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Research Triangle Park – Tech giant Lenovo’s push to boost small businesses is adding a star to its ambassador lineup: Queen Latifah.
“I understand the challenges small businesses face and how challenging those challenges are for women- and minority-owned businesses. Knowing how the support I got when I started helped me get to where I am today – I’m happy to pay it forward and help others by partnering with this small initiative of Lenovo Evolve,” she said in a statement.
Lenovo announced Latifah’s role Thursday, describing her as a “Grammy and Emmy Award-winning and Oscar-nominated actress, producer, recording artist, label president and entrepreneur.”
The program focuses primarily on minority- and woman-owned businesses, Lenovo said.
Lenovo and partner Microsoft presented a competition open to businesses with fewer than 100 employees, with three top prize winners. These include a mentoring session with Latifah, a $30,000 cash grant and $10,000 in technology upgrades.
“It’s an honor to have Queen Latifah as an Evolve Little Ambassador,” said Gerald Youngblood, chief marketing officer for Lenovo North America, in the announcement. “Given our mission to help small businesses evolve, finding a partner that demonstrated smart business acumen and our relationship with philanthropy was critical to ensure this initiative truly made an impact. Small businesses are the lifeblood of our communities and we look forward to supporting small businesses across North America with Queen Latifah as our partner.
Lenovo launched the program in 2021.
Lenovo operates global headquarters in the Triangle and Beijing.
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