Business Moguls Sean Combs and Shawn Carter, are in the developmental stages of creating an app that links “Black-owned and Black-friendly businesses” to the Black customer in any given city or neighborhood within the country via gq.com The app still is without a name but is being described by Combs and Carter as “Black Excellence”.
“I want to be an authentic, unapologetic warrior for black culture and the culture of the street and how it moves. My thing is most importantly to change the narrative of the black race. I can’t relate to anything that isn’t about that” say Combs. “the application will make it possible for us to have an economic community. It’s about blacks gaining economic power.”
In addition to our communities gaining economic power, how long the dollar circulates with the community is as equally important, according to blackmeninamerica.com our Black dollars stay in the community for a total of 6 hours the lowest of any other ethnic group, a disturbing stat to say the least.
But according to researchers from Howard University via blackenterprise.com “have looked into the claims and could not properly substantiate the statistics. Howard University analyzed credible data and research tracking sources, such as The Federal Reserve, Bureau of Labor Statistics, SBA, and even other reports from Nielsen, and none of these sources track how often money circulates within a particular community.”
Nevertheless, the amount of time that the Black dollar circulates needs to change from hours to long stretches of days. Hopefully this app serves as an aid that we as a community use as a whole to make that change into reality.
According to blackenterprise.com “Black buying power currently stands at over $1.1 trillion and is on the road to hit about $1.5 trillion by 2021. This collective buying power means that nearly $2 trillion will be flowing through black America annually very soon, making us the centerpiece for various researchers, marketers, advertisers, and other campaigns designed to influence black spending patterns.”
With all eyes targeted on Africa America spending power, and the creation of businesses on the rise, focus shifts to making sure the doors remain opened in every community. A lot can and has been either stated or reported regarding both businessmen however, this app should be seen as a form of activism that supports our communities and economic growth, serving as a locater directory or web of connections that ultimately results in something that will resemble Black Wall Street or W.E.B. Du Bois’s “talented tenth”. Lifting each other up, as we climb is essential especially during these times we live in today, which we all can agree aren’t normal.