Follow Girard Linkedin Twitter Facebook
Email Girard Email
Business Growth
Mar 8, 2021

Community Prosperity Through Entrepreneurship

Sponsored Content provided by Girard Newkirk - Co-founder & CEO , Genesis Block

"I have begun everything with the idea that I could succeed, and I never had much patience with the multitudes of people who are always ready to explain why one cannot succeed." – Booker T. Washington
 
Entrepreneurs are leaders by definition and the ability to articulate a vision is critical to building prosperity in communities. Genesis Block is the anchor organization for minority and women owned business services and economic development in southeastern North Carolina. Our mission is to build the entrepreneur class in communities block by block.
 
Our Cape Fear Build the Block Plan focuses on existing small business growth. We partnered with NC IDEA and New Hanover County government to launch the Genesis Block Back on the Block Minority Accelerator in January. The minority business accelerator is tied to Genesis Block’s Cape Fear Build A Block Plan, which is a three-year plan to produce 40 companies through the accelerator each year creating 120 minority and women-owned businesses, and generating 400 jobs and $13 to $15 million in revenue from the businesses created.
 
A great example of the range of our small business services model is evident in our partnership with MeMa’s Chick’n Ribs. Owners Myra and James McDuffie, reached out to Genesis Block in September 2020, during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic with serious challenges. They were initially approved for funding to begin a multimillion-dollar project in Burgaw, North Carolina. However, a significant portion of the funds were rescinded due to the challenging business environment. The owners reached out to Genesis Block for support and we are now in the process of leveraging community capital to launch the Creek Shopping Center development that will bring 30 jobs to Pender County.
 
New business formation is also one of the key components of the Genesis Block mission. Specifically for the Cape Fear region, we have a vision to build existing minority businesses and generate new business formation in high growth industries including information technology and software development, distribution & logistics, construction management, and life sciences. Thanks to the support and partnership with CastleBranch, we are building a technology platform that will connect minority and women owned businesses with prime contractors, municipalities, and anchor institutions. The goal is to build the capacity of minority businesses through the Genesis Block ecosystem preparing them to become viable business partners to increase minority participation in the procurement of contracts.
 
Building the entrepreneur class is our mission at Genesis Block and we are proud to serve small business owners, entrepreneurs, and early stage startups in the Cape Fear region.


Girard Newkirk is the Co-founder and CEO of Genesis Block. He is also the Founder of KWHCoin and is a native of Pender County. He moved back to the Wilmington area by way of San Jose, California in November of 2018. In 2019, his company KWHCoin won the Coastal Entrepreneur Award for Emerging Company which focused on the company’s work with combining renewable energy and blockchain technology to provide off-grid energy solutions. In 2020, he was named to the Top 100 Business Leaders in Wilmington by the Greater Wilmington Business Journal for his work with Genesis Bock and Building the Entrepreneur Class. Genesis Block, in partnership with NC IDEA and New Hanover County, has developed the Genesis Block Back on the Block Minority Accelerator to advance entrepreneurship in minority communities.

Gbicon transparent
Ico insights

INSIGHTS

SPONSORS' CONTENT
Tommytaylor ceo unitedway

How Philanthropy Fits Into Your Financial Plan

Tommy Taylor - United Way
Mcwhorter 0005

The Coastal Corridor is Helping Wilmington Startups With Connected Devices for Life Sciences Industry

Heather McWhorter - UNCW Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship
Headshotrosaliecalarco 1182131047

The Government is Calling? Think Again!

Trending News

Conservation Group Signs $8M Deal To Buy The Point On Topsail Island

Audrey Elsberry - Mar 26, 2024

National Organization Bestows Top Award On Cape Fear Professional Women In Building

Staff Reports - Mar 26, 2024

Engineering Firm Hires Four Employees

Staff Reports - Mar 26, 2024

N.C. Ports Officials React To Baltimore Bridge Collapse

Audrey Elsberry - Mar 26, 2024

NCino's Fourth-quarter Earnings Signal Rebound From Liquidity Crisis

Audrey Elsberry - Mar 27, 2024

In The Current Issue

INFO JUNKIE: Jack Fleming

Jack Fleming, owner of Socialry Marketing & Scourz and emcee for 1 Million Cups Wilmington, shares his media and tech picks....


Hacking Cyberdefense Shortage

A shortage of cybersecurity professionals influenced professor Ulku Clark and her team to slowly evolve UNCW’s offerings to now include eigh...


Park Progress

The planning for Pender Commerce Park began in the early 2000s when the county wanted to create an economic driver on its largely rural west...

Book On Business

The 2024 WilmingtonBiz: Book on Business is an annual publication showcasing the Wilmington region as a center of business.

Order Your Copy Today!


Galleries

Videos

2023 Power Breakfast: Major Developments