Black-owned business owners gathered with the Small Business Services Department Tuesday to talk about the resources that are available to them amid the struggles they face during the pandemic.

Officials explained how being certified makes minority and/or women-owned businesses that qualify the opportunity to receive government grants.

MORE: NYC SBS - Get certified

"To get one of those contracts, you have to go through a process – so what we do is support businesses with diverse ownership and pursuing the city contracts," says Dynishal Gross, deputy commissioner of SBS.

Kwesi Williams, a co-owner of Savvy Bar and Bistro, says starting a business with his friends was not easy.

"But once we started getting in contact with those resources… they helped us do most of the heavy lifting," he told News 12.

Williams expressed how the SBS supported him in a time of need and is helping him pay it forward. He also thanked the SBS for its internship program.

Officials say more than 10,000 business are now certified after the pandemic and 30% of those are Black owned.