Vice President Harris visits CDFI-financed business in Oakland
Earlier this week, Vice President Kamala Harris traveled to Oakland to visit an infrastructure project and tour Red Door Catering, a business financed by Accion Opportunity Fund’s CDFI (formerly Opportunity Fund).
“My work on CDFIs is really motivated by…the success stories of America in terms of who is contributing to the economic lifeblood of communities.”
Vice President Harris, 4-6-2021, Oakland, CA
‘It’s Good to Be Home’: VP Kamala Harris Visits Oakland for First Time Since Taking Office
Harris met with Red Door Catering owner Reign Free, who got the rare opportunity to tell Harris how community development loans helped keep her doors open.
“We didn’t have the technical support as other larger companies,” Free said. “Being able to scale so quickly and also to bring the goods to our clients was a little challenging.”
The Red Door and Accion Opportunity Fund
[originally posted on OpportunityFund.org]
The Red Door is a catering company located in Oakland, California. The Red Door prides itself on being environmentally-friendly and supporting local farmers, as well as partnering with minority-owned businesses and youth development organizations.
The Red Door’s founder, Reign Free, booked her first catering gig for a friend at a salon. Reign hauled groceries to her walk-up apartment and took over her neighbors’ refrigerators and stoves—preparing a feast for 600 people. Soon, Reign was running The Red Door out of a co-operative kitchen in nearby Emeryville. She realized she needed to hire help, so she could focus on business operations. Yet when Reign applied for loans at traditional banks, they turned her down, despite her good credit history.
Then, Reign found Opportunity Fund. Her initial loan covered working capital to hire an employee and purchase a van: “Last year, I finally sold that van and I cried. That loan changed my life. I have since employed hundreds of people, including five who went on to start their own businesses.”
Since the shelter-in-place orders took hold in California, Reign has creatively pivoted her business to include pop-up restaurants. She also raised money to keep her employees at work and provide meals for neighbors experiencing food insecurity. Now, she’s hoping to turn her 5,000 square foot kitchen into a community co-op: “If I hadn’t had that support when I was starting out, I wouldn’t be able to do what I love and give back to the community.”