FEATURE
If you can have 40 percent of your talent in your ad campaigns be Black , but zero Black people in your boardroom , then the math isn ’ t mathing for me .
The Fifteen Percent Pledge Gala celebrates the achievement of Black business owners and others who contribute to the non-profit ’ s cause .
LaToya Williams-Belfort , executive director of the Fifteen Percent Pledge
How it works The Fifteen Percent Pledge is a non-profit organization petitioning major retailers and corporations to “ take the pledge ” to dedicate at least 15 percent of their shelfspace to Black-owned brands and support equal opportunity for Black people in the workplace .
Why 15 percent you might ask ? As the organization states on its website : “ Over 13 percent of people living in the United States identify as Black and another estimated two percent identify as mixed race , totaling 15 percent . At The Fifteen Percent Pledge , we feel that 15 percent is the least that these major retailers can do to help close the financial gap in this country .”
The organization works closely with each company that takes the Pledge , to audit , advise , build out a contract , and hold them accountable on their path to reaching 15 percent . Contracts are for no less than four years , but they can be longer – Nordstrom , for instance , has a 10-year agreement .
If the company is not able to fulfill the goals of the Pledge in the timeline originally planned , the organization will re-evaluate what steps need to be taken and , if needed , what aid has to be provided .
James told Inside Retail that , “ Everyone that takes the pledge has to have their own unique approach on how they ’ re going to execute it , what they ’ re going to contribute to the landscape , and how they ’ re going to make it their own .”
Creating this sense of personal buy-in is important , since the Pledge requires a lot of hard work and organizational change behind the scenes . Companies may find that they need to hire additional staff or change their processes to reach their goals . It ’ s not as simple as featuring diverse models in a marketing campaign .
24 www . insideretail . us December 2023