About Urbane

THEORY OF CHANGE

We see neighborhoods as defined by their strengths and experienced as places of opportunity. Where others perceive a lack of resources, we see vast potential for growth and prosperity. Under-resourced urban and rural areas are incredible reservoirs of untapped talent, where scarcity of investment and amenities fosters fertile ground for local innovation, creativity, and thought leadership. For Urbane, the chance to collaborate with and invest in the people and places that make these communities shine is a no-brainer.

THE POWER OF COMMUNITY ANCHORS

We focus on small businesses and other local anchors because their role offers unparalleled insight and influence, making them powerful, positive agents for change. These anchors can catalyze entrepreneurship, economic mobility and social cohesion to shift the dynamics of power.

What drives us

Many communities have lack ownership over their assets, making them vulnerable to displacement and economic instability.

Our strategy is rooted in the belief that local talent and trusted community spaces - the storefront businesses, artisan producers, and manufacturers, and community - and faith-based organizations that serve as natural conduits to opportunity - are the foundation for lasting economic mobility.

By investing in these physical spaces, we can gain a foothold and grow our influence - win the corner, then the block, then the neighborhood - to reshape the dynamics of power, create sustainble pathways to wealth, and ensure that prosperity enhances the community.

The HOW

Trust Transforms

Urbane builds bridges toward equitable distribution of wealth and power. We foster community-led solutions through research, advisory, and place-based development and investment. By centering the wisdom and solutions already in communities, we aim to build a future of prosperity and shared wealth.

We Believe that Trust Transforms.

Trust is the foundation of Urbane’s process and our company at large. As connectors, mediators, and deep listeners, we build trust between ourselves and communities, between communities and partners, and in all steps of our work. Our stakeholders say, time and time again, that our work is unlike any other. It is that trust that we work hard to earn and give so authentically to communities that transforms our process and this work.

The WHY

Our Origins

The idea to forge a new entrepreneurial path was born amidst Italian cliffs while attending the annual Terra Madre conference in Turin; already an early pioneer in healthy food financing initiatives that would soon proliferate nationally, our founder became the bodega man, bridging the ubiquitous neighborhood staple with an inkling that these dynamic spaces – community anchors in their own right – had the power to be transformative.

If you could transform the corner of the block, perhaps you could seed the change for an entire street, and even begin to revitalize an entire neighborhood. And thus, Urbane sprouted its wings in 2008, born out of bodegas, a Philly grind, and the hustle and determination to create pathways to wealth and opportunity for black, brown, and marginalized communities across the nation.