In very exciting news, Wray & Nephew have partnered with Black Pound Day to launch a very special and limited edition physical Black Pound.
Designed by Leah Jacobs-Gordon, the illustrated coin will be available from today from the Black Pound Day shops at both of London’s Westfield sites for free for the first 500 customers.
Swiss, the founder of Black Pound Day, said on the news, “Whilst we started Black Pound Day in 2020, I initially had the idea in 2007, but ironically couldn’t get it off the ground due to a lack of resources available to Black-owned businesses. Since launching three years ago, we have exponentially raised the awareness of spending with Black businesses, and our two premium retail locations allow thousands of conscious and ethical consumers to access a unique and broad range of underrepresented brands.
“As well as encouraging consumers to buy from established Black businesses, we have grown our organisation to support aspiring and existing business owners. So this month, we launched our first charity, BPD Global, which will offer tools and resources to the African Caribbean community to start their own business and gain financial independence. This launch, alongside partnering on this campaign with the Wray Forward programme, which offers founders access to free workshops to scale up and expand their networks, will greatly benefit and inspire the Black business community.”
The move comes following a study from Wray & Nephew that found that Black business owners are twice as likely to have to wait up to two years for a business loan compared to non-Black business owners.
The collaboration marks the second year of Wray & Nephew’s Wray Forward programme, a free and inclusive programme built to nurture the foundations of the Black entrepreneurial community.
This collaboration seeks to achieve Wray Forward and Black Pound Day’s shared goal of increasing consumer spending, and overall business support, for Black-owned businesses.
The Wray Forward pledge is as follows: “Wray Forward is here to give back. To pay it forward. To celebrate, elevate, nurture and support those who unite our community. To our hub of hairdressers, nail salons, barbers & restaurants who give us a home away from home, where we can kick back, laugh, and chill. We champion you. To the unsung heroes without whom our music would have no voice, the promoters, managers & venue owners behind our favourite artists. We uplift you. We are committed to building better Black future. Together, we are leading the Wray Forward for the next generation. We back you.”
Find more information here.