Leading with Purpose,
Building for Tomorrow
The Wild Seed Collective was born out of a simple but urgent truth: too many brilliant businesses led by Black women and women of color were being left without access to capital or capacity support.
We offer grants, growth-focused workshops, and business development services tailored for women of color in Los Angeles. Our work is rooted in the knowledge that when women owned businesses thrive, entire communities thrive alongside them.
From Soil to Sky
Our guiding motto for growth
Year One Impact
In our first year, we proved that capital, capacity, and community together can seed not just businesses, but ecosystems.
$83K
In Grants Awarded
To 7 core grantees
$40K
Rapid Response
Across 40 wildfire-affected businesses
447+
Community Members
Engaged through events & workshops
$91K
Technical Assistance
Delivered across 300+ hours
The 'wild' in Wild Seed is about refusing to conform, resisting the pruning that tells us to look like everyone else.
Breanna Hawkins
Co-Founder, The Wild Seed Collective
Dear Community,
This first year of The Wild Seed Collective has been proof of what can happen when women trust one another, pool our expertise, and center our communities as the starting point of economic growth.
It affirmed what we already knew: when women-owned businesses are resourced, entire ecosystems shift. A grocery store becomes a lifeline for families. A maternal health brand saves lives and restores dignity. A wellness space invites rest into a culture that tells us to grind until collapse.
We watched these truths unfold through our grantees. They had the vision; what they needed was trust, capital, and capacity. Through funding from Care First, Community Investment (CFCI), we put $93,000 directly into their hands and paired that with 300+ hours of technical assistance — a $91,000 investment in itself.
But The Wild Seed is not just about what we give; it is also about who we are. As founders, we are women building businesses of our own, navigating the same barriers and daring to imagine alongside the grantees we serve. As Morgan Paden reflected, "Early-stage entrepreneurship is incredibly isolating… This program builds a network of like-minded peers navigating similar challenges. That changes everything." This Collective affirms that our paths are deeply connected - their growth and resilience mirror our own.
That is why this year has been as personal as it has been professional. For Brittany Dacoff, the work planted something new: "The Wild Seed helped me trust myself — my voice, my timing, my story." And for Breanna Hawkins, it was a reminder that "authenticity is a strength… your difference is your asset."
In the years ahead, we hope to build something that keeps growing - preserving identity, nurturing vision, and transforming isolation into connection. As Debbie Sheen reflected, "The Wild Seed represents imagination as power. If we had let external limits guide us, we wouldn't have built what we have." That same imagination will guide how we deepen our roots and broaden our reach, so that every woman daring to build has the soil, the water, and the light she needs to thrive.
With love and intention,
The Founding Team of The Wild Seed Collective
Join Our Ecosystem
Whether you're an entrepreneur, funder, or community partner, there's a place for you in our growing network.