Oakland & the World Enterprises

What Oakland & the World Enterprises does

Oakland & the World Enterprises (OAW) is a 501(c)(3) California Public Benefit Corporation founded in 2014 by Elaine Brown, former Chairman of the Black Panther Party. Its mission is to launch and sustain for-profit businesses for cooperative ownership by formerly incarcerated and other socioeconomically marginalized people, primarily in West Oakland. The organization's flagship asset is the 7th & Campbell development, anchored by The Black Panther Apartments — a 79-unit, 100% affordable housing complex for residents at or below 30% of Area Median Income, completed in June 2024, GreenPoint Platinum rated, and net-zero energy with 20,000 sq ft of rooftop solar. The $80 million project was funded primarily through California state and federal affordable housing programs, including a $43 million California Housing Accelerator award (the first project to break ground under the program). Ground-floor commercial spaces are launching in 2025 to house Body & Soul Fitness Center, Power B.I.T. Technology Business Center, Neighborhood Market, and A Taste of Power restaurant as cooperatively owned businesses.

OAW's operating model combines nonprofit social mission with cooperative business economics. Revenue mechanics include below-market rental income from affordable housing units (subsidized by government programs), food sales from Soul on a Roll food truck (launched September 2021, cooperatively owned by formerly incarcerated worker-owners), produce sales from West Oakland Farms (urban agriculture, relaunching on-site), and forthcoming revenue from the 2025 commercial tenants. The organization is grant-funded rather than equity-financed, with notable gifts from the Black Lives Matter Foundation ($1M, March 2024) and the Oakland A's (supporting the food truck launch). The customer base is concentrated: 79 housing tenants and a small number of cooperative worker-owners, plus foot traffic from the surrounding West Oakland community. Pricing is not publicly disclosed, and revenue figures are not reported. There is no technology product, no AI/ML capability, and no digital platform — the technology footprint is limited to a Wix-based marketing website. Overall, OAW is a community development nonprofit whose competitive position rests on founder-driven brand equity, political capital, and a vertically integrated housing-plus-cooperative-business model rather than traditional technology or scale moats.

Name

Oakland & the World Enterprises

Legal name

Oakland & the World Enterprises, Inc.

Website

https://oaklandandtheworld.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2014

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Oakland & the World Enterprises is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 2014 that operates a 79-unit affordable housing complex and cooperative businesses in West Oakland for formerly incarcerated and socioeconomically marginalized people, with four new ground-floor ventures launching in 2025.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Oakland

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Affordable Housing Operations: OAW develops and operates 100% affordable housing (The Black Panther Apartments - 79 units). The housing serves extremely low-income residents at or below 30% AMI. Revenue comes from rental income and government subsidies.
2. Urban Farming Business: West Oakland Farms produces organic crops sold to local grocers and restaurants. This for-profit operation was OAW's first business launched in 2015, run by formerly incarcerated people.
3. Food Truck Operations: Soul on a Roll food truck business launched in September 2021, cooperatively owned by formerly incarcerated people. Revenue from food sales.
4. Future Commercial Spaces: Upon completion of the 7th & Campbell development, commercial spaces on the ground floor will house businesses including neighborhood market, restaurant, fitness center, and tech center. Once profitable, businesses become independently and cooperatively owned.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Oakland & the World Enterprises (OAW) is a nonprofit community development organization that develops and operates deeply subsidized affordable housing and launches cooperatively-owned businesses for formerly incarcerated and socioeconomically marginalized people in West Oakland. Its flagship asset is The Black Panther Apartments, a 79-unit 100% affordable housing complex at 7th & Campbell for residents at or below 30% of Area Median Income, complemented by ground-floor cooperative businesses spanning urban farming, a food truck, a fitness center, a tech incubation hub, a neighborhood market, and a restaurant. Revenue comes from rental income, product sales, and government and philanthropic grants.

Product overview

Oakland & the World Enterprises (OAW) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that launches and sustains for-profit businesses for cooperative ownership by formerly incarcerated and socioeconomically marginalized people. OAW's portfolio centers on the 7th & Campbell Development in West Oakland, a mixed-use complex featuring The Black Panther Apartments (79 units of 100% affordable housing at or below 30% AMI), ground-floor commercial spaces for OAW's cooperative businesses, and integrated urban farming. The completed and planned businesses include: West Oakland Farms (urban agriculture, launched 2015), Soul on a Roll (food truck, launched 2021), and the Technology Business Center/Power B.I.T. (tech incubation hub), Body & Soul Fitness Center, Neighborhood Market, and A Taste of Power restaurant (all launching 2025). The development achieved GreenPoint Platinum certification and operates as a net-zero energy building with 20,000 sq ft of rooftop solar panels.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• West Oakland Farms: Urban farm business launched in 2015, operated by formerly incarcerated people using sustainable organic growing methods. Crops were sold to local grocers and restaurants.
• Soul on a Roll
• The Black Panther
• Power B.I.T. (Blacks In Tech)
• Body & Soul Fitness Center
• A Taste of Power

