Populations Trends. There are an estimated 38.7 million U.S. residents who were either black or black and at least one other race, making up 13.3 % of the total U.S. population. The African American population is expected to grow by 30.6% by 2008, compared to a 24.8% increase for total U.S. population.

Business Owners. There are 1 million African American owned businesses in the United States, which account for over $100 billion in annual sales. Traditionally, the most common form of African American-owned business has been in the service sector, (e.g., barber or beauty shops, transportation, etc.). Now the fastest growing sectors are business services, legal services, insurance and real estate.

Entrepreneurial Growth. Entrepreneurship in the African American community alive and well.

African Americans are 50% more likely than whites to start their own businesses, and 86% of African American teens polled by Junior Achievement expressed interest in starting a business.

Twenty-six percent of black men with some graduate school education are trying to start a business, vs. just 10% of white men

16% of black men making more than $76,000 a year are trying to start a business, vs. 10% of whites.
African American Women. African American women are making great strides in entrepreneurship.

Two in five of all African American owned firms are owned by women. These firms employ 31.5% of the workers in African American owned firms and generate 20.4% of the sales.

There are an estimated 414,472 firms owned by African American women in the U.S., employing nearly 254,000 people and generating $19.5 billion in sales.

The number of African American women-owned firms has increased by 32.5%, employment has grown by 50.1, and sales have risen by 43.9%.