RBC’s Black Entrepreneur Program (BEP) is supporting the success and growth of Black entrepreneurs in helping elevate their businesses every step of the way.
Rocheny Alexandre is the Founder of Vrai Health and Wellness, a mental health service based in Toronto. The company provides personalized mental health counselling to individuals as well as organizations.
After being born and raised in Haiti, Alexandre decided to move to Canada as a young teenager in search of better opportunities.
The business owner has always possessed a strong passion for helping people, resulting in him pursuing a career in counselling, with a goal of creating a big impact for struggling individuals and for his community as well. To take his business to the next level, he turned to RBC’s Black Entrepreneur Program (BEP) for guidance.
The RBC BEP provides products, services and advice to help take businesses to the next level. The program was launched in 2020 by RBC as part of their $100 million commitment to supporting Black entrepreneurs.
The program includes two types of loans, The Black Entrepreneur Startup Program (BESP) and the RBC Black Entrepreneur Business Loan (BEBL). The BESP offers small business loans, mentorship, and business resources to Black entrepreneurs aged 18 to 39. Meanwhile, the BEBL provides eligible Black entrepreneurs with loans of up to $250,000 in addition to dedicated advice during every stage of their business journey.
Alexandre shared that RBC’S BEP was crucial in getting his business to where it is today.
“It was extremely helpful to have that mentorship, that structure, also, with a program that focused on the needs of the Black community because on top of all the other challenges, we also have our own,” he told Now Toronto.
“Having a program where they could actually assist and give us the kind of financial support that we needed was extremely tremendous for us and now we are in a different position than we were before we accessed this program,” he continued.
Alexandre says one of the biggest benefits of this program is being educated and well-guided on financial literacy by his RBC business account manager.
“…Financial literacy is something that we talk a lot about and there’s a huge connection with that even with mental health. So, even for us as entrepreneurs, a lot of the time we don’t outline that because there’s also the stress that comes with running a business or stress with the business itself,” he explained.
“So, I think having that kind of structure helped me as an executive director to work on my business instead of just working in the business and not having a long-term goal,” he added.
Since using BEP, Alexandre says his business has evolved immensely from a group of two therapists to ten. In addition, his list of clients has accumulated hundreds of names.
“We were able to increase our marketing efforts and as well as our processes…I feel more confident about how we move and we are also more confident in building more partnerships, because we created that structure to be successful and efficient that way, and it’s because of the program,” he said.
Alexandre admits that finding a program specifically dedicated to the success of Black entrepreneurs like himself felt like validation.
“I think we all need that (validation) even in an emotional context, I think it was important for me as a Black entrepreneur to get that validation. I see you as a Black entrepreneur, I see where you’re coming from and I can see what your struggles are and these are the tools that we can put in front of you, or we can give you to help you overcome that,” he said.
Furthermore, he adds that having a space, such as RBC’s BEP, serves as a reminder that Black entrepreneurs can succeed in whatever they set their mind to.
“It’s the power of community, because entrepreneurship can be very lonely at times, and having access to a space like that also reminds us that we can succeed. But also as a group, and whatever that we’re doing, it’s not just about ourselves, it’s how we can better our community, this is what we value in our company for health and wellness,” he said.
Alexandre says he highly recommends the program to every Black entrepreneur who wants to achieve their dreams.
For more information on the RBC Black Entrepreneur Program, visit www.rbc.com/blackentrepreneur.
