Worcester Business Journal

10 Worcester Business Journal | January 23, 2023 | wbjournal.com A place for innovation A diversity and inclusion consultant is preparing to open an incubator for entrepreneurs of color PHOTO | EDD COTE BY ISABEL TEHAN WBJ Staff Writer I n a city with as diverse a popu- lation as Worcester, a multitude of spaces should be dedicated for communities of color to gather in person, specifically a space where entrepreneurs of color can elevate their careers and affirm their identities. at's what Valerie Zolezzi-Wyndham envisions, and she has plans to purchase a space this winter to turn that vision into reality Zolezzi-Wyndham, the founder and owner of Upton-based diversity, equity, and inclusion consulting firm Promot- ing Good, expects to have 10 business owners as permanent tenants at the space to be called the PG Collaborative, with open seating in the style of a co- working space for up to 40. is physical space will help minority business owners thrive in an environment created for them, something that is a rarity, she said. "Important conversations will happen here," Zolezzi-Wyndham said. e space Zolezzi-Wyndam envisions will primarily house an incubator for creatives and entrepreneurs of color. She wants to buy a 2,500- to 4,000-square- foot building in downtown Worcester, and for reasons central to PG Collabora- tive's mission, she won't settle for renting a space. Buying, rather than leasing, will allow for autonomy, which is still lacking for communities of color. e physical space will allow entre- preneurs of color to come together, build relationships organically, and problem-solve issues unique to them, which will all benefit their young businesses in a way they can't with them now spread out across various spaces, she said. "ere's a shared feeling of loneliness and lack of network as they grow their business," she said. Already on board as the first tenant is Shawna Curran, founder and CEO of STEM ENRG. Her Worcester company runs a cohort-based, six-month training program teaching coding, project management, and financial literacy for women of color. "When she mentioned it to me, I just leapt. I almost jumped out of my chair. It was so refreshing and exciting," said Curran. A place to network roughout the U.S., Latinos are starting businesses at a faster rate than any other racial or ethnic group, according to a Jan- uary 2022 report from the Latino Entrepreneur- ship Initiative at Stanford Univer- sity in California. e number of Latino-owned businesses have grown 44% in the last 10 years, compared to 4% for non-Latinos. PG Collaborative will be centered around people of color, not just Latinos, as it is designed to be a safe space where they can be free of discrimination and racism. Curran, who worked in tech before starting her own firm, said remote work during COVID provided relief for those who spent their careers codeswitching and tolerating microag- gressions in the workplace. "During the pandemic, working remotely, people of color found a lot of relief," said Curran. A return to the office meant a return to dealing with those slights on a daily basis. Curran said working at the PG Collaborative will help her and others avoid these draining situations while still reaping the benefits and networking opportunities available in a physical Latino-owned U.S. tech firms Latino-owned tech firms ........... 346,836 White-owned tech firms ......... 4,819,100 Growth in Latino-owned tech firms since 2012 .......................26% Growth in all tech firms since 2012 .........................................12% Source: 2021 State of Latino Entrepeneurship, Stanford Graduate School of Business Juan Gomez, CEO and president of CENTRO Valerie Zolezzi-Wyndam and Shawna Curran stand in front of the first commissioned work for Casita Cultura Latina, painted by artist Victor "Marka27" Quiñonez for the inaugural Day of the Dead festival in Worcester, held in 2021.

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