2020 has been a challenging year, to say the least. As we charge forward in a year filled with many momentous events and uncertainties, it is to no surprise that on top of tumultuous times, they also exacerbate intense emotions. The deaths of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Amadou Diallo, Sandra Bland, Breonna Taylor, Stephen Lawrence, Tamir Rice, Trayvon Martin, and the many others who have lost their lives as a result of police violence, not only sparked a wave of emotions but woke up the nation. The team at Off the Grid took the time to reflect on these events and how we could best help our community of Black employees and Black-owned local businesses. It was not enough for us to stand in solidarity—we needed to take action.
At the beginning of June, we made three commitments that not only pushed us to become better allies to the Black community but help uplift the community, as well. Here’s our initial commitment:
– 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
– Creating a series of forums and panels for team members to provide feedback, share their experiences, and foster awareness within the Off the Grid team
Four-months into our commitment, we are proud to share that we have surpassed two of our initial goals. To date, we have created $514,510 in revenue for Black-owned businesses through the Great Plates Delivered Program (GPDP)—102.90% of our commitment in just 3 months. In addition, through our work with the GPDP, we’ve welcomed 9 new Black-owned businesses into our network, three-fourths of the way to tackling our goal by the end of the year.
Internally, we’ve rolled out a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Committee, various Speaker Series, and an all-inclusive Slack Channel to create specific opportunities for Black employees’ experiences to be heard at Off the Grid. This was an organic effort that evolved into an internal online forum for OTGers to ask questions, share personal stories and industry insights, and learn how to proactively stand up for the rights of all marginalized communities.
As an organization that prides itself on creating memorable experiences and bringing communities together, we know this is just the beginning in order to make a long-lasting change, but we’re happy to share that we are purposefully and transparently tackling our commitments to the communities we serve. We encourage our employees, customers, partners, and the local community to continue holding us accountable.
Interested in getting involved?
– Are you a Black-owned food business—or have ideas about how Off the Grid can support Bay Area Black businesses? Please reach out to us here.
– Throughout COVID-19, Off the Grid has been creating unique and innovative ways to come together in a safe way. Interested in supporting Black-owned food businesses in the Bay Area? Reach out to us today to book an at-home catering event using Black-Owned Businesses.
Sincerely,
The team at Off the Grid
