Star Prescott headed to the Sherwood neighborhood in northwest Jacksonville, eager to share the wisdom he’s gained on his entrepreneurial journey.
Prescott has worked in the beauty industry for more than 20 years and launched a hair care line focused on alopecia and hair loss in 2010. She moved to Jacksonville in 2021 to put down roots here.
One solution is to create a nonprofit organization that provides a foundation for future entrepreneurs.
This summer, Youth Exposure Inc. will be running an eight-week camp for children and young adults ages 10-19.
“Our kids are not being taught a lot about entrepreneurship,” Prescott said. “They hear and see things on social media and think this is what’s going to happen tomorrow. Real entrepreneurs move forward from failure. They make a lot of mistakes, but they keep going.”
The camp will be held at the Lewis Cobb Community Center from June 10 to August 1. It will operate daily from noon to 5 pm.
Prescott said the camp will also offer entrepreneurship workshops, as well as introductory information on going into fields such as photography, T-shirt design and hair care.
Florida is a place where black business owners thrive.
Black entrepreneurship in Florida is growing at a faster rate than the national average: There were 18,502 Black-owned businesses in Florida in 2021, up 35% from 2019, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
Black-owned businesses employ 108,713 people in Florida and 1.4 million people nationwide.
This spring, The Wall Street Journal Jacksonville has been noted as the second-most-employed city in the U.S. Earlier this month, the U.S. Census Bureau announced that Jacksonville is the 10th most populous city in the country. Prescott said these factors indicate that as cities grow, startups can grow with them.
“We’re growing and this is a great place for entrepreneurs and young entrepreneurs. This is a great place to get started and get some experience,” Prescott said.
