The City of Savannah will soon graduate the second cohort from its business accelerator program for small and minority entrepreneurs next month. 

LAUNCH Savannah is a 12-week intensive, in-person course built to support up to 15 local entrepreneurs in developing early-stage businesses. It was created in response to a 2020 recommendation by the City’s Racial Equity and Leadership Task Force.

“About 10% of our businesses (in Savannah) are owned by minorities, so this program seeks to support small, local minority owned businesses, but it’s not exclusive to all,”  said City of Savannah’s Senior Director of Economic Development, MarRonde Lotson. “We do not have a local economy just built on one sector, so that is something that we want to continue to foster, cultivate and promote, and this is an element of that.”

Using curriculum from the Kauffman Fast Track, chosen business owners are taught pricing research, financial planning, marketing, and the ability to identify access to capital needs.

Loston said gaining access to capital is an entrepreneur’s number one challenge, and the program teaches participants how to withstand the ebbs and flows of the business landscape.

“Our economic landscape is ever-changing, so those entrepreneurs need the most relevant information possible for the success and vitality of their business,” Lotson said.

Businesses that were chosen for this year’s cohort range from a learning center to a landscaping company and a custom embroidery company.

Zelonia Williams opened Patches Custom Embroidery Works three years ago, and despite not having any formal training in how to operate a business, she thought she had it all together.

The embroidery business offers customized, inexpensive iron-on patches, buttons and pins for companies and organizations. Girl Scouts, biker clubs and local businesses can create specialized merchandise to share with their members, employees or customers.

But soon after starting Patches Custom Embroidery Works, Williams realized she needed a mentor, and applied to the LAUNCH Savannah program.

She and 13 others were chosen to participate in the business accelerator program, which began in early July and meets every Tuesday.

As a single parent and full-time business owner, Williams was nervous about how the 12-week course would fit into her already busy schedule, but she decided that if she really wanted to see her embroidery business thrive, she needed to go all in.

“Because I know what I want, it makes things a whole lot better. I literally go into a mode where I’m unstoppable,” Williams said. “It’s my passion.”

Since beginning the course, she’s been able to develop a better understanding of new markets and ideal customers she can target, such as the Savannah Bananas, the impact having a lawyer on retainer can mean for a business, and recover after the Oglethorpe Mall shooting.

Williams’ storefront is located right in front of where the July 7th shooting took place, she said, and business has yet to recover over a month later.

“Nowhere in my business plan did I figure out how to recover from a shooting,” Williams said. “Having LAUNCH Savannah here with me with their arms wide open after the incident means the world to me.”

Jennifer Gogo, a local entrepreneur from the first cohort of the City’s business accelerator program, said she also felt welcomed to contact LAUNCH Savannah mentors after she completed the program last year.

Her business, Just Safety Training, coaches companies in becoming compliant with OSHA regulations using virtual reality headsets to create a hands-on learning environment.

“We are committed to their success,” Lotson said. “We don’t just cut them loose.”

Since finishing the program, Gogo said her business has grown, and the networking opportunities provided by LAUNCH Savannah have supported that success.

“It’s not so much about what you know, but who you know,” Gogo said. “You may not get the contract, but knowing who the key players are is very important because people are speaking up for you when you don’t even know it.”

Those connections can prove to be an important aspect of expanding a company, as access to capital is one of the biggest issues faced by small business owners, according to Lotson.

A 2025 Goldman Sachs report found that among new entrepreneurs who have applied for a business loan or line of credit within the last year, 81% found it difficult to access affordable capital.

To ease some of the pressure off the participants, a scholarship package of $50,000 was given to entrepreneurs to be used for support services such as accounting, marketing and legal advice.

“Savannah is growing, and we see a lot of the big-name companies coming in, like Hyundai,” Gogo said. “And we support the area with our tax dollars going back into the community, so why not give more back to where we live? Because when you invest in where you live, you’re more likely to stay and grow your families.”

Ansley Franco is an intern with the Savannah Morning News, covering public safety and general assignments. You can reach her at AFranco@gannett.com.