The program endeavors to close the opportunity gap for entrepreneurs seeking capital on their path to franchise ownership, with funding from several foundations, CDFIs Reinvestment Fund and Community Vision, and a guarantee from the Community Investment Guarantee Pool
LOS ANGELES, April 12, 2023 — Everytable’s Social Equity Franchise (SEF) Fund, managed by impact investing firm Mission Driven Finance, has secured $8 million towards the long-term goal of operating 300 franchise stores across major metropolitan markets over the next four years. The SEF Program plays a critical role in Everytable’s commitment to making nutritious food as affordable and accessible as fast food, creating a model for expansion that fosters economic empowerment and closes the opportunity gap in marginalized communities.
Everytable serves chef-prepared, ready-to-eat meals that are made from scratch in central commissary kitchens and then priced according to each ZIP code’s median household income. The revolutionary business model drastically reduces the cost of standard restaurant operations which allows the company to keep meal prices affordable. Currently, there are 52 retail locations across Southern California and eight retail locations in New York City. Everytable also provides access to nutritious meals via SmartFridge vending machines and a robust ecommerce meal delivery program.
“The Social Equity Franchise Program was created to address the racial wealth gap head-on by creating generational wealth-building opportunities among entrepreneurs of color,” said Sam Polk, CEO of Everytable. “This investment allows us to expand the Program and make meaningful progress toward building a more equitable and inclusive economy.”
Dee Adimora, a longtime Everytable store manager, will be one of the first Everytable franchise owners. “I’ve always been passionate about Everytable’s mission to bring healthier food to underserved communities, and the franchise program gave me an opportunity to become more deeply involved in the business, grow financial stability, and work on a legacy to leave behind for my family.”
The foundation of the SEF Program is one year of training through Everytable University. Franchise candidates work full-time as store managers at an Everytable location while receiving leadership and entrepreneurial education, mentoring, and coaching regarding relevant business topics. Upon successful completion, Everytable and fund manager Mission Driven Finance will provide 100% of the capital required for the graduate to become a franchisee.
“We’re thrilled to support Everytable’s mission with this fund. Supporting franchisees who wouldn’t normally get a chance at business ownership is directly aligned with our thesis of closing capital gaps to close opportunity gaps,” said Mission Driven Finance co-founder and CEO, David Lynn.
Reinvestment Fund led an initial $8 million syndicate of Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI) lenders in a debt financing for Everytable that could grow up to $16 million as more investors join the lending group. Community Vision joined the syndicate first with a $4 million commitment to the SEF Program, paving the way for Everytable’s first graduates to take ownership this summer.
“Reinvestment Fund is proud to offer additional financing support,” said Christina Szczepanski, Reinvestment Fund’s Managing Director of Lending and Investments. “We echo Everytable’s commitment to creating access to nutritious food for all and are excited for this partnership that furthers our vision of social and racial equity in the food system.”
“This Fund is a powerful new model that will allow hourly wage workers to become business owners,” said Catherine Howard, President of Community Vision, Capital and Consulting. “We know that business ownership is one of the most powerful vehicles for building wealth. This Fund helps open the doors of ownership among those who are usually locked out.”
Most recently, The Community Investment Guarantee Pool (CIGP) closed an eight-year guarantee of up to $3.2 million for the Reinvestment Fund in support of the SEF Program. CIGP guarantees a portion of the Reinvestment Fund-led debt facility into the Social Equity Franchise Fund. The Reinvestment Fund is expected to fully deploy loans to entrepreneurs by the end of 2025.
About Everytable
Founded in 2016, Everytable is a mission-driven food company based in Los Angeles that fights for food justice and equality by providing healthy and nutritious food that is both accessible and affordable for everyone. Everytable is a multi-channel, fresh-prepared food business blending stores, subscriptions, delivery, and SmartFridges supplied by a central kitchen, with meals priced according to the neighborhood. Everytable serves Southern California, the SF Bay Area, and New York, with more stores and regional meal delivery soon to come.
In 2021 Everytable launched a trailblazing Social Equity Franchise program with the support of the Cal Wellness Foundation, Common Spirit (formerly Dignity Health), Tarsadia Foundation, and Libra Foundation that sets social entrepreneurs from marginalized communities on an expedited pathway to potentially owning and operating an Everytable store. Everytable further seeks to support local communities with its Pay It Forward program which allows guests to purchase meals for those in need. In 2022, Inc.’s Best in Business list recognized Everytable for positively impacting food insecurity across communities, along with other accolades such as being named one of Fast Company’s top 10 most innovative dining companies. To date, Everytable has sold more than 15 million meals! For more information, please visit everytable.com or follow @foreverytable on Instagram.
About Mission Driven Finance
Mission Driven Finance is an impact investment firm dedicated to building a financial system that ensures good businesses have access to sufficient, affordable capital. Built from the ground up with a single purpose—to make it easy to invest in your community—all of their funds and structured products are designed to close financial gaps that will close opportunity gaps. They work with local and national investors to help them create the impact they want and work with businesses and community partners to help them get the capital they need. Mission Driven Finance was launched in 2016 in San Diego, CA, and is a Certified B Corporation. In 2023, Mission Driven Finance was selected for ImpactAssets’ IA 50 Fund Manager list, a category for experienced impact fund managers with a minimum three-year track record. Learn more about Mission Driven Finance at missiondrivenfinance.com.
About Community Vision
Community Vision Capital & Consulting is a CDFI working throughout California with offices in San Francisco, Oakland, and Fresno. Since its inception, Community Vision has supported 2.5M Californians, deployed more than $500M in capital, and provided more than 6,000 real estate and financial management consults. For more information visit communityvisionca.org.
About CIGP
The Community Investment Guarantee Pool (CIGP) is a financing tool launched in December 2019 by impact investing organizations to create a pooled commitment of financial guarantees for intermediaries in affordable housing, small business, and climate finance. CIGP accelerates community investments by more fully leveraging philanthropic balance sheets for mission. The initial guarantors that helped make CIGP possible are The Kresge Foundation, The Annie E. Casey Foundation, The California Endowment, Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, Common Spirit Health, Gary Community Investments, Jessie Ball duPont Fund, Phillips Foundation, Seattle Foundation, Virginia Community Capital, and Weingart Foundation. Since launch, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Arnold Ventures, Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation, The California Wellness Foundation, and the Sierra Club Foundation have also joined as guarantors. Learn more about CIGP by watching this short video produced by The Kresge Foundation.
About LOCUS Impact Investing
LOCUS serves as program manager for the Community Investment Guarantee Pool. LOCUS is a national non-profit consulting organization that works with foundations and mission-driven investors wherever they are on their local impact investing journey to help them create lasting, meaningful change in their communities. LOCUS partners with mission-driven institutions to unlock more of their assets and deploy dollars to catalyze equitable economic development and make community-informed investments guided by innovative, effective, and equitable practices. LOCUS is a wholly owned subsidiary of the non-profit, VCC Social Enterprises. For more information about LOCUS visit: locusimpactinvesting.org.
About Reinvestment Fund
Reinvestment Fund is a mission-driven financial institution committed to making communities work for all people. We bring financial and analytical tools to partnerships that work to ensure that everyone has access to essential opportunities: affordable places to live, access to nutritious food and health care, schools where their children can flourish, and strong, local businesses that support jobs. We use data to understand markets, communities, and impediments to opportunity—and how investment and policy decisions can have the most powerful impact. Since our inception in 1985, Reinvestment Fund has provided over $2.7 billion in financing to strengthen neighborhoods, scale social enterprises, and build resilient communities. Learn more at reinvestment.com.
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