Follow Up: Organizers Call AACCNJ’s Juneteenth Black Business Expo at The College of New Jersey Best Ever
AACCNJ President John Harmon at The College of New Jersey before the Juneteenth Black Business Expo on June 12, 2025. Photo courtesy of AACCNJ
AC Joseph Media
TRENTON — The African American Chamber of Commerce of New Jersey’s third annual Juneteenth Black Business Expo, received rave reviews, from its attendees and sponsors.
The event has been lauded as the premier Juneteenth business event in the state of New Jersey, for the third consecutive year. The organization celebrated its 18-year anniversary, in Trenton’s Ewing Township, at The College of New Jersey, site of the 2025 Expo.
“We are extremely pleased and humbled by the level of support we received at our Third Annual Juneteenth Black Business Expo, we thank everyone for their attendance,” said John E. Harmon, Sr., founder, president & CEO, of the ACCNJ.
READ: Front Runner New Jersey’s coverage of Juneteenth Black Business Expo
“This event was truly a presentation of Black entrepreneurship and our public and private sector partnerships, throughout the state. We are extremely grateful to Governor Phil Murphy for his participation and the coalescence of agency support from his administration, for the third consecutive year.”
The AACCNJ gave a special thank you to Ralph Weaver, CEO of East West Connection, and Jacqueline Baptiste, executive advisor and brand ambassador, for their project management of another successful Expo.
The Expo was open to all local businesses, and all communities were welcomed, and it featured more than 50 corporate and small business exhibitors, and several state agencies, including: BPU – New Jersey’s Clean Energy Program, NJ Department of Labor Workforce and Development, NJ Department of Transportation, NJ Economic Development Authority, NJ Transit, NJ Housing & Mortgage Finance Agency.
“The Expo provided a needed forum to showcase Black entrepreneurship excellence while forging relationships with majority owned companies, and state government agencies that will lead to business opportunities for Chamber members.
“We are thankful and honored to partner with the Chamber as they continue to advocate for Black businesses throughout the state,” said Ralph D. Weaver, founder and CEO, East West Connection.
“A personal thank you to the Expo event team, and the AACCNJ staff, for their collective efforts in another successful Expo,” said Baptiste, executive advisor to Harmon.
Expo special guest speakers included Gov. Phil Murphy; Rev. Dr. Steffie Bartley, Sr., Northeast Regional Director, National Action Network; Michael Bernstein, President of The College of New Jersey.
The keynote speaker was Dr. Boyce Watkins, best-selling author and founder of The Black Business School.
The Premiere Sponsor for the Expo was Hackensack Meridian Health. Elite Sponsors included: Capital Health, Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of NJ, Electra Line and Prudential. Innovator Sponsors included: Citizens Bank, CURE and PSEG. Visionary Sponsors included: Aetna – Meritain Health, Associated Builders and Contractors – NJ, Bank of America, Fiserv, HNTB, JCP&L, OceanFirst Bank, Provident Bank, SJI, and United Airlines.
EXPO HIGHLIGHTS
The Expo offered four hours of 15-minute matchmaking appointments with corporate procurement leaders; from Delaware River Port Authority, Ferreira, NJ Transit, HNTB, SJI, Turner Construction, United, PSE&G, and New Jersey American Water.
The Expo featured 15-minute free financial planning sessions with Prudential Financial. The expo featured two breakout sessions: Crossroads: Taking Your Business to the Level and DEI versus Meritocracy: Unraveling Fact From Fiction.
The Expo was a one-stop resource for free of charge community preventative health care education for the attendees, presented by Premiere Sponsor Hackensack Meridian Health (HMH) and Elite Sponsor: Capital Health.
Expo attendees stepped into the immersive world of Black Heart’s interactive AI exhibition, created exclusively for the African American Chamber of Commerce of New Jersey.
They were able to engage with an innovative AI chatbot “North Star” trained on the rich history of Black Wall Street, the profound legacy of African American entrepreneurship, and the dynamic community of the Chamber’s members.
The Expo featured a select number of retail vendors displaying the best in Black art, fashion and more, including returning vendors, Art’s World, and a new local vendor “Betty’s Pop Up Shop.”
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