MBP 2020-21 Book2 - Flipbook - Page 64
Mr. Alex C. Habersham
Macon & Middle Georgia Black Pages
590 D.T. Walton, Sr. Way
Macon, GA 31201
Dear Fellow Maconites,
Macon’s black-owned businesses are an incredible asset to our community. The Macon-Middle
Georgia Black Pages is a critical resource to help all of us find these businesses and support them
with our purchases. Not only do our black-owned businesses play an important role in our
economic and cultural vitality, but these businesses are also helping to close the racial wealth gap
in our community. According to a study by the Association for Enterprise Opportunity, black
business owners have a net worth that is twelve times greater than black non-business owners.
Helping start and expand black-owned businesses is a proven strategy to make our community
more equitable.
At NewTown Macon, we specialize in helping first-time, start-up and growing local business owners
with coaching and financial investments to build businesses. As a non-profit, we can afford to
invest the time and individual effort to learn about you and your dreams. Based on this expertise,
we are proud that half of our borrowers are women or people of color. We are certain this focus
on diversity will enhance downtown and benefit all of Middle Georgia.
No matter how much we invest in new black-owned businesses, these businesses only survive
when we make a conscious effort to support them. The Black Pages is our best resource to help us
find and support these businesses, and that is why NewTown Macon is pleased to partner with the
Black Pages each edition.
Many of Macon’s black-owned businesses are driving the revitalization of downtown. Eighteen
percent of the storefronts in downtown are currently operated by people of color, and we are
committed to increasing the percentage of businesses to match the demographics of our
community. We were very pleased to make a start on this commitment by holding the first
Diversity Initiative in partnership with the Black Pages, with support from the Community
Foundation of Central Georgia. We plan to repeat this program to specifically recruit and enable
more black-owned businesses to take advantage of downtown’s revitalization and propel us to a
more diverse and prosperous future.
If there is anything I can do to help you or your business take
advantage of all the opportunities downtown, please call or email me!
I look forward to talking to you, and I look forward to many more years
of partnering with the Black Pages to build a bright and inclusive future
for Macon and Middle Georgia.
Sincerely,
Josh Rogers
President & CEO
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