In May 2024, a platform for entrepreneurs called Hello Alice hit the headlines when a federal judge threw out the case against them that tried to claim its grant program for Black business owners was discriminatory.  The judgment was a win for diversity, equity and inclusion and the sanctity of the American Dream,  but the bigger story behind it is the scale of impact that Hello Alice has managed to achieve for small business owners since its inception in 2016.

We recently had the pleasure of speaking to Natalie Diamond, Vice President Of Business Development at Hello Alice, to give us a deeper insight into their unique for-profit impact model that empowers the largest community of small business owners in the country, and the ways in which they partner with enterprise leaders to drive a trust-based ecosystem that benefits everyone. 

NationSwell: Welcome Natalie. To kick us off, why don’t you tell us a little about Hello Alice’s mission in your own words.

Natalie Diamond: Hello Alice is a one-of-a-kind platform serving more than 1.5 million small business owners across all fifty states. We are committed to equitable access to capital and to supporting any entrepreneur with a good idea. As a women and minority owned and run business ourselves, we are passionate about supporting all small business owners — especially those in the New Majority, aka women, people of color and young people. Socially disadvantaged small business owners face persistent and glaring disparities when securing capital, which prevents them from growing their companies, reaching their full business potential, and supporting their communities. Our mission is to help increase access for the entire small business community. 

We have a unique model: by servicing our enterprise partners with valuable targeted marketing and impact opportunities, we are able to provide our growing community of small business owners with everything they need to scale their businesses, free of charge. Specifically, we help all small business owners with business and financial education as well as funding by offering a variety of services and programs including a loan center, grant programs, educational courses and boost camps, financial health tools, and curated opportunities. 

NS: You mentioned your unique model, aligning small business growth and equity goals. Tell us a little more about Hello Alice’s approach and how you engage businesses to drive impact.

ND: We recognized early on when we first began Hello Alice that financial institutions and enterprises wanted to help small business owners, but there wasn’t an efficient and trusted community platform to reach them. Enterprises also didn’t understand the needs of small businesses to adapt and improve their support initiatives, services, products, and programs for this demographic. Data and measurement of these impact initiatives and programs were missing.

We saw a great opportunity to connect small businesses and enterprises and empower them to help each other, which starts by building trust across the small business ecosystem. We now have seven years worth of data and expertise and a trusted community of over 1.5 million diverse entrepreneurs, each with a robust data profile that powers smart recommendations and relevant resources, from capital opportunities to products and solutions that will help take their business to the next level. The result is healthier small businesses with more money and opportunity to invest in services from the companies they transact with.  

Our team partners with marketing and impact leaders at a wide array of financial institutions and enterprises, to offer different types of programs and products for small business owners. We have a very tailored approach — understanding what kinds of small businesses our enterprise partners want to engage with and drive impact for, what they want to offer, and what data they are looking for in return, so we can create unique opportunities for them. Some examples of these programs and tools include the Business Health Score™ by the Global Entrepreneurship Network, the Hello Alice Small Business Mastercard, and various boot camps offering skills to small business owners hosted in partnership with FedEx, Antares Capital, and others. 

NS: Hello Alice recently secured a win in the case brought by America First Legal, relating to your grant program for Black small business owners, funded by Progressive insurance. What was the significance of this win and the team’s reactions? 

ND: We were thrilled when this case was dismissed, as it marked a huge win for the broader small business community. The case had the potential to pull even more funding opportunities from small business owners and impact how private businesses decide to distribute funds and contracts. With all of the challenges small business owners are facing these days, from labor shortages to heightened interest rates to inflation, litigation like this only adds to the pile of obstacles they encounter in trying to scale and survive. Small businesses are the engine of our entire economy and the dismissal allows the engine to keep running smoothly for now. 

NS: Are there any partners of Hello Alice that have been particularly supportive throughout this fight?

ND: We had some amazing partners and friends who were extremely supportive throughout this process. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission filed an amicus brief for us, which they rarely do for lawsuit cases. In the midst of this lawsuit, we were still able to raise our series C round. We’re incredibly grateful to all of these investors and friends for continuing to believe in Hello Alice’s mission and standing with us. Many of our financial and enterprise partners joined us for thought leadership roundtables in cities like Chicago, LA and NYC to ensure we continue to identify new solutions that we can collectively put into action for greater impact.

NS: As you say, the win was so important since small businesses face huge challenges despite their vital role in our economy. What are the largest struggles small businesses are facing today that Hello Alice is helping with? 

ND: Inflation and heightened interest rates continue to be two of the largest economic challenges small business owners face across the country. This, combined with difficulty in accessing capital and credit, greatly hinders any entrepreneur’s ability to accelerate their business growth.

Certain small business owners also face a lack of representation and support in business networks, leading to challenges in finding mentorship, investors, and other key industry players. 

The growing hill of litigation threatening programs and funding for small business owners is another challenge that has become increasingly concerning. Programs that small business owners have relied on for years are paused or going away completely, leaving gaps in financing that aren’t being filled. 

NS: What has been the impact of Hello Alice’s grant programs that are funded by your enterprise partners?

ND: We’ve seen an amazing impact from our grant programs, with over $45 million in capital distributed, and we hear equally wonderful feedback from our small business community. Oftentimes, small business owners aren’t able to access traditional loans or are only offered predatory loans. Other times, they are not able to access credit due to past circumstances that led to poor credit scores or they are denied for other reasons. Grants are an ideal source of funding for these business owners and are often a lifeline for businesses that need a jumpstart to scale. Many of our small business owners who receive grants have expressed the same sentiment, that if not for the grant, they would have had to close down their businesses. But with them, they were able to overcome their obstacles at the time and continue supporting their own communities and families.  

With the launch of our Business Health Score™, our grant programs have an even greater impact across the small business ecosystem. All small business grant applicants are now able to track, measure and receive tailored recommendations for how best to improve the health of their business. While only a small percent of applicants will receive the grant capital, our tools and technical assistance are now able to get more businesses healthy and eligible for capital products. This has also been especially critical for our enterprise partners looking to measure the success of these programs. Our Business Health Score™ collects comprehensive data to measure the impact of social initiatives, providing clear evidence of success for their investment in impact.

NS: Thank you for your time Natalie. Let’s end with a call to action: What ways can other companies advocate for and support small businesses?

ND: Enterprises and any type of corporation can support small businesses in a number of ways. Capital access is consistently the number one challenge for most underrepresented businesses, so starting a grants program is a direct path for support. Enterprises can host small business events and look internally across their subject matter experts to create mentorship programs and encourage their own executives to provide valuable lessons and advice to entrepreneurs. Companies can also begin supplier diversity contracting, ensuring diverse-owned small businesses, suppliers, and vendors are incorporated into their supply chain and business practices. 

Hello Alice are currently working with the NationSwell Studio. Our award-winning Studio develops clear strategies, compelling stories, and illuminating Collaboratives that move influential audiences to action while driving impact. Learn more.