Black Business, Black Wealth and a New Economic Conversation: Baton Rouge Set to Host Major Entrepreneurial Gathering

BATON ROUGE, La. — For three days this month, the Raising Cane’s River Center will become more than a convention facility.

It will become a marketplace of ideas, ambition and economic possibility as Black entrepreneurs, business owners, professionals, investors, community leaders and consumers gather for the inaugural Black Business Insiders Expo & Convention, Aug. 28-30.

The event comes at a critical moment for Black Baton Rouge.

Across the city, Black entrepreneurs are building businesses, creating jobs and developing brands. But the larger question is whether entrepreneurship can become something more powerful: a vehicle for ownership, wealth creation and economic independence.

That is the conversation the organizers hope to ignite.

The three-day event is built around “Culture • Commerce • Creativity” and is designed to connect entrepreneurs, corporate leaders, community stakeholders, shoppers and resource organizations. Organizers say the event will feature more than 50 vendors and more than 25 speakers, panelists and industry experts.

And for Baton Rouge's Black community, that matters.

Because owning a business is only the beginning.

From survival to economic power

For generations, Black entrepreneurship in Baton Rouge has been about more than making money.

It has meant creating opportunities when traditional institutions did not always provide them.

It has meant building businesses in neighborhoods where national chains were reluctant to invest. It has meant employing family members, mentoring young people, providing professional services and keeping dollars circulating within the community.

But today's Black entrepreneurs are confronting a different economic challenge.

The question is no longer simply:

Can we start businesses?

The question is:

Can we build businesses large enough to create generational wealth?

That means gaining access to capital, government contracts, commercial property, technology, skilled workers, customers and investment.

It means moving from being a business owner to becoming an employer.

From an employer to a property owner.

From a property owner to an investor.

And ultimately from individual success to community wealth.

That larger economic conversation gives the BBI Expo significance beyond its three-day schedule.

A marketplace built around Black enterprise

The expo will feature Black-owned businesses, small businesses, corporate vendors, healthcare and service providers, authors, creatives, nonprofits, government agencies, financial institutions, educational organizations and workforce resources.

The public will have an opportunity to shop, network and discover businesses operating throughout the Baton Rouge region.

The expo itself is listed as free and open to the public, while convention registration and special events are separate. Visit Baton Rouge lists convention registration at $125 to $350.

That distinction is important because the event is attempting to serve two audiences simultaneously:

The entrepreneur who needs opportunity — and the consumer who has the power to create it.

Every dollar spent with a local Black-owned business represents more than a transaction. It can become payroll, rent, inventory, another purchase from another local business or capital for expansion.

That is how an individual business begins to participate in a broader economic ecosystem.

The business conversation goes beyond networking

The convention will feature workshops, panels and masterclasses addressing business growth, financial empowerment, branding, innovation and strategic advocacy.

One scheduled panel, “Second Chance to CEO: From Incarceration to Entrepreneurship,” also illustrates the breadth of the conversation taking place during the weekend.

That subject reaches into one of the most complicated economic realities facing Black communities: how people who have encountered barriers to traditional employment can create their own economic pathway through entrepreneurship.

The weekend also will feature the Black Business Insiders Torch Awards & Gala, a Spotlight on Business Luncheon, an entertainment event featuring Nephew Tommy and an African Diaspora Prophetic Brunch.

The Torch Awards and Gala are scheduled for Aug. 28 at the River Center.

Why Baton Rouge needs this conversation

The timing is particularly significant.

A recent national analysis of Census business data found that Baton Rouge was among the metropolitan areas where the gap between Black business ownership and the Black population's share narrowed substantially.

From 2022 to 2023, Baton Rouge gained 242 Black-owned employer businesses, while the overall number of employer businesses increased by only 49.

That means Black-owned employer businesses were growing at a pace that stood out against the region's overall business growth.

The numbers suggest something important:

Black entrepreneurship in Baton Rouge is not standing still.

But growth in the number of businesses does not automatically mean growth in Black wealth.

A business can generate revenue without the owner owning the building.

A company can employ people without having enough capital to expand.

An entrepreneur can have a good product without having access to major contracts.

And a successful business can remain small for years because its owner cannot obtain the financing needed to move to the next level.

That is where the conversation becomes much larger than an expo.

Who gets to grow?

Baton Rouge has spent years developing programs designed to increase opportunities for disadvantaged and minority-owned businesses.

The city-parish's Socially and Economically Disadvantaged Business Enterprise program is specifically intended to increase the number and dollar value of contracts awarded to disadvantaged businesses.

The city-parish's own disparity study previously found that women- and minority-owned firms represented about 41% of businesses available for city-parish contracting opportunities but received an estimated 4% of contract dollars, compared with an estimated 21% that researchers determined could reasonably be expected based on availability.

Those numbers deserve continued scrutiny.

They raise a fundamental question:

If Black businesses are growing, are they gaining access to the public and private capital necessary to grow even larger?

That is a conversation Baton Rouge cannot afford to avoid.

The next generation is watching

Perhaps the most important audience at the River Center won't be the executives.

It will be the young people walking through the doors.

They will see Black people selling products.

Black people providing professional services.

Black people building companies.

Black people speaking from stages.

Black people receiving awards.

Black people negotiating deals.

And Black people investing in one another.

That visibility matters.

For a young person growing up in Baton Rouge, entrepreneurship should not be presented as a fallback for someone who cannot find a job.

It should be presented as a legitimate pathway to ownership.

More than an event

Chauna Banks, founder of Black Business Insiders, has described the gathering as a platform intended to strengthen Black entrepreneurship, increase business visibility and create meaningful opportunities with lasting community impact.

The event is co-hosted by Geno McLlaughlin and Tyressa Ty. Craig Stevens, president of Genesis 360, is among the featured speakers identified in advance publicity.

But the ultimate measure of the weekend will not be how many people walk through the doors.

It will be what happens after they leave.

Does an entrepreneur gain a customer?

Does a business secure a contract?

Does someone obtain financing?

Does a partnership form?

Does a young entrepreneur find a mentor?

Does a business owner decide to hire another employee?

Does someone finally take the step from renting commercial space to purchasing property?

Those outcomes are where economic development becomes tangible.

And that may be the most important message coming out of the BBI Expo:

Black business is not simply about celebrating what we have built. It is about deciding what we are going to own next.

The Black Business Insiders Expo & Convention takes place Aug. 28-30 at the Raising Cane’s River Center, 275 South River Road, in Baton Rouge.

Expo admission is free to the public.

Black Business Insiders Expo & Convention information and registration