BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KERO) — Ruford Hill, a 74-year-old Black business owner who does 15 to 20 carpet-laying jobs a month in Bakersfield, said a lack of funding was his main challenge, but a grant from the city has made all the difference.
The video shows Ruford Hill installing new carpeting at the Four Points Hotel. A study by the Kern County Black Chamber of Commerce found that financing is a big challenge for black business owners. The Entrepreneurial Technical Assistance Grant Program helps small business owners like Hill get $10,000 in grant funding.
The hotel has a group of men working on renovating the building, and one by one they are realizing the potential of a Black-owned business.
At a time when most retirees are lounging in lounge chairs by the hotel’s pool, Rufford Hill is still working here.
“But I like to work,” said Hill, owner of Carpet Installation on Broadway. “It keeps me energized. Even though I’m old, I still have energy.”
Hill, 74, said he does 15 to 20 carpet-laying jobs a month in places around Bakersfield.
“What would happen if I just sat there doing nothing?” he laughed. “What? I’d look like I’m 74.”
Each job looks different.
“This job requires stretching the carpet, so I use this tool.”
Hill said he’s been fortunate to find steady work, but his small business still faces challenges.
“You’re probably making less than you would at a big company,” he told 23ABC.
And he just wants to “have some kind of money to retire with, but that seems like a big deal.”
To help him get there, the Kern County Black Chamber of Commerce helped Hill secure a grant from the city of Bakersfield.
“I worked hard to be a part of it and I was blessed,” he said, adding that he didn’t initially expect to receive the grant.
Through the Entrepreneurial Technical Assistance Grant Program, Hill was awarded $10,000, and Chamber of Commerce President Edward Robinson met with him at City Hall to sign the paperwork.
“We’ll submit it,” Robinson told Hill, “and here’s the invoice. Now we just have to wait for payment.”
Hill says the payment could be a game changer for his business.
“With this grant, maybe I won’t have to do it. [work] “Every day. It’s hard, so I wonder if you could help me out a little more,” he said.
A survey conducted by the Kern County Black Chamber of Commerce found that 58% of business owners like Hill cited fundraising as their biggest challenge.
“Our members don’t really have access to capital,” Robinson said, “but the important thing to remember during National Black Business Month is that thriving Black businesses are an indicator that the entire economic ecosystem is thriving.”
Now that he’s signed on the dotted line, Hill only has one thing on his mind.
“Okay, that’s done. I can get back to work now,” he said with a laugh.
That time isn’t yet here, but Hill says he plans to retire within the next few years.
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