COLUMBIA, Md. — It's still a work in progress, but a former restaurant along the Columbia waterfront is slowly turning into Laura Bacon's vision for a space dedicated to building up women of color entrepreneurs.
Bacon is the founder of the non-profit The 3rd, which provides resources and support to women of color business owners.
"We provide you with a business community. It’s this idea of us all coming together and supporting each other, regardless if you are thinking about starting a business or have a million dollar business," she said. "The community learns from each other and supports each other."
Bacon said membership to The 3rd is structured around three of the main challenges that women of color business owners face, including networking, capacity and entrepreneurial support.
"We try to support women with a tech market place, with mentor support, things that they wouldn’t necessarily be able to pull out of their pocket but need the support to help their business grow," she said.
Work is underway to renovate the 8,000 sq. ft. space that Bacon said will serve a multitude of functions. There will be a cafe, conference rooms, podcast rooms, offices and a stage for events. She said much of the space will be open to both members and the public.
"What we’re doing is bringing an entire community in and saying we want to amplify women of color-owned businesses in this community and you want to too. Welcome!"
Stephanie Amponsah is one of the nearly 100 members that have already committed to The 3rd. She is the owner of Yaa Chic, an online clothing and accessories store that employs women in West Africa to make the products.
She said she's already seeing a lot of benefits from joining the group, such as finding an accountant and meeting other women of color business owners in the area.
"It does feel lonely and you don’t see a lot of us like out there, so to be able to have this community of women who look like you, have a similar culture and really understand what you’re going through to me is huge."
Amponsah had some of her products featured in a display at the new Busboys and Poets late last year, along with products from other members. Bacon said its these kinds of connections she hopes to secure more of through The 3rd to promote and amplify the businesses they support.
"We say at The 3rd that community is the radical solution to social injustice and economic development issues. Investing in women is investing in yourself, is investing in your community," she said.
Bacon is looking to open the space in Columbia by early June. They are always looking for new members as well as donations to support the facility. Click here for information on how to donate or join The 3rd.
