Wells Fargo and the National LGBT Chamber of Commerce (NGLCC), the business voice of the LGBT community, launched the XLR8 Program for LGBT entrepreneurs.

The XLR8 Program is designed to help LGBT-owned businesses grow and succeed in a highly competitive market. XLR8 will consist of a series of by-application cohorts of NGLCC Certified LGBT Business Enterprise (Certified LGBTBE) companies distinguished by revenue.

“Wells Fargo is a proud and steadfast supporter of the incredible work NGLCC does each and every day to help advance LGBT-owned businesses throughout the country,” stated Regina Heyward, senior vice president and Head of Supplier Diversity for Wells Fargo. “In today’s times of uncertainty and disruption, it is imperative that we all come together to ensure that diverse businesses continue to have access to meaningful support, resources and opportunities. Our collaboration with NGLCC on the launch of the XLR8 program is a demonstration of Wells Fargo’s strategic commitment to developing strong, sustainable LGBT-owned businesses that can help corporations create and capture value.”

XLR8 will focus on businesses ranging from $100,000 to $750 million in annual revenues and will help them create sustainable and meaningful growth for their companies. Start-up companies and those with less than $100,000 in annual revenues that have high growth potential will also be considered. Businesses identified through the NGLCC’s Trans Inclusion Task Force and Communities of Color Initiative will be identified and included in each cohort.

“During these unprecedented and trying times, we believe the NGLCC XLR8 Program is the kind of innovation that the 1.4 million LGBT business owners — and the $1.7 trillion they add to the US economy each year — expect and need to weather COVID-19. We are proud to collaborate with one of our longest-standing, most trusted partners in LGBT economic opportunity, Wells Fargo, to ensure every LGBT entrepreneur has every resource they need to scale and thrive in this difficult marketplace,” said NGLCC Co-Founder & President Justin Nelson.

Key areas of NGLCC XLR8’s focus include: Economic and business recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, management and leadership innovation, access to capital and financial literacy, pre- and post-event mentorship, team development, digital transformation, as well as marketing, communications and branding.

This comprehensive initiative will expand many of NGLCC’s award-winning programs to fund, train, and elevate LGBT-owned businesses by utilizing the extensive resources of one of NGLCC’s Founding Corporate Partners, Wells Fargo. NGLCC and Wells Fargo are thrilled to bring together the first virtual cohort of XLR8 companies in the first week of June 2020.

“Pride month is the perfect time to launch this important initiative and be forward-looking for what lies ahead for our businesses as we work to recover and ensure this vital part of our American small business engine is poised for success,” said Nelson.

Learn more and apply here.