“Thanks to our partnership with the Maricopa Career Institute, starting today, D Squared Homes for the Homeless has space in Phoenix for volunteers to come to help us create sleeping mats for the homeless community,” says the CEO of D Squared Homes for the Homeless, Juan Te Dailey.

After meeting through Local First Arizona’s We Rise Accelerator, two local businesses, The Maricopa Career Institute and D Squared Homes For The Homeless, decided to pool their resources and have entered into a partnership with a common goal of continuing to uplift underserved populations.

“So many doors have opened for me,” says soap maker Veronica Cruz about graduating from Local First Arizona’s Fuerza Local Business Accelerator. Sales have increased eightfold, and she even has shipped internationally. “This program was a little push that I needed.”

As the largest coalition of of locally-owned businesses in the nation, you are part of a movement that elevates the voices of Arizona’s independent, locally-owned businesses – connecting people, communities and resources for meaningful actions that build a diverse, inclusive and prosperous Arizona. Join us in celebrating new and renewing business coalition members.

En el mes de la Historia de la Mujer 2023, conoceremos la historia de Claudia Carreño, empresaria, instructora y sobre todo una mujer poderosa que está dejando huella en la comunidad empresarial hispana en Arizona.

Claudia Carreño es orgullosamente originaria de Santiago Papasquiaro, Durango, México y dueña de Carreño Services LLC una empresa local que brinda servicios de contabilidad/bookkeeping, recursos humanos y administración a pequeñas empresas, además de ser la actual coordinadora de la segunda y tercera generación del programa Nivel Ejecutivo de Fuerza Local.

We Rise participants Mission 2 Transition and McKnight Educational Consulting for College Admissions (MECCA) partnered to teach youth about the college admission process at the Urban Experience Conference hosted by the Youth World Education Project on February 18.

Mission 2 Transition facilitated an interactive mock-admission simulation for students and parents. The purpose of the simulation was to create awareness of the many factors considered in college admission decisions. MECCA followed up the simulation by providing students and parents with grade-level-specific checklists of the actions students and parents should be taking to be prepared for the transition out of high school.  

On February 28, 2023, Local First’ We Rise businesses, current and alumni, met for the first quarterly We Rise Mixer of the year.

The We Rise business accelerator meets virtually every other Wednesday for six months. At the request of the alumni, the We Rise program holds quarterly mixers to strengthen the sense of community and foster collaboration.

The Heart & Soil People’s Garden in South Phoenix is part of a movement to replace food deserts with thriving urban farms on previously vacant and underutilized land.

The Fifth Cohort of the Local First’ We Rise Accelerator began the program last Saturday. These twenty-two businesses will spend the next six months acquiring the knowledge and developing the skills, habits, tools and resources to help propel them to the next level.

Small business incubator Afri-Soul Education Center aims to to foster entrepreneurship, reduce unemployment among African Americans in Arizona, decrease the opportunity gap and grow the community of Black businesses.

Nestled on the border of Tempe and Phoenix, The Vibe Spot is a brand-new glam-style event space for meetings, events, and special occasions. Vibe Spot opened in October and already has folks talking. Located at 7430 S. 48th St., Suite 108, Phoenix, AZ 85042, it's the perfect venue for meetings and intimate social gatherings like birthdays, showers, graduations, holiday parties, team events and more!

Local First We Rise Alum, Tiesha Harrison, will collaborate with the McCain Institute and the City of Phoenix to raise awareness about domestic violence and teen online safety through art.

Local First’s We Rise graduate and owner of Deafinitely Communicating, Germaine Graham, carried out the Instagram series called ABC's of Deaf Education, sharing information about the culture, lived experiences, accomplishments, rights, joys, challenges, and day-to-day life of Deaf and Hard of Hearing people of all ages.

After going through a six-month business accelerator program, 15 local Black entrepreneurs graduated on July 30th at the Arizona Heritage center. The graduation consisted of a business exposition to showcase the businesses, and a ceremony to celebrate their achievements over the past six months.

This month we’re featuring one of our newest members - Desert Moon Market! This woman-owned business is a desert lovers paradise. Owner Alex has filled her shop with home decor and clothing inspired by the desert and an upcoming beauty line made with the healing elements of Arizona. Get to know her and head over to Carefree to puruse this local gem!

We’re adding 18 new businesses to the We Rise family! The We Rise program is all about supporting Arizona’s Black-owned businesses and we invite you to check out our newest cohort. You’ll find make-up artists, clothing, adminstrative assistance, food and more! 

Javier y Verónica Acosta son empresarios locales graduados de la sexta generación del Programa Acelerador de Negocios de Fuerza Local en el año 2016 con JJ Publicidad LLC.

Esta historia de emprendimiento, pasión y tenacidad inició en el año 2011 con el nacimiento de JJ Publicidad LLC, siendo esta misma empresa la base para el surgimiento de 2 grandes proyectos que conocemos hoy como Entre Mujeres Radio y Decibel Academia.

Javier y Verónica iniciaron su carrera desde muy jóvenes, contando ya con más de 30 años de experiencia …..

We’ve come to the close of another successful We Rise business accelerator cohort! Sixteen business owners met over the last six months to learn about entrepreneurship and connect with other Black-owned businesses. Meet Kem Matthews, Brittny Johnson, and Joe Diggs – a few recent graduates – and see how We Rise is powering Arizona’s Black entrepreneurs one business at a time.

New EV-ready building codes move The City of Tempe closer to becoming carbon neutral by 2050. But how will local businesses and nonprofits benefit? Here are 10 reasons for business owners to get excited about EVs and EV charging stations.

Close your eyes and picture your neighborhood. Picture the homes, the parks, and the open spaces. Now picture the businesses in your neighborhood. Imagine that instead of your favorite unique local businesses, all the places are the same cookie-cutter concepts. The same coffee shop; the same restaurant; the same boutique; the same repair shop.

That is the effect of big box and big tech.

A higher percentage of Arizonans quit their jobs in March 2022 than almost anywhere in the nation. Whether this is due to employees making big personal decisions about life changes or the fact they have an abundance of available positions in our state to choose from, it’s clear that this is a job seeker’s market.