We are proud to stand with people who work hard, take risks, and build opportunity where they live. We are proud of our neighbors who once wondered whether their accents, educational backgrounds, or first languages would hold them back, and who now build futures for their families and bring our neighborhoods to life.
Together, at Consult Your Community, we’ve supported thousands of small business owners and employees as they created local jobs and strengthened the communities they call home. Thank you to our small businesses, volunteers, and partners for making the last 10 years possible. Onward. ⬆️
#smallbusinesslove #nonprofit #volunteer #instagood #dream #entrepreneurlife
Supporting the next generation of changemakers! 🌟
The Manhattan Chamber of Commerce SBRN team was honored to partner with @baruch_college ’s Consult Your Community x USG for their Small Business Fair. We love seeing passionate students and local entrepreneurs come together to build, learn, and grow. 🤝
Through our partnership with CYC, we’re helping connect small businesses with talented student consultants offering free services in marketing strategy and more. Stronger businesses = stronger communities. 🏙️
📩 Small business owners: Want to get involved? Reach out to [email protected]. Fall applications are opening soon!
#ManhattanChamber #SmallBusiness #BaruchCollege #NYC #Entrepreneurship
I had the pleasure of attending @cycncstate , where they held their annual small business fair. @consultyourcommunity has given small businesses and student teams the chance to work together towards success. Thanks for having me and talking about your vision to further North Carolina.
#ncpol #ncstate #ncsenate #entrepreneurship #smallbusiness
Mark your calendars for the “Consult Your Community (CYC) Small Business Fair“ next Thursday, April 9.
• Date: Thursday, April 9, 2026
• Time: 1:00 PM – 6:00 PM
• Location: Stafford Commons, 2610 Cates Ave, Raleigh
This NC State student-led event brings together 2,500+ students, neighbors, and local entrepreneurs for a day dedicated to supporting our local small businesses.
Enjoy FREE food, giveaways, live music, games, and discover over 70+ local vendors. Tag a friend and come experience the power of local.
@cycncstate is a student-run nonprofit at NC State University aimed at helping local small businesses.
The Fair sponsors include Wake Tech, North State Bank, City of Raleigh, Ebisu Raleigh, and the Wake County Public School System.
Meet Paul Lewis! 🌟
Paul is truly the heart behind Pickers NJ, an antique shop filled with stories, character, and treasures he couldn’t imagine living without.
As one of our past engagement partners, he continues to inspire us with his genuine passion for art and discovering unique finds. Paul brings new life to old pieces every day.
We’re excited to feature his journey in our CYC Interview Series!
#CYCConsulting #ConsultYourCommunity #CYCWay #ProBonoConsulting #BusinessForGood #CYCImpact #CYCTeam #WomenInBusiness #MinorityBusiness #SmallBusinessSupport #Entrepreneurship #BusinessGrowth #StartupSuccess #ConsultingLife #StrategyMatters #ProblemSolvers #FutureLeaders #StudentConsulting #EmpowerBusinesses #MakeAnImpact #SetonHall #HallPride #StillmanSchool #PirateNation #SetonHallBusiness #SHU #GoPirates #SetonHallConsulting
Just 3 years ago, Illinois' youngest state lawmaker was in your shoes as a Consult Your Community volunteer at our chapter @ucberkeleyofficial . Join us for a heart-to-heart with @rep.nabeelasyed through a virtual webinar for CYC volunteers and alumni in two weeks. Here's your chance to get the inside scoop on what it's like to work in government. Learn how the skills you're learning through CYC will help you in the real world. The conversation will be hosted by Kiron Chandy, CEO and Founder of Consult Your Community, who started the organization back at @berkeleyhaas in 2013. She will reflect with a fellow @uofcalifornia alum how their experiences at CYC and within the university ecosystem at Berkeley paved their commitment to social impact in their respective careers.
Comment your chapter name so we DM you details!
Q: When you think of your time at CYC, what word comes to mind?
A: Friendship!
Q: What did you learn working with small businesses through CYC?
A: I better understood the significance and value of community organizations and small businesses. I work with a number of community based organizations and serve on a Small Businesses, Innovation, and Technology committee in the Illinois Legislature. Being able to bring my experience consulting for nonprofits and small businesses into those conversations and bill discussions has been so helpful.
Q: What was most valuable about your CYC experience at Berkeley?
A: Working with organizations like @wheeltheworld and seeing first hand how mission-oriented organizations born from passion and deserve for change can make such positive impacts on our community as a whole.
#consultyourcommunity #nonprofit #instagood #service #smallbusiness #shopsmall #illinois
“It was almost like an answer to a prayer,” said Imari Colon, owner of East Cloud Kung Fu, describing her experiences working with a team of Consult Your Community volunteers from the NC State chapter. She hadn’t anticipated just how transformative the collaboration would be.
After running her martial arts studio for over six years, Imari had built it into a thriving community space—bringing together people from all walks of life to strengthen both body and spirit through martial arts. But as her business grew, she found it increasingly difficult to keep up with key areas like website optimization, financial organization, and social media engagement.
That’s when our volunteer team stepped in. They provided practical, actionable solutions to support her through a critical time of transition.
“The support they gave me helped me stay afloat. It gave me a platform to stand on,” Imari reflected.
