Ebony Jennings always wanted to run Jennings Asphalt. Her grandfather started the business, but it closed after he died. She says people around her often dismissed her hopes to revive the business.
“I went to my uncle maybe about 2011 and he, he told me like, asphalt it's not for women. It's just, 'It's too hard, you know, just stay, you know, in my lane,' which I was always there like admin work and then I got into finance, and I just had always been so just unfulfilled,” says Jennings.
After Jennings lost her job due to the COVID pandemic, she began to work to make her dream a reality. She says she applied for various loans to help get Jennings Asphalt off the ground but received none.
Then the news came that she was accepted into the Greater Milwaukee Foundation’s ThriveOn Small Business Loan Program. Jennings says it completely changed the trajectory of her business, which is based on Milwaukee’s north west side.
“When it came, I was on my living room floor painting and I was just listening to spiritual music and I got an email saying congratulations. But you know ... I didn't touch the loan until it felt like God told me I was ready to kind of just double down on myself. I found my office with the 20-foot garage. It was enough space for, you know, all of my tools and equipment and things like that and everything just kind of lined up,” says Jennings.
Jennings’ loan was part of the foundation’s third round of funding, which funneled $800,000 to 16 new businesses.
The loans are funded by philanthropy and a grant from the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation. They come with technical assistance to guide business owners in areas where they need the most support.
Kermiath McClendon is the investment impact manager for the Greater Milwaukee Foundation. He says the loan program is meant to help uplift marginalized communities that might be excluded from traditional lending or fall victim to predatory loans.
“So we weigh more heavy on the social impact than the financial return. A lot of our investments are — well, I guess our secret sauce is patient capital for low interest. We're really trying to be that gap finance person to help get a project or a business to the finish line, help scale a business or sustain business. It's basically one of the tools in our investment toolbox,” says McClendon.
Loan amounts range from $50,000 to $75,000, according to the foundation.
“We've helped create — or I would say creation and retention of jobs — it's up to 852. We invested in 19 ZIP codes, so just being that capital there, then a lot of doors stayed open or some businesses have scaled and were able to leverage additional dollars,” says McClendon.
Business owners can use the loans however they need to make sure their business can thrive. Jennings was able to hire two new employees, buy her own machinery and begin taking on more jobs. The growth helped Jennings give back to the community. She joined a program that introduces youth to different industries.
“A lot of that work that I do is at no cost. I want to bring in more people that look like me into this industry. Right now, outside of one other woman, I'm the only Black woman in the state of Wisconsin that owns this asphalt company. So, I just want to show — especially people that look like me — that we can get in this industry and be just as competitive and be just as successful,” says Jennings.
The loans are paid back with 2% interest to the Greater Milwaukee Foundation and returned to the same pool of funding for other small businesses to use in the future. It’s a circle of funding aimed at building new businesses and strengthening communities.
