New small businesses in the US continue to face high rates of failure. One out of five shutter within their first year of operation, with half closing by year five.
But not all entrepreneurs face the same struggles. Eighty percent of Black-owned businesses fail within the first 18 months, primarily due to a lack of financial, human, and legal resources.
This stark inequity drove Laura Guillossou’s choice to study business and her plans to pursue law at Stanford University.
Guillossou, who earned both her bachelor’s degree in business administration and MS in Accounting at Kogod, wants to use her business savvy to help equalize opportunities for minority entrepreneurs, a proven strategy for lessening the wealth gap in the United States.