The founders of WeBuyBlack and the developers of the first ever Black-owned supermarket that will primarily sell products from Black farmers and other food manufacturers have reached their first financial goal of $425,000 to purchase the property! 13,881 people have contributed to the campaign so far, and the Atlanta-based store will be called Soul Food Market, and will be the first grocery store of it’s kind.

“We are super proud of our unity, and our team is even more inspired by our collective efforts to see this project come to fruition,” said CEO Shareef Abdul-Malik in an email to their supporters and contributors.

The company will continuing to raise funds for the renovation of the 20,000 square feet building, and then for the operations. Renovation requires another $350,000 and operating the building requires another $420,000 for a grand total of $1.2 million to fully complete the project.

Just what the community needs

After sampling 500 hundred families in the local Atlanta area where they plan to open the first grocery store, Shareef’s data showed that the average household spent $650 dollars a month for groceries. He comments, “With just 500 families, that’s over $3 million leaving our community each year. This campaign is not only to help keep our dollars in our community, but it’s also to provide our people with jobs.”

As previously reported, it will also help Black entrepreneurs because the selection of naturally grown vegetables and fruits will be sourced from Black farmers in Georgia. Other products produced by Black-owned brands, ranging from everyday necessities such as diapers and detergent to all natural household cleaning products, will stock the shelves! The goal ultimately is to become a nationwide chain.

To learn more about the project and/or to make a donation, visit https://wefundblack.com/projects/soul-food-market/

original article was published here.