Twenty-three individuals who own or support small businesses have been selected to serve for the next two years on the City of Birmingham’s Small Business Council.
The council advises Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin and the Department of Innovation and Economic Opportunity on policies and programs to support small businesses, particularly those owned by minorities and women.
“Our goal is to make Birmingham a hub for minority and women entrepreneurs,” said Cornell Wesley, director of the city’s Department of Innovation and Economic Opportunity. “By expanding opportunity for all, we’re really unleashing the economic potential of our city and our whole region.”
The Woodfin administration launched the first Birmingham Small Business Council in February 2019. In the next term, the council will focus on three strategic goals: filling needs in the small business ecosystem, improving government operations, and finding purpose in place.
“Birmingham’s small businesses make us unique and elevate our quality of life,” Woodfin said. “They are the backbone of our city and the lifeblood of our economy, generating more than half of the jobs that keep our families and neighborhoods going.”
Council members are selected through an in-depth application process. They represent all City Council districts and come from a variety of backgrounds.
The new members will serve through April 30, 2023. They include (asterisks indicate a reappointment):
- Danielle Baskin, The Image Events & Consulting
- Lawrence Broom, Brooms Auto Detail
- Damian Carson,* Operation HOPE Inc.
- Lisa Carter, Innovate Green
- Brandon Cleveland, BBVA
- Isaac Cooper,* IMC Financial Consulting LLC
- Selena Rodgers Dickerson,* SARCOR LLC
- Jeremy Ervin, ErvinPR LLC
- Autumn Foster, Quire Consulting
- Danielle Hines, CREED63
- Delpha Bartley-Jones, Valley National Bank
- Kim Lee, Forge
- Varian May, Tailord Fitness LLC
- Vaneatria McKinnon, Advantage Administration LLC
- Mona Lisa Morris, Birmingham Business Resource Center
- Rhegees Perry, Trim Grooming Lounge
- Elliott Potter, Linq
- Danielle Ridgeway, Covering Your Assets LLC
- Krystal Rumph, Eklectic Jane LLC Fitness Studio
- Leonard Stephens, Step By Step Sports Training
- Tanesha Sims-Summer,* Naughty But Nice Kettle Corn
- Theresa Thomas, Thomas HR Firm
- Darlene Wilson,* Relay Accounting Management, a division of DC Finance Management LLC