Products and services

• The Black Panther Apartments A 100% affordable housing complex with 79 units (23 studios, 24 one-bedrooms, 32 two-bedrooms) reserved for residents at or below 30% of Area Median Income. Features triple-pane windows, 20,000 sq ft of rooftop solar for net-zero energy operation, and GreenPoint Platinum certification. Constructed for an $80 million budget.
• Soul on a Roll Food truck business cooperatively owned by formerly incarcerated people, launched in September 2021 with support from the Oakland A's. Operates in Oakland.
• West Oakland Farms An urban farm at 7th & Campbell in West Oakland using sustainable organic growing methods, operated by formerly incarcerated people at $20/hour. Crops were sold to local grocers and restaurants; being incorporated into the new Black Panther building's on-site urban farm.
• Power B.I.T. (Blacks In Tech) Technology Business Center Technology incubation hub for 3-D printer products and app design, led by formerly incarcerated tech developers Michael and Reuben Buckley. Scheduled to launch Spring 2025 within The Black Panther complex.
• Body & Soul Fitness Center Fitness center organized by formerly incarcerated fitness trainer Joli Zahra Drevitch, offering yoga, boxing, cardio, strength training, and health and wellness programs. Scheduled to launch Spring 2025.
• Neighborhood Market Grocery market bringing high quality, affordable fresh food, produce, and household products to West Oakland. Accepts food stamps. Organized by Michael Lewis (incarcerated 27 years) and Tolani King of Moms4 Housing. Scheduled to launch Fall 2025.
• A Taste of Power Restaurant Restaurant and live entertainment venue intended to resurrect the spirit of 7th Street's 'Harlem of the West' era, positioned as a destination for great food and entertainment. Organized by Maury McFadden and Tashara Newton. Scheduled to launch Winter 2025.

Quantifiable outcome

• Zero recidivism cited as goal through creation of positive economic opportunities
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• McCormack Baron SalazarcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational for-profit developer, manager and asset manager of economically-integrated urban neighborhoods. Since 1973, MBS has been an innovator in community development and urban revitalization in 47 cities, having built more than 22,000 high quality homes. Served as co-developer on The Black Panther project, providing expertise and credibility that helped secure funding.
• MWA ArchitectscoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerArchitecture firm responsible for designing The Black Panther building. Partnered with OAW to create a comfortable, state-of-the-art building that establishes a new standard in housing with features like curved exterior surfaces for noise reduction from BART trains.
• Keith CarsoncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAlameda County Supervisor representing Fifth District including West Oakland. Co-founder of OAW alongside Elaine Brown. Advisory board member providing political support and community connections.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Mission Economic Development Agency (MEDA): San Francisco nonprofit focused on economic development in the Mission District, combining affordable housing preservation with small business support and asset-building for Latino families. Comparable as a community-rooted nonprofit integrating housing with cooperative economic empowerment.
• Mercy Housing: National nonprofit providing affordable housing and resident services across 40+ cities, with Bay Area operations. Comparable as a mission-driven nonprofit that develops and operates affordable housing for extremely low-income populations alongside supportive services.
• East Bay Asian Local Development Corporation (EBALDC): East Bay-based nonprofit developer of affordable housing and community facilities serving low-income Asian, immigrant, and other marginalized communities. Comparable as a regional community development corporation operating in Oakland/East Bay with a similar nonprofit model of housing + community empowerment.
• BRIDGE Housing Corporation: Bay Area-based nonprofit affordable housing developer and owner with a portfolio of 8,000+ homes serving low- and moderate-income residents. Comparable as a regional nonprofit combining affordable housing development with community economic development in California urban markets.
• Tenderloin Neighborhood Development Corporation (TNDC): San Francisco nonprofit developing affordable housing for low-income residents, including formerly homeless and other vulnerable populations. Comparable as a California-based nonprofit combining affordable housing development with wraparound services for marginalized communities.
• McCormack Baron Salazar: National for-profit developer and asset manager of economically-integrated urban neighborhoods, with 22,000+ homes across 47 cities. Served as co-developer on The Black Panther project, providing the development expertise that complemented OAW's nonprofit community mission — comparable as a mission-aligned affordable housing developer.

Broad incumbents

• Enterprise Community Partners: One of the largest national CDFIs funding and developing affordable housing and community development, deploying billions in capital across the U.S. Comparable as a large-scale affordable housing mission-driven organization, though operating at vastly greater scale and geographic breadth than OAW.
• Habitat for Humanity: International nonprofit building affordable housing for low-income families, with Bay Area affiliates. Comparable as a large-scale nonprofit affordable housing provider using volunteer labor and below-market financing, though focused on homeownership rather than rental.
• Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC): National nonprofit and CDFI supporting local community development organizations through capital, technical assistance, and policy advocacy. Comparable as a financing and capacity-building intermediary for affordable housing and small business in underserved communities.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/OAWEnterprises
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/oakland-the-world-enterprises

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Oakland & the World Enterprises