African American Chamber of Commerce of New Jersey (AACCNJ)

Accredited by the United States Chamber of Commerce, the AACCNJ seeks to enlarge its sphere of influence and enhance its ability to be a critical source of information, inspiration, knowledge, and resources for New Jersey’s 80,000+ African-American businesses and 1.2 million+ Black residents. As part of its ROI (Resources, Opportunities and Information), the AACCNJ offers advocacy building, community and government relations, business development, workforce-readiness training, and education attainment. It serves as a mechanism for communication, program creation, and strategic implementation of initiatives and resolutions that help build New Jersey’s economic landscape at the local, regional, and state levels.

The AACCNJ is a conduit to bridging economic gaps encountered by the Black communities in New Jersey, from sole proprietorships and fledgling businesses to at-risk teens and formerly incarcerated individuals. It opens lines of communication between government officials and suppliers; promotes enterprise activity for women-, veteran-, and minority-owned businesses; elevates constituents’ access to capital and visibility in key markets; and designs customized mentorship and entrepreneurial programs for adults and youths. The AACCNJ accomplishes the foregoing through webinars; conferences; community outreach; and group- and one-on-one workforce training, professional development, and technical assistance programs.

The AACCNJ seeks to mitigate the economic and health disparities suffered by New Jersey’s Black residents and Black business owners.

--African Americans have the highest unemployment and highest poverty in New Jersey.

--The median income for New Jersey’s Black households is $50,395 compared to $91,455 for New Jersey’s White households.

--The median net worth for New Jersey’s African Americans is $5,900 versus $315,000 for Whites.

--Thirty-eight percent of New Jersey’s African Americans enjoy homeownership versus 70% of Whites.

--The State of New Jersey does less than three percent of contracting with African Americans even though African Americans represent more than 15% of the state’s population.

--Access to capital and accumulation of wealth remain two of the biggest challenges for Black business owners.

--Only one percent of Black-owned businesses obtain loans during their founding year while seven percent of White-owned businesses accomplish the same.

--Of the 80,000+ Black-owned businesses in New Jersey, 93%-95% are sole proprietors.

--The COVID-19 pandemic caused Black business owners to suffer greater losses of revenue and opportunities than White business owners.

--The pandemic amplified major structural inequities, systemic discrimination, and healthcare disparities that have impacted Black communities for generations.

The AACCNJ regularly connects small business owners and key stakeholders such as investors, local policymakers, and mentors with the relevant experience to improve coordination, collaboration, and knowledge bases within the small business ecosystem. It accomplishes the foregoing by providing the following:

• Access to government, educational institutions, healthcare providers, corporations
• Training/development programs
• Educational forums and networking events
• Member promotions through spotlight features in chamber marketing materials and on the website and radio show
• Capacity-building strategies customized to deliver results
• Assistance in developing and implementing public policy strategies
• Supply chain diversity
• Human resources recruitment services
• Youth leadership and entrepreneur programs
• Training, workforce development, and job-readiness programs
• Pro-business legislative agenda which encompasses education reform and job creation
• Partnerships to increase government contracting with Black-owned businesses
• HUD Section 3, Title VI, compliance
• Pro bono legal assistance for qualifying members

 Signature events of the AACCNJ include the following, which are open to chamber members and non-members: 

• Annual Circle of Achievement Awards Gala
• Annual State of Black New Jersey Summit
• Annual "Women Who Empower” Awards Luncheon
• Annual Golf Classic
• Annual Business Leadership Conference and Pre-conference Mixer
• Annual Corporate Awards Event
• Annual Year End Meeting
• Health and Educational Forums/Webinars

The AACCNJ assists with access to capital, capital campaigns, and financial education and information by offering small and micro loans, high-touch and individualized technical assistance, financial literacy workshops/webinars, and capacity-building and administrative support to its members and non-members.

