W
Whittness GrowthSuites & Spaces
Community supporter version · Ways to be part of it
An invitation, from our family to yours
Be part of something bigger

Help us build something that lasts in West Baltimore.

Own a piece of something bigger. Right here in West Baltimore.

We're creating a beauty, wellness & spa community. It's a place where local professionals serve our neighborhood, inside a redevelopment the whole city is watching. We'd love for our family to be part of it.

We're building a beauty, wellness & spa community inside a redevelopment the whole city is watching. It's a place where local entrepreneurs grow, neighbors get served, and the community shares in what gets built. There's a way for everyone to be part of it.

Michael & Kiaira · Whittness Growth

We're inviting the people who matter most to us to be part of something we believe in.

This is a chance to help build a lasting, community-rooted business right here in our neighborhood, and to share in what it becomes. We'll always give you the straight story: the real opportunity, and the honest risks. We'd rather earn your trust than win you over.

This is bigger than one business.

Edmondson Village is being rebuilt by the community that owns it, and we're carrying that same spirit forward: a Black-owned business that lifts up local beauty, wellness, and nursing professionals and keeps the value right here in the neighborhood. When you back us, you're backing that movement.

Why raise this way

The usual path is bank and government-backed small-business loans. Right now that path is largely closed or unfavorable to us, for reasons outside our control. Pushing through it would mean accepting terms that quietly eat into the success of the business and any return to the people who back us.

Building our capital with people who believe in us keeps the terms fair, keeps it in the family, and means the value we create flows to people we love. It's also exactly how the shopping center itself was funded.

What we're raising

We're raising $66,000 to $84,000 over the next 60 days to have our capital in place before we sign the lease — with about $28,000 or more of that coming from our founding campaign. Kiaira and I are putting in our own savings and years of work to make this real. We're not asking anyone to back something we haven't fully committed to ourselves.

There's a place for every level. Whether it's $100 or $10,000, it matters and it adds up. Each way of helping below shows where it typically starts, so you can find what fits you.

And we'll be honest with you the whole way: we won't tell you this can't fail, because that wouldn't be true. What we can promise is a real plan we'll share with you, straight answers to every question, and a mission worth backing.

Every bit helps. You don't have to give a lot to be part of something that matters. A contribution, your skills, or simply spreading the word all help us open our doors and create space for dozens of local entrepreneurs.
Tip: Tap The Project below to see why this location is getting city, state, and national attention. Then open Ways to Help to find the options that fit you.
The Project

More than a salon. A wellness & spa community the country is watching.

We're opening inside the Edmondson Village Shopping Center, a redevelopment recognized as a national model for community-owned revitalization. Here's what's documented and public:

$17M
Community purchase, 2023
200+
Local co-owners / investors

Community-owned

Bought by Chicago TREND with 200+ local investors under the banner #weownthis. It's become a national model for building Black wealth through ownership.

Government-backed

Around $7.5M committed by Baltimore City and several million more from Maryland. Mayor Scott and Governor Moore have both shown up to celebrate it.

Mission-aligned with us

The developer's stated goal is to lease to Black-owned businesses, hire Black contractors, and create local jobs. We are exactly the tenant this project exists to create.

Beauty meets wellness

This is more than a salon. It's a community space for beauty pros and wellness providers alike, including nursing-based and maternal-health services, an area close to Kiaira's public-health background.

Built-in business support

For a decade, Michael has run a financial-services practice helping business owners get structured, develop, and scale, with many beauty and wellness clients. That experience is the engine behind the support our professionals get here.

Anchored & growing

Incoming grocery, a medical clinic, and national names are driving steady foot traffic to a corridor being rebuilt from the ground up.

What this means for you: backing us isn't betting on an unknown strip mall. It's stepping into a documented, government-supported, nationally-recognized community project, as part-owners of one of its businesses.

Four ways to help
Three ways to be part of it

Pick the two that fit you best.

Find your way in.

From writing a check to simply sharing a link, every level matters, and most people find two that fit. One way to back us directly, and one way to help us grow. Tap any option to open it.

Three easy, no-pressure ways to support a community business in West Baltimore. Give what you can, lend your skills, or simply spread the word. Tap any one to open it.

