This year’s list of 50 US winners includes sellers from 25
states across motors, electronics, fashion, beauty, collectibles and more. Each
will receive $10,000 to re-invest in their businesses plus customized access to
training resources and mentorship.
“eBay is committed to helping sellers succeed, and we
designed the Up & Running Grant program to fuel their growth,” said Andrea
Stairs, CMO and VP of Seller Community.
“Recipients are able to use funds and resources to increase
inventory, adjust their business model, or hire more employees. Cultivating
small businesses is embedded in the eBay DNA, and we continue to provide the
crucial tools to help entrepreneurs thrive.”
On eBay, 80% of all items sold are from a small business,
and, in the past year, small businesses grew 27% on the marketplace (US). The
2021 grant recipients sell in categories like sneakers, luxury watches,
handbags, trading cards, comics, electronics, sports equipment, motors and
more.
The 50 grant recipients are listed below:
Seller | Business | Location |
Jude Lugo | Flower Mound, TX | |
Lawrence Njuguna | Bowie, MD | |
Adam Hathaway | Westbrook, ME | |
Jake Mallerdino | Pewaukee, WI | |
Anna Packer | Flowery Branch, GA | |
Nila Siok | Elk Grove Village, IL | |
Kristina Compton | Scotland Neck, NC | |
Katelyn Huffine | Lawton, OK | |
Robin Thomas | Landenberg, PA | |
Brandon Bergholz | Ashland, OH | |
Jacqueline Green | Frankfort, KY | |
Vince Kachatorian | Glendale, CA | |
Dave Cole | St. George, UT | |
Jill Norton | Saint Charles, IL | |
Sandy Herrera | New York, NY | |
Eric Sim | San Francisco, CA | |
John Fetchko | Irwin, PA | |
Maria Victoria Cerdenia | Washington, D.C. | |
Shahrad Mohebbi | Katy, TX | |
Jeff Lee | Cupertino, CA | |
Lorri Rathz | Ventura, CA | |
Patricia Snead | Henderson, NV | |
Fal Upton | Tampa, FL | |
Maykau Yang | Brooklyn Park, MN | |
Jeremy Maddox | Morgantown, WV | |
Kathleen McNamara | San Francisco, CA | |
Saini Kannan | Irvine, CA | |
Sunghyo Lee | Fairfield, CT | |
Rachid Saint Jean | Orlando, FL | |
Michael Payne Jr. | Yelm, WA | |
David Jordan | Belton, MO | |
Nhan Phan | Chicago, IL | |
Shannon Hoolihan | Belleville, IL | |
Jacob Pendleton | Dothan, AL | |
Sasha Wood | Pullman, WA | |
Lorie Wuttke | Delevan, WI | |
Ian Roberts | New York, NY | |
Serena Coleman | Sandy, UT | |
Rhonda Abraham | Windermere, FL | |
Alex Carrera | Bethel, CT | |
Shari Smith | Erie, CO | |
John Agnello | Brooklyn, NY | |
Tamara Baker | Lyman, SC | |
Carlos Solis | Pomona, CA | |
Margaret Sommers | Lombard, IL | |
Richard Benedetti | Saint Petersburg, FL | |
Jennifer Walker | Rye, CO | |
Rosalia Villa | Ventura, CA | |
Marcus Binion | Washington, D.C. | |
Waylen Hunsucker | Atlanta, GA |
Through Hello Alice, all grant recipients are enrolled in an
online community of similar businesses for peer-to-peer networking and will
also have access to their business center.
The full list of 2021 grantees can be viewed here, along
with a short video.
In April 2020 eBay announced Up & Running, a $100
million small business accelerator program to address the devastating impacts
of COVID-19 to small, local retail businesses. Built on eBay’s long-standing
commitment to “enabling economic opportunity for all,” the program sought to
help small businesses without an e-commerce presence transition to online
selling.
In November 2020 – to expand on its “Up & Running”
pledge – eBay introduced the Up & Running Grant program in partnership with
Hello Alice. Now in its second year, the program has received more than 10,000
applications from entrepreneurs sharing details of their small business and how
they plan to use the grant to fuel their growth. Following a comprehensive
review, 50 sellers are chosen to each receive $10,000 in cash along with
premium access to Seller School — eBay’s e-learning platform — as well as
direct training, Q&A sessions and mentorship from ranking eBay sellers.
Hello Alice is a free, multichannel platform that helps
businesses launch and grow. With a community of more than 320,000 business
owners in all 50 states and across the globe, Hello Alice is building the
largest network of owners in the country while tracking data and trends to
increase the success rate for entrepreneurs.