science

LGBTQ-owned business

LGBTQ-owned business is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand LGBTQ-owned business rather than just read about it. In short: LGBTQ-, or queer-owned businesses are businesses owned and often operated by members of the LGBTQIA+ community. They may also be described as being owned by specific subgroups, such as gay-, lesbian-, or trans-owned businesses.

Key takeaways

LGBTQ-owned business belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect LGBTQ-owned business to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of LGBTQ-owned business from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

LGBTQ-, or queer-owned businesses are businesses owned and often operated by members of the LGBTQIA+ community. They may also be described as being owned by specific subgroups, such as gay-, lesbian-, or trans-owned businesses. Many queer-owned businesses cater specifically to marginalized people by offering products that are not otherwise widely available. They are commonly more likely to have difficulty acquiring financial backing. Some government institutions and municipalities have special programs to support minority-owned businesses and have started to include LGBTQ-owned businesses in such programs. The term queer business is used occasionally. In 2022, Charlie Sprinkman created the website Everywhere Is Queer to help promote queer-owned businesses around the world.

Canada Cape & Cowl is among LGBTQ-owned businesses in Canada.

Mexico Paco Ruiz opened Club Paco Paco (later known as Paco's Ranch) in Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco, in December 1989. According to Ed Walsh of SFGate, "At the time, Jalisco didn't have formal laws against homosexuality. But police and regulators often targeted gay-owned businesses for shakedowns because, without political connections or meaningful support in the broader local community, they were vulnerable."

United States

According to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, there are approximately 1.4 million LGBT-owned businesses as of 2024. The National LGBT Chamber of Commerce (NGLCC), a nonprofit organization that serves as a certifying body for Certified LGBT Business Enterprises (LGBTBEs), says LGBTQ+ owned businesses are at least 51 percent "owned, operated, managed and controlled by a person or persons who identify as part of the LGBTQ+ community (including non-binary and gender non-conforming individuals)". New Jersey is the first state to have an official certification process. In addition to the certification, the US government Small Business Administration has a program to promote LGBTQ-owned businesses. The Greater Seattle Business Association, described as "a business chamber for LGBTQ and allied businesses", was established by nine gay business owners in 1981. In 2021, New York City recognized LGBTQ-owned businesses as part of their program to support and promote minority-owned businesses to provide mentorship, consulting and access to government contracts that promote minority owned businesses. In an interview with Axios, the Massachusetts Chamber of Commerce executive director, Grace Moreno highlighted that there is a high demand for inclusion in the community and that "young people in particular are more willing to go out of their way to support LGBTQ-owned stores, bars, restaurants and other businesses." In 2023, a community group celebrated the first annual LGBTQ+ business week to "support queer-owned businesses while simultaneously raising awareness around economic issues for the community." In 2024, it will be celebrated the week of December 2.

List of notable LGBTQ-owned businesses in the United States

See also StartOut, a startup supporting LGBTQ entrepreneurs

References

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with LGBTQ-owned business

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what LGBTQ-owned business claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to LGBTQ-owned business before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about LGBTQ-owned business ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of LGBTQ-owned business

In research: LGBTQ-owned business appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses LGBTQ-owned business in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: LGBTQ-owned business is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Business models, Business terms, Entrepreneurship, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for LGBTQ-owned business outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

Ask Teacher Smith questions about this articleOpens your AI tutor with a question about “LGBTQ-owned business” →

Affiliate

Preply — study more efficiently by working with a personal tutor. 50% off.

How to study LGBTQ-owned business in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what LGBTQ-owned business means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain LGBTQ-owned business out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is LGBTQ-owned business in simple terms?

Why does LGBTQ-owned business matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study LGBTQ-owned business?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on LGBTQ-owned business.