Minority Business Development Center celebrates its first year in Bloomington, plans for more in 2024

“These centers are important because it gives folks a sense of belonging, that I belong in that community, the community is embracing me and they’re trying to help me be successful,” said Denise Moore, CEO of the Minority Business Development Center. “We all live in this community and we all contribute in some way.”

The center, which is located at 1615 E. Empire Street, is a nonprofit organization associated with the Black Business Alliance Peoria chapter and is near the Aeropostale and Rue21 stores inside Bloomington’s Eastland Mall.

Moore started the Black Business Alliance in Bloomington before moving to Peoria, where she opened the first Minority Business Development Center location.

Having worked in the business world and trying to get her own business started, Moore said she realized the need for a center like this to provide a roadmap and teach people the elements of starting their own business while connecting them with grant opportunities, networking and other events.

Once she noticed people traveling from Bloomington-Normal to Peoria for workshops and meetings, Moore said she knew a center in the Twin Cities could provide even more opportunities for individuals looking for help.

“There’s a lot of money available to organizations who are servicing high schoolers and college students, but once you get out of high school or college, there’s not a lot of companies or organizations that are willing to help you at no cost,” Moore said. “So that’s where we come in, especially for the minority population that we serve because this is so needed it’s unbelievable.”

While the center’s main office is in Peoria, the Bloomington location acts as more of a training facility. In its first year, the MBDC focused on spreading the word about what it offers, showcasing its services and hosting as many workshops as possible to show people and business how the center can help, Moore said.

In the last year alone, Moore said they have hosted a plethora of opportunities for entrepreneurship training, contractor development, IT workforce development, resume and portfolio development and grant writing.

Among those opportunities, the MBDC hosted a Holiday Market in the hallways of Eastland Mall in December 2023, bringing in 15 vendors, and last month, Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton visited the center last month to talk with 25 minority women who own business ranging from counseling, retail, real estate, social services, fitness training, food production and accounting.

“It was an amazing opportunity to network with other minority women business owners and learn from each other,” said Fallon Carruthers, owner of SketchCustomTees in Bloomington. “That was really focused on minority women and helping us get free resources that are essential for small business because a lot of times we are already on a tight budget.”

Carruthers, who operates her business at home, said she offers shirts, tumblers, mugs, mousepads and other items that can be customized. She first started it as a hobby, but in 2018 she decided to make it into a business.

Carruthers said she had heard of the center in Peoria on social media before visiting the center in Bloomington for its grand opening and began attending workshops and using the center’s network of businesses to connect with vetted professionals to help grow her business.

Now with the help of the center, she has been able to learn more about grant opportunities offered locally or through the state and build her businesses exposure at events, Carruthers said.

Tiffany Easter, owner of Tiff’s Hot Chocolate, said she first learned about the center when she was asked to participate in the Holiday Market. Now she said she has been able to learn more about the center’s resources and connect with a radio advertiser to help spread the word.

“The physical presence within Eastland Mall for the market was the biggest local visibility that we’ve personally enjoyed,” said Easter, who operates her business out of her home. “They offer businesses, specifically minority business, additional support services that they can really benefit from.”

Easter said she started her business during the COVID-19 pandemic in October 2020, and over the years, it has grown from just selling hot chocolate bombs to offering oatmeal bombs and other tasty treats. She said she looks forward to being able to operate the business year-round in 2024, instead of her previous seasonal schedule from October through February.

“Just having a resource such as the center here in Bloomington-Normal is vitally important,” Easter said. “We have a lot of small minority businesses in the area and just having the additional support or resources and a place that we can go to is crucial to our growth.”

As for this year, Moore said she looks forward to hosting even more events and workshops and potentially hosting another market during the springtime. She also plans to collaborate with local organizations to take the MBDC on the road and create a pop-up market near the entrance to the center to house local small businesses.

“We struck on something when we started doing this, and it has resonated with the community,” Moore said. “This is our way of helping them to succeed in their business.”

To learn more about the Minority Business Development Center, visit mbdcillinois.org.