Ruford Hill, a 74-year-old black business owner, works 15-20 carpet installation jobs a month in Bakersfield and names limited funding as a main challenge, but a grant from the city changed that.
- Video shows Ruford Hill installing new carpet at the Four Points Hotel.
- Access to funding is a major challenge for black business owners, according to a survey by the Kern County Black Chamber of Commerce.
- The Entrepreneurship Technical Assistance Grant program, supports small business owners like Hill in earning $10,000 in grant funding.
Inside this hotel, you’ll find a group of men working to renovate the property, and they’re representing the possibilities for black owned businesses one job at a time.
When most people at retirement age would find themselves relaxing in a lounge chair by a hotel pool, inside this hotel, you’ll find Ruford Hill still working.
“But, I like working,” Hill, the owner of Broadway’s Carpet Installation, said. “Keeps me energetic. Keeps me fresh for an old guy.”