Try pairing: Lend & connect. Crowdfund & share. Contribute in-kind & refer. Invest & introduce us to one group. Choosing two doubles your impact, and one of them can be completely free.
Any one of these makes a difference, and two of them are completely free. Pick whatever feels right to you.
1
Lender / Line of CreditFixed interest · typically $5,000+
How
You lend an amount (or extend a credit line) at an agreed interest rate, with a proper promissory note.
Payback
On a defined schedule you know up front, set out in a written promissory note. We can keep early payments lighter during the ramp, then step them up once the business stabilizes.
Tax treatment
Only the interest you earn is taxed, as ordinary income, just like interest from a bank or CD. Getting your original loan back is not taxed at all, since it's simply your own money returning to you. A clean promissory note keeps it simple at tax time. Confirm specifics with your CPA.
Risk
Moderate · predictable
Why this can fit: a fixed, known return, repaid ahead of owners, secured by a written note. It's often the best fit for family who want to help and earn fairly without ownership risk.
$10,000 loan at 8% interest
Illustration only · rough, round numbers
You lend$10,000
Interest earned per year~$8008% of $10,000
Tax on that interestTaxed as incomeyour normal tax rate, like bank interest
Return of your $10,000 principalNot taxedit's your own money coming back
The idea: only the interest you earn is taxed (as ordinary income); getting your original loan back is not a taxable event. A clean promissory note and simple records make tax time easy. This is a simplified example, not a promise or tax advice. Your actual result depends on your situation, so confirm with your CPA.
2
In-Kind ContributorItems, ideas, or services · any value
How
Contribute something other than cash, like equipment or furnishings, a valuable idea we adopt, or professional services. We recognize it with credit, perks, or public recognition, not a financial share of the business.
You get
A defined, limited form of recognition we agree on in writing: named recognition (like a credited contribution), service perks, or founding-supporter status. This is not ownership and not a share of the company's revenue or profits.
Tax treatment
The simplest of all the options. Because you receive recognition rather than a financial return, there's typically nothing to report as income. If you contribute business property or professional services, there can be minor considerations on your end, which a quick word with your CPA clears up. Confirm specifics with your CPA.
Risk
Low · no money at stake
Why it's clean: you help the project with what you have, and we recognize you for it, without the complexity (or confusion) of a financial stake.
3
Crowdfunding SupporterCount me in · from $100
JUL15
Launches July 15thA 12-day founding campaign
How
Our rewards-based founding campaign opens July 15th and runs for just 12 days. You'll get perks like founding-member status, discounted services, event access, and naming opportunities, but not ownership. Add your name now so you're ready the moment it opens, because in a 12-day window, the early supporters matter most.
Get
The reward tier you choose when it launches. This is about being part of the founding story from day one.
Tax treatment
Backing a rewards campaign is generally treated like a purchase, not an investment, so there are typically no investment-tax consequences for you to track. Confirm specifics with your CPA.
Risk
Low

Count me in for launch:

4
ConnectorRefer & share · free
How
You don't give money. You help us reach the right people. The most valuable connections are groups: community organizations, nonprofits, churches, associations, and local networks.
Share
Share this with people and groups freely, so they can join the founding-campaign list before it launches July 15th.
Please don't broadly post the lending option (option 1). Lending is a private family conversation and is regulated, so it can't be advertised to the public. If you know someone who might want to lend, just introduce them to us privately.
At a glance

Compare your options.

A quick side-by-side. Tap Ways to Help for the full detail on any one.

Lender Private only

Give
Cash / credit line
Get
Fixed interest, repaid first
Risk
Moderate

In-Kind

Give
Items / ideas / services
Get
Credit, perks, recognition
Risk
Low

Crowdfunding

Give
Smaller contribution
Get
Perks + founding status
Risk
Low

Connector

Give
Just your network
Get
Our gratitude + impact
Risk
None
How payback works

Lenders are repaid on a fixed schedule set in the promissory note, so the return is predictable and the loan is repaid ahead of any other obligation. We can structure the early payments lighter while the business is ramping, then step them up once it stabilizes.

The honest version: our base-case plan is strong and stress-tested, but projections are not promises. The early years carry the most risk, which is exactly why we'll share the full plan and numbers with anyone considering the lending option.
What you're really building

Wealth-building with a conscience.

Beyond returns, your help builds a real place: a beauty, wellness & spa community where local professionals get an affordable, professional home and the support to grow. That includes hair and beauty pros, plus wellness and nursing-based providers like skin, aesthetic, and maternal or postpartum wellness. There's an education room that teaches and certifies, and a media studio that brings real production to West Baltimore. It's a family legacy that can reach a second location and beyond.

You'd be helping prove that a community-rooted, mission-driven business can also be a sound one, in a place the whole country is watching.

Let's talk about the two ways that fit you.

We're closing this raise in the next 60 days, before we sign the lease. The easiest next step is a quick 15-minute call: no pressure, just a conversation about what fits you. There's no wrong answer, and one of your two ways can be free.

Be part of the story.

Whether you back the founding campaign, lend your skills, or simply spread the word, you're helping prove that a community can build something lasting for itself. Our 12-day campaign launches July 15th — join us before it opens.

— Michael & Kiaira

Required disclosures. This is for private discussion with family and is not an offer to sell securities or a solicitation to the public. The lending option involves risk, including possible loss of principal, and is not guaranteed. Projections are estimates, not promises. This is not tax, legal, accounting, or investment advice, so please consult your own qualified professionals before committing. Formal terms for any option will be set out in separate written agreements reviewed by an attorney.
A note. This is a community fundraising and awareness page for Whittness Growth Suites & Spaces. Rewards-based contributions are not investments. Thank you for helping us share the mission.