About Us

The Accelerator is a product of the Cincinnati Action Now (CAN) Commission, which was spawned from Cincinnati’s civil unrest of 2001. Out of a recommendation from the CAN Commission, the Cincinnati Minority Business Accelerator was created to address the racial disparities in business ownership in the region, drive economic activity, and increase employment in underemployed segments. The climate and circumstances in Cincinnati during this time not only catalyzed action, but also centered the conversation on economic solutions.

The Accelerator’s initial portfolio consisted of 20 companies with average revenues of $6.7 million. To date, 67 companies with average annual revenues of approximately $30 million have been supported by the Accelerator.

The Accelerator provides individually tailored advisory support and coaching to help Minority Business Enterprises (MBEs) acquire the resources they need to excel: a strong business strategy, access to capital, and connections within corporate organizations.

The Accelerator also works with Goal Setter anchor customers (mostly mid-cap and large-cap corporates) and aims to help them meet their diversity & inclusion goals by connecting the Goal Setter to minority-owned portfolio companies to help meet their purchasing needs.

Our results are your successes.

The Accelerator has made significant progress in moving towards its ambitious objective of $2 billion in aggregate annual growth and 5,000 new jobs by 2025.

To accomplish this, we have framed our work with four key strategic pillars:

GROW EXISTING PORTFOLIO FIRMS

Increase average size from $25M to $50M in part through enhanced partnerships with mid-cap and large cap corporate partners

BUILD A ROBUST PIPELINE

Identify 50 high growth MBEs by 2023 (10 annually) through partnership with Lincoln & Gilbert

ATTRACT LARGE SCALE MBES TO THE REGION

Partnership with REDI Cincinnati targeting out of region MBEs of scale in gaps where the region lacks existing minority firms

CREATE MBES VIA ACOUISITION OF MAINSTREAM FIRMS

“Non-minority” businesses with no succession plan and operating in growth industries

Mission

To increase economic inclusion and empowerment in the Cincinnati region by providing customized analysis, resources, and funding to accelerate the growth of scalable, Minority-owned businesses

Vision & Bold Goal

Grow the aggregate annual revenues of Accelerator portfolio companies to $2Billion and create 5,000 total jobs in the Cincinnati MSA by 2025.

Supporting Our Dedicated Staff and the MBE Community We Serve

The Accelerator is grateful to our local funding partners for helping us respond to the immediate and emerging needs of the businesses we support. We applaud your efforts and value your trust and partnership.