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Resources for Disadvantaged, Minority, Woman & Veteran Owned Businesses
Resources focused on starting, growing, and supporting black, disadvantaged, Latino, women, and veteran owned businesses.
- Disadvantaged, Minority & Woman-Owned Business Certification & Opportunities
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- Veterans
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Disadvantaged, Minority & Woman-Owned Business Certification & Opportunities
Minority Business Development Agency Business Center (MBDA)
The MBDA Business Center of Dallas/Fort Worth is an affiliate of the U.S. Department of Commerce, Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA) and provides management and technical assistance to minority-owned businesses (MBEs). The Center delivers a variety of services to assist MBEs in growing their business and increasing their capacity. Clients typically meet a revenue minimum requirement of $1 million+ in operating revenue.
National Minority Supplier Development Council (NMSDC)
The NMSDC advances business opportunities for certified minority business enterprises and connects them to corporate members.
U.S. Department of Transportation
The Department of Transportation's Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) Program is designed to remedy ongoing discrimination and the continuing effects of past discrimination in federally-assisted highway, transit, airport, and highway safety financial assistance transportation contracting markets nationwide. The primary remedial goal and objective of the DBE program is to level the playing field by providing small businesses owned and controlled by socially and economically disadvantaged individuals a fair opportunity to compete for federally funded transportation contracts.
Contracting Assistance Programs
The Small Business Administration (SBA) provides several programs to help small businesses win federal contracts. Participating in these programs helps small businesses to win a fair share of federal contracts, qualify for exclusive set-aside and sole-source contracts, partner with established contractors to win contracts, and get business mentoring and education to learn how federal contracting works.
Historically Underutilized Business (HUB) Program
The Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts promotes full and equal procurement opportunities for small, minority, and women-owned businesses. State agencies are required by procurement rules to include HUBs in their purchasing bid process and look to the state for verification. Only certified HUBs are listed in the online Texas HUB Directory. This program assists businesses through the process to be a certified HUB.
PeopleFund
The PeopleFund creates economic opportunity and financial stability by providing access to capital, education, and resources to build healthy small businesses who participate in their programs.
Women
Texas Woman's University - Center for Women Entrepreneurs
The Center for Women Entrepreneurs at Texas Woman's University is committed to helping women in Texas become successful business owners. They provide the tools for women-owned businesses to succeed, including: business advising, funding, networking, and training.
AccelerateHER
This Texas Woman's University Center for Women Entrepreneurs and Stoke Incubator Program is designed to help early stage women-owned or funded businesses and startups develop and test their ideas and grow their businesses with a hands-on focus by the program manager, mentors, and partner networks. This incubator program will equip participating entrepreneurs with tools, education, coaching, and mentorship that will enable them to successfully develop their products or services, take them to market, and secure funding or investment where needed.
The Governor's Commission for Women
For more than 50 years, the Governor's Commission for Women has served as a resource and champion for women throughout the state of Texas. The Commission's mission is to provide the resources and tools that empower and enable Texas women and girls so that they may live healthier, more productive and more prosperous lives.
Governor Abbott charged the Commission with development strategies and implement plans to address advancing women-owned businesses. Learn how to start a business in Texas, view the Governor's Women Small Business Series webinars, and more.
WiNGS
WiNGS provides a full suite of tailored services to empower women and families to live their fullest potential, no matter where they are in their journey. They do that by providing a continuum of resources for near-term needs, first-time motherhood, financial resiliency, career growth, and entrepreneurial development to support their member as she increasingly gains confidence and sufficiency in achieving her life goals.
Social Success
View a listing of Programs for Professional Female Mentorship and Networking (PDF).
Veterans
National Veteran Owned Business Association (NaVOBA)
NaVOBA is an independent 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization governed and led by corporate America to create corporate contracting opportunities for America’s Veteran’s and Service-Disabled Veteran’s Business Enterprises (VBEs/SDVBEs) through certification, advocacy, outreach, recognition and education.
Office of Veterans Business Development Resources (OVBD)
The OVBD’s mission is to maximize the availability, applicability and usability of small business programs for Veterans, Service-Disabled Veterans, Reserve Component Members, and their dependents or survivors. OVBD is the Small Business Administration's liaison with the veterans business community, provides policy analysis and reporting and is as an ombudsman for veteran entrepreneurs.
OVBD has several programs and services to assist aspiring and existing veteran entrepreneurs such as training, counseling and mentorship, and oversight of Federal procurement programs for Veteran-Owned and Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Businesses.
Resources for Veteran-Owned Businesses
Business.com has curated a page full of resources specific to the needs of former military personnel. The webpage includes real life examples of how applicable military experience is in the day-to-day of owning a business. The page includes information on Veteran specific funding, getting government contracts, networking and mentorships, disable veteran resources, and additional resources for transitioning from the military to business owner.