Small businesses are the backbone of our economy and for decades, we have been committed to providing opportunities to local, small business, minority and women owned businesses. Especially right now, it’s important to support locals. According to the National Bureau of Economic Research, 3.3 million (over 10%) U.S. Small Businesses have closed their doors for good since the nationwide shutdown of non-essential businesses in March, more than 40% were owned by African-Americans.
We want to introduce you to a remarkable couple. Back in 2009, during the Great Recession, Thomas and Tiesha Moore opened up their small family-owned business, G3 Electrical. Not only did the commercial electrical contractor survive, but the African-American owned and certified Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) was awarded two of their biggest contracts to date as a subcontractor for Sletten Construction on Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada (RTC) projects.
“Sletten has been a great mentor for us. They treat us as equal partners and have helped us grow our company in many ways,” Tiesha says.
Thomas and Tiesha were first introduced to the RTC through the Urban Chamber’s Contract Connections matchmaking event, which we sponsored. They met Tonita Brown and Charles Cheatham, members of RTC’s Purchasing & Contracts, in a one-on-one session. The Moore’s created and maintained a Capabilities Statement, G3’s business resume, to focus on the services they offer.
“We had to cross our “t’s” and dot our “I’s,” stated Thomas. The husband and wife team believe that the meeting with the RTC three years ago put them on a journey of establishing new relationships to be successful. “None of this happens overnight. We planted seeds a few years ago that are bearing fruit now,” Tiesha stated. The couple repeatedly said that as small business owners they know they need to be focused on a pipeline that extends six months to a year from today because it takes time to build relationships that lead to opportunities.
G3 Electrical was awarded the Diverse Subcontractor of the Year by the Nevada Contractor’s Association (NCA) in 2019. Today, they have grown their company despite the economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.
