The Be Nimble Foundation has partnered with Cummins Inc., the City of Indianapolis, and IMPACT Central Indiana to launch a $1.5 million equity fund for Black women-led beauty, health, and wellness companies.

Black-owned companies Rose of Sharon Naturals, Skin I'm In, D'Vine Beauty Bar, The Botanical Bar, and FBN Skin were awarded $5,000 grants. It also invested in Popcom, a digital e-commerce company, and the Exhale App, founded by Katara McCarty.

“Society has ignored the health and wellbeing of Black women for too long, which is exactly why I am unapologetic in my pursuit to create space specifically for Black women navigating everyday stressors and the effects of systemic racism,” McCarty, founder of Exhale, an emotional wellbeing app for Black, Indigenous, and women of colour, said in a statement. “It's more than an app — it's a movement. Be Nimble is leading that movement with this fund. The Nile Capital grant will allow me to launch the much-awaited 2.0 version of my app.”

Through Be Nimble's Add To Cart entrepreneurship program, the Nile Capital Fund will provide revenue-based equity loans and traditional equity investments for Black founders.

The goals for the fund are to increase headcount and tech stack capacity, assist with supply chain and logistics, and prepare each business for potential venture capital and retail opportunities.

“The Nile is the longest river in the world. It's a lifeline for Egypt, fueling the economy and diverse ecosystem in northeastern Africa. It also reflects our vision for Be Nimble and how we serve our community,” Jeff Williams, co-founder of Be Nimble, said in a statement. “This fund will serve as a mode of transportation for our existing programs and partnerships, just as the Nile enables communities to flourish. We're feeding the ecosystem and supporting the entrepreneurs we're committed to seeing succeed.”