GABAWorks
We Do Not Just Advise African and Caribbean Businesses. We Invest in Them.
African and Caribbean entrepreneurs are not short on talent or ambition. What they have been short on is infrastructure. GABAWorks is where the GABA Foundation's research meets the community. Through direct investment, technical assistance, and business support, we test what works, measure what changes, and build the evidence base that drives our policy work.
The Gap We Are Closing
African and Caribbean entrepreneurs are building businesses that care about their community. They deserve an institution that cares about them.
Across Michigan, African and Caribbean owned businesses are creating jobs for their neighbors, sourcing goods through community networks, and reinvesting in the neighborhoods they call home. These are not just businesses. They are the economic infrastructure of a community that has been chronically underserved by institutions that were never designed with them in mind.
GABAWorks exists to close that gap by providing the technical assistance, direct resources, and market connections that turn a good business into a sustainable one.
Infrastructure is not a luxury. It is the difference between a business that survives and one that does not.
Operated In Partnership With
The GABA Marketplace Center
Michigan's first African and Caribbean trade and distribution hub. GABAWorks connects entrepreneurs to the physical infrastructure, supply chain access, and business ecosystem of the Marketplace Center so that growth is not just possible but sustainable.
GABAWorks In Action
A Freezer. A Family. A Business Built to Last.
When the Family African Market in Detroit needed a commercial freezer to preserve inventory and expand capacity, they did not need advice. They needed a partner who would show up with real resources.
The GABA Foundation did exactly that. We invested in a new commercial freezer and delivered it directly to their door. Because that is what community investment actually looks like.
- Increased inventory capacity and reduced food waste
- Expanded product offerings for the surrounding community
- Strengthened the long term sustainability of a family owned business
- Demonstrated that African owned businesses in Detroit have an institution in their corner
What GABAWorks Provides
From First Consultation to Sustainable Growth
GABAWorks meets entrepreneurs where they are and builds a pathway to where they are going. Every service is personalized, culturally competent, and designed to produce measurable results.
Technical Assistance
Personalized business consultations that identify specific gaps and build a customized support plan around each entrepreneur's needs and goals.
Direct Investment
When a business needs equipment, supplies, or infrastructure to grow, we invest directly. Not just advice. Real resources that produce real results.
Capital Connections
We connect entrepreneurs to banking relationships, credit building tools, and funding sources that have historically been out of reach for this community.
Market Access
Through the GABA Marketplace Center, entrepreneurs gain access to supply chain infrastructure, trade corridors, and African and Caribbean markets locally and globally.
Workforce Pathways
We connect business owners to employer networks, technology training partnerships, and workforce development resources that help them hire and grow their teams.
Policy Advocacy
Every business GABAWorks supports adds to the evidence base that drives GABA's legislative agenda. The businesses we serve inform the policy fights we take on.
Our Theory of Change
African and Caribbean Entrepreneurs Prove That Profit and Purpose Are Not in Conflict
The businesses GABAWorks supports are not just economically productive. They are community anchors that employ neighbors, preserve cultural heritage, and reinvest in the places they call home. That is the triple bottom line in action.
People
African and Caribbean owned businesses employ community members, provide culturally competent goods and services, and create dignified economic opportunity for families across Michigan.
Planet
From reducing food waste through proper storage infrastructure to supporting sustainable sourcing practices, the businesses we serve are building with the long term in mind.
Profit
Sustainable businesses create generational wealth. GABAWorks is the infrastructure that helps African and Caribbean entrepreneurs build businesses their families can inherit.
Ready to grow your business?
GABAWorks is open to African and Caribbean entrepreneurs across Michigan. Apply today and let us build a pathway together.