Dear Community,
It’s with a heavy heart that I write to you, while the community that we work so hard to create is in pain and conflict. The obvious, or “easy” statement to make is that Off the Grid stands with the Black Lives Matter movement. But I also recognize that if we believe it, we have to take action that shows it. For our community of Black Creators, Guests and Employees, I want you to know that we’ve been listening (and will continue to listen), as we’ve begun to come up with solutions that Off the Grid’s platform is in a unique position to support. We can and must do better.
We’ve taken some time to evaluate ways to support Black owned businesses that are both economically impactful and scalable, and as a result, here’s what we’re committing to NOW:
– Provide $500k worth of revenue/economic opportunities to Black owned businesses within the Bay Area
– Quadrupling (4x) the number of Black owned businesses who are a part of our food Creator network through the end of the year
We find great joy in bringing people together through a love of delicious food, inspiring delight through the shared experiences we create. The flavor of these experiences represent the multitude of cultures, traditions, and individuals who make it possible. It’s wonderful to celebrate all of these aspects coming together in such a delicious way. Keeping that top of mind, we will continue to hold ourselves accountable by increasing diversity and fostering the formation of minority-owned mobile food businesses.
Additionally, we are renewing our commitment to tackling racism and discrimination within our company, at our markets, and in our communities through creating a specific way for individuals to provide feedback and share their experiences with the Off the Grid team. We will also use our voice to support policies that are shown to diminish police violence.
Off the Grid will continue to actively look for opportunities to use our platform to drive change. If you are a Black-owned food business or have ideas you would like to share on how Off the Grid can support Bay Area Black businesses, please contact us here. We’ll continue to listen and look forward to hearing from you.
Above all else, please continue to take care of yourselves, your families, and stay safe.
Sincerely,
Matt Cohen
CEO & Founder
Off the Grid