The AACCNJ serves New Jersey’s 80,000+ African-American businesses and 1.2 million+ Black residents. It impacts the lives of New Jersey’s Black entrepreneurs by helping them achieve their professional/ personal goals and enhancing their economic growth and sustainability. It also impacts the lives of New Jersey’s Black residents by elevating their socioeconomic status.

 For example, in April 2021, the chamber launched the Equitable Small Business Initiative to improve the overall competitiveness, profitability, sustainability, growth, and wealth basis in the African-American community. Interest in the initiative has yielded 328 intakes, resulting in 49 applications, 26 loans approved, and 16 loans closed, totaling $1,063,575. Applications have come from 18 of New Jersey’s 21 counties, and 244 jobs have been created.

After the AACCNJ advocated for the State of New Jersey to establish a bonding program to enable small businesses to better position themselves to compete for public contracts, in May 2018, the New Jersey Economic Development Authority (NJEDA) awarded the chamber the initial Small Business Bonding Readiness Assistance Program. The first cohort to participate graduated in May 2019. Of the 28 graduates, 14 have qualified for $11.8 million+ in surety bonding, and 24 won bids on public contracts. The second cohort graduated in November 2020. Twenty-two of the 40 graduates have received confirmation that they would be favorably considered for bonds ranging from $100,000-$750,000. To date, alumni of the second cohort have qualified for a total of $11.9 million+ in surety bonding. The third cohort completed the program with 14 qualifying for surety bonding that currently totals $16 million+. One hundred and five businesses have participated in the program since its inception, with 50 qualifying for $39.7 million+ in surety bonds.

New Jersey

The AACCNJ’s mission is to help launch and sustain small businesses. Specifically, the chamber seeks to economically empower and sustain African-American communities, facilitating entrepreneurship and free enterprise activity within New Jersey, with direct outreach programs. Unlike other associations of allied businesses, the chamber serves as a proactive advocacy group. While providing a collective voice for New Jersey’s Black business leaders, the chamber also advocates and promotes economic diversity while fostering a climate of growth through major initiatives on the educational and public policy levels.

AACCNJ’s theory of change stems from this simple statement – it’s not who you know, but who knows you that fosters accretive value. Accordingly, AACCNJ designs and implements activities and initiatives to heighten awareness of the following: 

• AACCNJ;
• AACCNJ’s members and their products and services;
• AACCNJ’s Founder, President, and CEO;
• issues and public policies that adversely affect New Jersey’s Black communities; and
• meaningful educational and training programs.

AACCNJ promotes the foregoing through its daily email blasts to more than 10,000 contacts, its radio and television shows, numerous networking events, workshops and webinars, leadership development programs for adults and youths, technical assistance services, testimony before the New Jersey Legislature, and ongoing conversations with the governor, legislators, and government officials. These activities have forged meaningful relationships that have resulted in the following: 

• AACCNJ solicited for recommendations of chamber members to be considered for board seats, small business collaborations with large operations/corporations, and supplier diversity opportunities;
• small businesses gaining access to capital to grow and/or retain or hire employees;
• AACCNJ awarded new funding through 2024 to provide training to Black businesses to increase their bonding capacity to bid on certain government contracts;
• AACCNJ named the 2021 “Chamber of the Year” by the National Black Chamber of Commerce;
• ROI-NJ, an online business news publication, ranked AACCNJ’s Founder, President, and CEO #1 on the ROI Influencers: People of Color List in 2020 and 2021 and #20 on the ROI Influencers: Power List – Top 50 in 2022; and
• thirty-three of 68 conditional cannabis licenses for recreational use awarded to Black-owned businesses after the chamber issued a clarion call for justice for Black businesses in the recreational marijuana space.

In connection with the new funding for the Small Business Bonding Readiness Assistance Program, New Jersey Assemblywoman Shavonda E. Sumter commented, “The AACCNJ has long been a leading force in empowering Black business owners and connecting them with the tools necessary to thrive. By committing this pivotal funding to this AACCNJ-administered program, the NJEDA is investing in the future of Black-owned businesses and ensuring they possess the necessary skills and resources needed to compete for state contracts.”