In January 2023, Ibukun Orefuja founded Black Business Edmonton (BBE) to bridge a gap he noticed in the local business community.
The tech savvy founder has a background in system analysis and has worked for numerous companies.
“I felt I was using my skills for other businesses and groups,” said Orefuja. “That realization led me to venture out to other black-owned businesses in Edmonton.”
Orefuja invested $30,000 Canadian dollars of his own money into launching BBE and continues to fund the initiative with $200 each month.
The money, he said, “goes into maintaining and growing the organization.”
Orefuja noticed the gap in the business industry and how it lacked a bridge connecting specifically black businesses in the community – so he built the bridge.
He highlights that his vision of Black Business Edmonton is to “create a platform that showcases businesses, side gigs, talents and events.”
One of the challenges Orefuja said he faced starting up is marketing to existing businesses with a low follower count, on how he could promote their business. “It took a lot of convincing,” said Orefuja, “but they liked the way I created content differently from what they had before.
“Three months after the launch of BBE, I hosted the company’s first business meet and greet with about six people in attendance, at my house,” said Orefuja.
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