Organization that encourages black entreprenuership
Through community events, Elevators aims to inspire black creatives within the Birmingham area. Photo Courtesy of Elevators.
Emma Owen
Blazernews Editor
[email protected]
With a goal of promoting creative culture within Birmingham’s African American community, Elevators on 4th has been celebrating black entrepreneurship since 2017.
Carmen Mays, founder of Elevators on 4th, said the organization got its start due to lack of diversity and representation during Birmingham’s Innovation Week.
“I could not understand how and why they were centering events inside the Birmingham City Limits but they weren’t actually including people from Birmingham,” Mays said. “As a form of protest, I decided we throw an event concurrently with theirs, but focus on back culture and entrepreneurship and innovation.”
Mays said Elevators originated with three events, including an event held at the Ballard House Project.
“I was pretty satisfied with just the three events and I wanted to just go back to doing whatever I was doing before-hand,” Mays said. “But the response from the people who attended really let us know that we had something.”
Mays said providing a positive environment for young black people in Birmingham inspired her to plan more events, leading to what is known as Elevators today.
Photo by Cade Pair / Staff Photographers
“It was great to see (these) young black people in a public space having such a great time and so I was like ‘we can do one more thing,’” Mays said. “I was like what if we did something in October and we called it Gucci Mane day. Oct. 17 of that year Gucci Made was getting married, so Oct. 17 we’re going to have Gucci Mane Day at Railroad Park and if people come then we got something. Then I might be convinced to start a business.”
After Gucci Mane Day in Railroad Park, Mays said she knew she was in the right place and needed to charge forward with the organization.
“There’s a gap in Birmingham for high-quality cultural, particularly black centered cultural, activities for young people,” Mays said. “We had kind of tapped that market. After that we were laying low trying to become a business. Flash forward to now, we have a new website up that really focuses on how we view our role in fostering an equitable entrepreneurship ecosystem where creatives can make a living doing what they love.”
Mays said that beyond bringing the community together through events, Elevators also works to support creatives in Birmingham.
“We source business development opportunities for people of color and other opportunities where they can learn about how to service and thrive as creatives of color,” Mays said. “We also work with institutions like UAB, corporations and other organizations to help them figure out what their role is in the ecosystem and how to contribute to its equitability and we’re also working with them to get creatives of color into their supply chain.”
Melvin Griffin, Cultural Cultivator for Elevators, said the first event at the Ballard House left him feeling grateful.
“It was just an assortment of people, young and old, just in the Ballard House,” Griffin said. “It was just a beautiful sight that showed me we had something here.”
Griffin said one instance after the first event proved to him that Elevators could make a difference in the lives of others.
“There was an older woman (when) I was with my mom in Walmart one day and I think she came to the first event and she was like ‘You were with Elevators, weren’t you?’ and she just thanked me for that,” Griffin said.
Trenton Foster creates content and brand awareness for Elevators and said he is excited for the difference Elevators is aiming to make in the City of Birmingham.
“I’m passionate about Elevators because of what it will grow to be,” Foster said. “(I) am very proud to work for an organization that has values rooted so deep in both the development of black opportunity and black ideologies that stemmed from our former (and) current Civil Rights leaders that are still alive around Birmingham today.”
Foster said Elevators is unique because of the teamwork that goes on behind the scenes.
“We have a such a close-knit team and it’s truly not that many of us, but the people we have touched through our work has gifted us an extensive network that we call on frequently,” Foster said. “Which is honestly kind of what it’s all about, but it’s definitely one of the most unique experiences I’ve had. Most people around here are so stingy, so it’s truly been a blessing for people to see what we’re doing and genuinely pitch in the best way they can.”
Melvin Griffin currently serves as the Distribution Manager for Kaleidoscope. Trenton Foster is a former member of Blaze Radio.
