On Tuesday, August 27, Mayor Mike Duggan announced the appointment of Justin Onwenu the City’s first ever Director of Entrepreneurship and Economic Opportunity. The newly created position will fall under the Jobs and Economy team and is designed to support and invest in local entrepreneurs and empower small businesses to facilitate economic opportunity and drive entrepreneurial growth.
In his position, Onwenu, 28, will develop and lead strategies to invest in entrepreneurs wanting to establish themselves in Detroit. This includes those who have business models that might not qualify for more traditional funding sources, such as Motor City Match. He also will work closely with start-up entrepreneurs to identify burdensome City policies and processes that can complicate their ability to develop products and get their business established in Detroit.
With NewLab at Michigan Central already housing more than 100 high tech start-ups and construction of the University of Michigan Center for Innovation now underway, Mayor Duggan said Detroit has a once-in-a-generation opportunity to establish itself as a national leader in the start-up economy.
“Detroit is quickly becoming a magnet for innovative startups, and we want Detroit to be the easiest city in America for these creative entrepreneurs to establish their business,” said Mayor Duggan. “Justin’s job will be to wake up every day looking for ways to streamline the City’s approval processes and to help start-ups find the financial backing they need to get off the ground.”
A Columbia Law School graduate where he served as Student Body President, Onwenu most recently served as Organizing Director for One Fair Wage, a national organization seeking to raise the minimum wage and improve working conditions in Michigan and around the country. Onwenu has drafted minimum wage legislative and ballot initiative language for multiple states/municipalities and conducted legal research on a variety of workers’ rights matters.
Onwenu also has served as a law clerk for Service Employee International Union and the United Auto Workers conducting legal research to protect union members, assisting with intake for wage theft legal claims, and helping draft contract language. Onwenu has also worked with the Michigan Economic Development Corporation’s Grow Michigan effort, supporting work to drive investment in young Michigan talent.
Onwenu is a fourth generation Detroiter. His mother is a nurse and healthcare administrator in Detroit and his father was a Detroit Public Schools teacher and small business owner. Onwenu says he regards his family’s experience as a testament to the power of economic opportunity in Detroit.
“Detroit has world-class talent, creativity and a culture of innovation, which gives us incredible economic potential,” said Onwenu. “I am honored to have been asked by the mayor to lead the city’s efforts to invest in Detroiters, improve our regulatory environment, and make Detroit the top destination for high tech startups.”
“The primary objective of the Jobs and Economy Team is to equitably grow the city’s economy, and the key to that is unlocking Detroit’s potential to be the region’s premier hub for innovators and entrepreneurs,” said Group Executive of Economic Development, Hassan Beydoun. “With Justin’s new role, I’m more confident than ever in our progress towards those ends.”
Onwenu also holds a bachelor’s degree in international health and policy from Rice University where he served as student body president and helped lead recovery efforts in the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey. Prior to law school he served as a Detroit-based community organizer, securing funds to protect school children from poor air quality, connecting elders and other Michiganders to resources in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic, and passing legislation to protect vital drinking water sources.
In addition to his academic accolades, Onwenu has been recognized by Crain’s Detroit Business as a 20 in their 20’s awardee, served as the youngest member of Governor Whitmer’s Black Leadership Council, and served as a Senior Advisor on the campaign that enshrined term limits and government ethics reforms in Michigan’s State Constitution.
