RICHMOND, Va. -- Starting a business from scratch can seem scary.
On Sunday, The Love Movement Social Event Series partnered with the Black History Museum and Culture Center of Virginia, as well as the Urban League of Greater Richmond Young Professionals, to show entrepreneurs how to take the first step, by looking back at Richmond's past.
"Hopefully this event will inspire them," said Tory Gilbert, the organizer of the event.
Several Black-owned businesses starting from the ground-up met at the Hofheimer to showcase their craft and connect with business leaders for advice.
"It's inspiration. It's getting the fire and the drive," Gilbert said. "Forming your own business and having your own business, this is the American dream."
A reminder of that dream was presented right in the middle of the space: a table filled with pictures and texts sharing the history of Jackson Ward, Richmond's Black Wall Street in the late 1800s.
"The first Black-owned bank in America was founded in Jackson Ward," said Faithe Norrell, a history coordinator with the Museum. "In total there were five Black-owned banks, seven Black-owned insurance companies, and over 300 Black-owned businesses."
The story of Black-owned business booming in Richmond is one that resonates with Norrell.
"Albert Norrell, my grandfather, was one of the 13 men that was the founder of the True Reformers, the first Black-owned bank in America, and also a founding member of the Richmond Planet Newspaper," Norrell explained.
Sharing the stories of Black entrepreneurship opportunities, the legacy of Maggie Walker, who was the first woman to own a bank in the United States, and her grandfather, Norrell said, will hopefully encourage others to succeed.
"Our younger people just don't know these stories," Norrell said. "And that's why we're here... to tell these stories that inspire."
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