A community-focused café and restaurant delivering fresh, affordable, and healthy food to South LA.
A personal branding and event photography company recently empowered to open its own studio.
A third-generation, family-owned sweet potato pie bakery putting “the home back in homemade.”
These are just a few of the many diverse local businesses taking big steps forward with the support of LASEC Business Connect, a supplier diversity program created to set up local businesses for success during a dazzling run of high-profile sports and entertainment events hosted by the Los Angeles region this decade.
In partnership with the NFL, the Los Angeles Sports & Entertainment Commission (LASEC) launched the program in October 2020 to connect women, BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, and Veteran-owned businesses throughout Greater Los Angeles with opportunities to compete for contracts related to Super Bowl LVI.
Today, LASEC Business Connect carries on the NFL’s legacy, helping even more local businesses compete for major events contracts across the Los Angeles region, for years to come.
Harnessing the Power of Super Bowl LVI
Supporting the LA area’s first Super Bowl in nearly three decades, Business Connect provided 225 businesses with free access to networking and professional development training to help them compete for Super Bowl contracts. The program has generated opportunities for participants representing more than 30 different sectors, including 100% of the catering for NFL Tailgate on Super Bowl Sunday.
It’s made a big difference for businesses such as Pasadena-based Oh! Snaptastic! by Girl Squad, which creates photobooth experiences for corporate and private events. Founders Monica Garcia and Michelle Lewis were contracted through Business Connect to produce an interactive photobooth for the NFL Play Football Family Festival as part of Super Bowl LVI—and that exposure produced new, exciting opportunities.
“Because of the invaluable learnings from the Business Connect workshops and webinars, we’ve gained new tools, insight and support to take our business to the next level,” they said.
Sustaining the Momentum for Future Events
The positive impact of LASEC Business Connect has extended far beyond Super Bowl LVI. The program has subsequently helped eligible businesses win contracts for the 2022 ESPY Awards, 2022 MLB All-Star Week, 2022 NFL Kickoff, and the 2023 College Football Playoff National Championship on Jan. 9.
The LASEC Business Connect program moves forward with 200 local diverse businesses representing 65 communities across LA County. Among them, 94% are small businesses, 57% are women-owned, and 71% are BIPOC-owned.
Click here for more information about how LASEC Business Connect is cultivating game-changing opportunities for businesses throughout the region!