The Foundation is currently working with Community
Development Financial Institution (CDFI) partners including, Allies
for Community Business in Chicago;
Ascendus in New York; LiftFund in
San Antonio; Accion Opportunity
Fund in San Jose and Los Angeles; and DreamSpring in Albuquerque
and other local organizations to provide $10,000 grants to beneficiaries and help business
owners at every level retain employees and construct long-term
business plans to support their future economic
success. While launching in 13 cities
(New York City, Miami, Chicago, Orlando, Albuquerque, Houston, Dallas, San
Antonio, Los Angeles,
El Paso, Las Vegas, Denver, Phoenix) where Hispanic-owned small businesses
were hit particularly hard by the COVID-19 pandemic, The PepsiCo
Foundation plans to expand the IMPACTO program to additional cities
over the next five years based on community need.
The launch of Juntos Crecemos and IMPACTO Hispanic
Business Accelerator are important milestones
in PepsiCo's Racial Equality
Journey, which in 2020 saw the company announce
commitments of more than $570 million over the next five
years to uplift Black and Hispanic businesses and communities in
the U.S. to address issues of inequality and create
opportunity.
For additional information about the Juntos
Crecemos platform and how local businesses can benefit from it,
please visit, www.PepsiCoJuntosCrecemos.com. To learn more about
PepsiCo's Racial Equality Journey, visit
www.pepsico.com/diversity-equity-and-inclusion.
Media Contact:
pepsicomediarelations@pepsico.com
About PepsiCo
PepsiCo products are enjoyed by consumers more than one billion
times a day in more than 200 countries and territories around the
world. PepsiCo generated more than $70 billion in net
revenue in 2020, driven by a complementary food and beverage
portfolio that includes Frito-Lay, Gatorade, Pepsi-Cola, Quaker,
Tropicana, and SodaStream. PepsiCo's product portfolio includes a
wide range of enjoyable foods and beverages, including 23 brands
that generate more than $1 billion each in estimated
annual retail sales. Guiding PepsiCo is our vision to Be the Global
Leader in Convenient Foods and Beverages by Winning with Purpose.
"Winning with Purpose" reflects our ambition to win sustainably in
the marketplace and embed purpose into all aspects of our business
strategy and brands. For more information,
visit www.pepsico.com.
About The PepsiCo
Foundation
Established in 1962, The PepsiCo Foundation, the philanthropic arm
of PepsiCo, invests in the essential elements of a sustainable food
system with a mission to support thriving communities. Working with
non-profits and experts around the globe, we're focused on
helping communities obtain access to food security, safe water and
economic opportunity. We strive for tangible impact in the places
where we live and work—collaborating with industry peers, local and
international organizations, and our employees to affect
large-scale change on the issues that matter to us and are of
global importance. Learn more
at www.pepsico.com/sustainability/philanthropy
About Allies for Community
Business
Allies for Community Business (A4CB)
believes that entrepreneurs from any background can start and grow
businesses that create generational wealth for their families and
communities. A4CB's mission is to provide the capital, coaching,
and collaboration entrepreneurs need to grow great businesses in
their communities. As a nonprofit Community Development Financial
Institution located on Chicago's
West Side, A4CB prioritizes Hispanic/Latinx, Black, women, and
low-income entrepreneurs throughout the Chicagoland area and
beyond. Learn more at a4cb.org.
About Accion Opportunity
Fund
Accion Opportunity
Fund works to create an inclusive, healthy
financial system that supports the nation's small business owners
by connecting entrepreneurs to affordable capital, educational
resources, coaching, and networks. Through innovative partnerships
and outreach strategies, we reach entrepreneurs of color,
low-income entrepreneurs, and women, who often lack access to the
financial services they need to build and grow their businesses.
Opportunity Fund Community Development the lending arm of Accion
Opportunity Fund, California Finance Lender license
#6050609.
About LiftFund
LiftFund's
mission is to provide credit and services to small businesses and
entrepreneurs who do not have access to loans from commercial
sources and to provide leadership and innovation in the
microlending industry.
We provide a hand up to small business owners, so they
have a chance to succeed. We've provided millions of dollars in
micro and small business loans to diverse, hard-working
entrepreneurs with a 96% successful repayment rate. For every
$1 we lend, there is a positive
economic return of $14. Daily,
thousands of small businesses and entrepreneurs are denied capital
and tap into high interest rate debt and predatory lenders that
cost more than they can afford. We believe everyone deserves the
opportunity to build a company successfully with capital no matter
their background, race, ethnicity, sexual identity or
geography.
About DreamSpring
DreamSpring is a
nonprofit community lender dedicated to eliminating systemic wealth
inequities and accelerating the economic inclusion and strength of
underserved communities, which play a critical role in the
stability and resilience of local and regional economies. Founded
in 1994, the organization, which currently operates in 19 states,
provides rapid access to capital and customized wrap-around support
to the most vulnerable small business owners, focusing on
communities including people of color, women, low- to
moderate-income earners, veterans, the disabled, the LGBTQ
community, the formerly incarcerated, and rural enterprises. Learn
more at DreamSpring.org.
About Ascendus
Ascendus
believes in the bold vision of creating financial ascension for
those who have been systemically excluded from financial
opportunity. For over 30 years, we've provided small business
owners – primarily BIPOC, women and immigrants – with the tools to
move up, improve their lives, care for their families, and
contribute to their communities. We've placed over $200 million into the hands of 24,000 small
businesses through our programs in New
York, Massachusetts,
Florida and
nationally.
View original content to download
multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/pepsico-launches-50-million-juntos-crecemos-platform-to-support-hispanic-owned-businesses-across-the-us-301366087.html
SOURCE PepsiCo, Inc.