KANSAS CITY, Kan. — A new Entrepreneurial Resource and Training Center opened in Kansas City, Kansas, on Wednesday.
It will offer a myriad of resources for potential business owners, from training classes to financial advisors to small business loans.
There are also 10 office spaces for rent.
The group behind the center is called The National Black MasterMind Group, founded by Dr. Donnetta Watson. She said her mission is to increase the number of Black entrepreneurs in her community and across the country.
"We believe it's important for us to help entrepreneurs to become sustainable so that they can employ people. And once they are built to employ people, they can continue to help the community to grow as a whole," Watson said.
The center was initially supposed to open in early 2020. But when the pandemic hit, Watson shifted to offering online classes.
Muriel Donnell just graduated from one of those classes last week. She comes from a long line of good cooks, so she thought opening a food truck would be a great fit. However, she needed the business knowledge to get started.
"I didn't want to be the typical story that you hear, 'Oh, the food was so good, why'd they close so quickly? You know, they were only open like two years.' I didn't want to be that story," Donnell said.
After graduating from the business mastery course, she said she can now apply that knowledge to her newly-opened food truck, Donnell's Kitchen Playlist.
The classes offered by the center will stay virtual for now. There are classes for entrepreneurs, as well as training classes for those who would like to become a coach or mentor for other businesses.
The center also offers loan services and other resources through its community partners: KCK E-Community, SCORE, Cap Fed and AltCap.
Businesses can apply to rent one of 10 office spaces at the center.
For more information about the center, click here or call 913-306-3685.
The center is focused on serving entrepreneurs in Kansas City, Kansas, and the Kansas City metro. For those outside of that area, resources are still available through the Black MasterMind Group, which operates nationwide. For more information on how to become a member, click here.
For updates on where Donnell's Kitchen Playlist food truck is located, click here.
