Five concepts begin year-long program to grow
restaurant businesses, supported by JPMorgan Chase, the
City of Indianapolis and The
Meridian Foundation
INDIANAPOLIS, Nov. 14,
2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Be Nimble Foundation, a
501(c)(3) social enterprise dedicated to creating fully diverse and
inclusive tech ecosystems, today announced the second cohort of its
Melon Kitchen accelerator. The accelerator is a one-year program
that takes emerging food entrepreneurs from idea to test kitchen to
revenue generation. Chefs in the program receive training on a
variety of topics, including business planning, licensing and legal
set-up, menu preparation, pricing and revenue strategy, hiring
staff and pitching to investors.
Melon Kitchen's Second Cohort includes:
- Ummi's Table
- Mrs. Murray's Naturals
- Samosas & Sauce
- Stix
- Juzen Juice Bar
Upon starting the program, each entrepreneur receives a
$5,000 grant. At the end of the
program, they are eligible for an investment of up to $50,000 from The Nile Capital Fund to scale their
business. The Nile Capital Fund is a recently launched fund from Be
Nimble providing revenue-based equity loans and traditional equity
investments for Black founders.
"Seeing this program continue at 16 Tech, and looking back on
the success our first cohort has had, is incredibly rewarding,"
said Jeff Williams, co-founder of Be
Nimble. "We're starting to see things really take off through our
different accelerators. And now with The Nile Fund, we're able to
support founders, entrepreneurs, chefs and creators of all kinds
here in our community beyond that first step. This second cohort
has some truly unique concepts that go beyond meals, touching food
products/retail. I can't wait for them to take shape."
The second cohort of Melon Kitchen is made possible due to
investment from JPMorgan Chase, the City
of Indianapolis and The Meridian Foundation. Specifically,
JPMorgan Chase recently invested $300,000, which supported Black Innovation Week
earlier this year, and will be used to continue the success of the
Melon Kitchen accelerator program.
"This program provides emerging entrepreneurs with the resources
and support they need to launch and scale their businesses. It's a
concept in equity we're passionate about supporting," said
Phylicia Manley, Vice President and
Program Officer in Global Philanthropy at JPMorgan Chase. "Black
and Brown founders face significant obstacles in accessing the
capital and support needed to grow their businesses. Programs like
the Melon Kitchen accelerator help provide equity in leveling the
playing field to create more opportunity."
Kadeesha and Antoine Wiggins,
graduates of the first Melon Kitchen cohort, recently opened a new
brick-and-mortar location of their plant-based burger concept,
Burgeezy, on the canal in Indianapolis. The duo also received a
$50,000 investment from The Nile
Capital Fund.
"The Melon Kitchen accelerator was a game-changer for us," said
Kadeesha Wiggins. "We had the concept down, and we knew the food
was good thanks to early feedback, but the accelerator allowed us
to formalize our business concept, plan for expansion and scout
locations. The investment from Nile will allow us to continue to
scale and bring delicious vegan food to Indy and our neighboring
states."
"I've never been more confident in the future of Indianapolis and that's because groups like Be
Nimble are leading the movement to make a more prosperous city for
Black and Brown entrepreneurs," said Mayor Joe Hogsett. "Our City needs to make sure every
chef and entrepreneur can have access to the tools they need to add
their own flavor, and we're proud to invest in the continued impact
of Melon Kitchen."
To learn more about Melon Kitchen, please visit
melon.kitchen.
About Be Nimble Foundation
Be Nimble Foundation
is a 501(c)(3) social enterprise taking a qualitative and
quantitative approach to creating fully diverse and inclusive tech
ecosystems. Our career training and placement programs up-skill
unemployed, under-employed, and career-transitioners who are
interested in the tech industry. Our entrepreneurship programs
support Black and Latinx start-up founders to get them the
technical resources, support and funding they need to build
high-growth, high-scale companies. To learn more about the Be
Nimble Foundation, visit www.benimbleco.com.
About JPMorgan Chase
JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:
JPM) is a leading financial services firm based in the United States of America ("U.S."), with
operations worldwide. JPMorgan Chase had $3.9 trillion in assets and $317 billion in stockholders' equity as of
September 30, 2023. The Firm is a
leader in investment banking, financial services for consumers and
small businesses, commercial banking, financial transaction
processing and asset management. Under the J.P. Morgan and Chase
brands, the Firm serves millions of customers in the U.S., and many
of the world's most prominent corporate, institutional and
government clients globally. Information about JPMorgan Chase &
Co. is available at www.jpmorganchase.com.
Contact
Grace
Williams
BLASTmedia for Be Nimble Co.
benimble@blastmedia.com
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SOURCE Be Nimble