Grant Blvd., a Philadelphia-based sustainable and ethical fashion brand, has received a $10,000 grant from Beyoncé.
The company applied for one of Beyoncé’s grants in October, and the founder learned she had been awarded one last week. As a former high school teacher, McGlonn’s label carries messages of social justice and local manufacturing. Primarily a direct-to-consumer operation, Grant Blvd. does do some contracted personal protective equipment work, but the majority remains direct-to-consumer. All of the production is done by women who live in Philadelphia.
The publicity that the grant has generated has presented other opportunities, namely people wanting to partner in different kinds of ways, including foundations and social impact investors. “I think what people are drawn to is the way we are able to tell a story about intersection solution finding. Thinking about this idea of how do we disrupt this cycle of folks, who have histories of incarceration to not be able to find employment?” she said.