Crain’s Detroit Business
June 26, 2023
Jay Davis
Small business owners in Detroit and the metro area still have time to apply for a grant package through a Comcast initiative.
The Comcast RISE program is accepting applications through June 30. A selection of 100 businesses from Macomb, Oakland, Washtenaw and Wayne counties will be chosen to receive grant packages that include a $5,000 grant, consultation services, educational resources, creative production, media scheduling and a technology makeover.
The Michigan businesses will be joined by 100 awardees each in Baltimore, Philadelphia, Memphis and Portland, Ore., for a total of 500 grant winners. Awardees will be announced in August and honored in September.
Eligible businesses must have been in operation for at least three years, be independently owned and operated, and have 100 or fewer full- and part-time employees.
Comcast RISE — which stands for representation, investment, strength and empowerment — was created in November 2020 to help small businesses hardest hit by the COVID-19 pandemic, from bakeries and barber shops to child care centers and cleaning services. The program also helps to advance the objectives of diversity, equity and inclusion as well as community investment.
Since 2021, when awards were first given, Comcast RISE has aided more than 650 business owned by women and Black, Indigenous and people of color in Michigan. The program through two years has helped 13,000 small businesses nationwide through more than $110 million in monetary, marketing and technology grants. All small business owners are eligible to apply.
The program will evolve from helping businesses survive the pandemic, to helping businesses and their communities thrive with a focus on economic growth.
“We will continue our efforts to positively impact the communities in which we operate and help an even broader range of small businesses, while continuing to focus on diversity, inclusion and community investment.” Comcast Michigan senior vice president Kristee Cominiello said in a statement.