Over just a few months, the team developed recommendations for a refreshed, professional website to ensure East Cloud received the attention it deserved. They also reviewed the studio’s finances, organizing material to give a clear picture of the company’s health. They identified strengths and actionable next steps. In addition, they created social media templates to strengthen East Cloud’s online presence.
Imari credits their diligence for the project’s success. “Everything they brought was helpful,” she said. “I admire how on top of things they were—they really showed up.”
Just as Imari teaches kung fu to build strength and focus, CYC volunteers @cycncstate brought that same discipline to strengthening East Cloud’s business. Building small business resilience through community support lies at the heart of what we do as a national nonprofit.
📍
#SmallBusiness #CommunityImpact #SupportLocal #WomenInBusiness #Entrepreneurship #BusinessForGood #KungFu
Consult Your Community is looking for emerging leaders who want to use their skills to drive real change for students and small businesses across the country!
We have two virtual info sessions (October 22nd and November 8th) to answer all your questions and dive deeper into the board’s mission and your potential impact.
👐The Opportunity: This is a great pathway for young professionals (ages 20-40) to gain hands-on executive experience and build their skill set—experience that is often inaccessible until much later in a career. You do NOT need to be a previous CYC volunteer to be considered.
With our 5,000+ alumni, we would like to make more moments like these happen. Many of us—especially those who come from low-income backgrounds or who are first in their families to graduate from college—rarely imagine they can one day sit on a nonprofit board, write a book, or be in a room conversing with Pulitzer Prize winners. At CYC, we make those moments possible.
📈Your Impact: How you can apply your skills to drive fundraising efforts, expand our regional presence, and champion local businesses.
⏲️Commitment: Details on the one-year term, meeting schedule, and event expectations will be covered in info session.
Link in bio to sign up for the info sessions, read more about the impact board, and apply!
You can also comment “IMPACT” on this post and we will DM you the link!
#impact #nonprofit #volunteer #alumni #board
🎉 Here’s how CYC’s newest chapter at UCSB got lines out the door for their first info session.
Inclusive recruitment isn’t about checking boxes. It’s about showing up with intention, humility, and a genuine desire to be a good neighbor.
Over the summer, the UCSB CYC leadership team reached out to several National team members to learn what makes the strongest chapters thrive. The National Operations team has worked hand in hand with chapter presidents through 200+ e-board transitions since 2015, so we’ve seen firsthand what strong, inclusive leadership looks like.
We shared guidance written alongside and for chapter leaders. These playbooks emphasize learning, partnership, and doing the work. UCSB put those lessons into action. Their leadership team reached out to nearly 50 campus orgs—not just business clubs, but also cultural and social ones—professors, too!
The result? Over 100 students showed up, ready to learn and lead in their communities. When you recruit with inclusion in mind, you don’t just attract a bigger team: You build a better one.
Thank you to Annika, Aly, Celine, Jamie, Shiki, Xander, and Weber for their humility, willingness to learn, and leadership. We are confident that your work will create a ripple effect in the Santa Barbara community.
⬆️If you’re a small business in Santa Barbara, email [email protected] for more details.
📝If you’re a student leader of any campus organization wanting to learn these best practices, check out our link in bio.
#inclusion #campus #nonprofit #community #goodnews
Are you a local small business who needs some help? Come to our next Small Business Seminar tomorrow night from 6:30-7:30 in Room 1212 of Nelson Hall at NC State!
#cycncstate #cyc #ncstate #smallbusinesssupport #raleighsmallbusiness #sbf #raleigh #smallbusinessfair #supportlocal #shoplocal
From seeing a debut (🚨bestselling🚨) novelist Sam Sussman in conversation with a Pulitzer Prize winner Ayad Akhtar at the iconic cultural center the @92ndstreety 🎤, to bringing together nonprofit alumni from UMD at College Park, Baruch, Berkeley, UT Austin, Georgia Tech, and Cornell 🌍, we are building something new.
Huge thanks to our author friend @sam__sussman for helping us create such a special experience as he paves the way for a new journey of his own. 🙌
✨ Consult Your Community is about more than helping small businesses when they need it most. It’s about opening doors to what’s possible.
With our 5,000+ alumni, we would like to make more moments like these happen. Many of us—especially those who come from low-income backgrounds or who are first in their families to graduate from college—rarely imagine they can one day sit on a nonprofit board, write a book, or be in a room conversing with Pulitzer Prize winners. At CYC, we make those moments possible. Everybody has somebody in their corner. Let’s make an impact together.
👉 Alumni: Express interest to join CYC’s Inaugural Impact Board (Link in bio) or chat with our Head of Partnerships @radhika_kalani
📖Check out Sam’s book, Boy from the North Country (Now on the @usatoday Bestseller List)
#community #book #event #smallbusiness #author #bestseller #nonprofit
We love hearing stories from our volunteers and small businesses!
As our programs start across nearly 30 locations, please tag us in your posts and stories so we can reshare.
Since 2013, we have mobilized thousands of volunteers to help local businesses and they want to hear about the impact you’re making in the community!
• What are you learning about entrepreneurship? About what it’s like to be a small business owner?
• What surprised you?
• What made your small business owner decide to start their company?
• What exactly are you working on?
Give us the ☕️ each week!
#smallbusiness #community
