11 minute read
Women Entrepreneurs
It Starts at Entrepreneurship
Advertisement
solitude
PHOTO BY MTOPE A. ASOKERE OF NIGERIA
Entrepreneurship
How 4 Determined Business Women Are MAKING IT WORK
Dallas-Fort Worth is a premier environment for women entrepreneurs?
An entrepreneur is a person who organizes and operates a business or businesses taking on greater financial risks in order to do so. An entrepreneur is a person that invest in themselves, working from the bottom - working hard to get to the top. There are over 27 million Black women-owned businesses in the United States.
To celebrate women who are contributing to this amazing growth, I spoke to four entreprenuers in the Texas area. Each shares their own determination of how they got where they are, how they are handling the challenges of 2021, and how living their dream is helping others smile. The American Express report noted that job-creating womenowned businesses flourished in states and cities not traditionally thought of as entrepreneurial hubs. The Lone Star State may not be the first place you imagine women entrepreneurs will thrive. Maybe you’re hoping to jump start your business. Or you simply want to help other women building theirs. Look to Dallas-Fort Worth. A January 2019 report by Fit Small Business ranked Texas number one in all 50 states for business opportunities for women. The state of Texas has quickly become a hub for women-owned businesses. Take a look at why Texas has risen in popularity for women entrepreneurs and meet some of Dallas-Fort Worth’s brightest stars.
By Ella Patterson
has shown off her creative skills with every sweet treat she creates. Lizzie Lu Luxury Treats are on every social network, appearing in magazines everywhere and pleasing thriving appettites from all over the country. “There’s something about making people smile. The joy on their faces after they bite into my sweet treats is the best experience I could wish for.” - T’Juanna Winters
How did you get your start?
I always loved preparing sweet treats. My grandmother would have cooking sessions with me an my sister every weekend. She taught me how to select the best candy ingredients and bring my creativity by adding my own ideas which is often triggered by my own taste buds. I also wanted to increase my personal income. I began creating candy out of home and selling it online. The orders started pouring in, so much so … that it became difficult to run a candy boutique from my home-kitchen. I was receiving two to three thousand orders per day. Business was good. My company was doing good, but the surplus of incoming orders were becoming overwhelming. I started looking for a building to open my candy store on a larger scale. I knew from the beginning that I wanted my own luxury home-made candy store, so I expanded my dream.
How long did it take?
Long ago my grandmother helped me create assorted candies, cookies, cakes and candy apples. I would sale my luxury treats right out of my car at different expos, local clubs, venues and private parties. During those times; my regular job limited my creative candy making, but I perservered. Finally in 2020, I found a space in a popular strip mall in Arlington, Texas. My business now has a business address for customers to visit.
What advice would you give other aspiring businees women?
Keep your dreams alive. Renew your vision. Stay strong, and determined to make your dream a reality. Remember, there will be nay sayers, doubters, and people who say no to you. Some people won’t care to listen to your expressions of happiness, but don’t let it get you down … keep moving forward. You have to keep the faith that there are people out there who will listen to you, buy your products, love your vision and support you completely.
This year has been a struggle for new and small businesses. Has it given you a new point of view?
I’ve realized that the only thing I’m more passionate about than making sweet treats is making people happy. I love to see people bite into my luxury treats and smile after the pleasureable flavors hit their palate. I want to give people a great experience. I love the fulfilling tastes I have created and it makes me sad that I cant open up a Lizzie Lu Luxury Treats in every city. That’s another one of my goals. But, for now I am so gratefuul and happy that the people who have heard of my treats continue to support me.
Two Former College Roommates Close Historic Deal on $8.3 Million Hotel
When Davonne Reaves and Jessica Myers met as college students in the early 2000s, they never imagined they’d one day become business partners. Owning a hotel? Well, that was not even on the radar for the hospitality and journalism majors, then deeply entrenched into their studies. As two young women who’d grown up in working-class families in the South, the mere idea of hotel ownership seemed unfathomable. Some 11 years later, the fellow Georgia State University alum have done just that – and they are believed to have made history in the process.
Atlantans Myers and Reaves, both 33, formed a hotel ownership group of mostly millennials, partnered with Nassau Investments to acquire the Home2 Suites by Hilton El Reno, Oklahoma, located about 30 miles from Oklahoma City. Their investment into the $8.3 million deal is believed to have earned them the notable distinction of becoming the youngest African American women to ever co-own a property in a major hotel chain. “I never thought by the time I was 33 that I'd be a hotel owner, but I admit that it feels great to have accomplished that at this point in my life," says Reaves, mom to a 2-year-old son. "Making history in the process, well that’s just icing on the cake!" Myers says the venture overall was a solid investment, but it also ties into some “big picture” goals that she and Reaves share: “Statistically only two percent of hotel owners are African-American, and we want to change that,” she says. "There's a big void there and we want to help fill it."
Acquiring ownership of the property is a dream come true for both, especially Reaves, who spent the bulk of her professional career in the hospitality industry, working in restaurants, event planning and multiple rank-and-file and midlevel management hotel positions. “I have done just about every job possible and worked every shift,” quips Reaves who cut her teeth in the industry serving as a front desk agent at the Hyatt Regency Atlanta. “The only thing I haven't done is unclog a toilet,” quips Reaves. She eventually progressed to bigger roles, including in 2015 when she was tapped to relocate to the Boston area to take on a career-changing role as an associate for CHMWarnick, the largest third-party hotel asset management company in the country. She maintained that position for two years until a hankering for her hometown inspired her to return to Atlanta. Once there, she reconnected with Myers and the rest, as they say, is history. The International Society of Hospitality Consultants, an exclusive invite-only trade industry organization recently honored Reaves with its Sixth Annual Lori Raleigh Award for Emerging Excellence in Hospitality Consulting award.
Myers, whom after years working as a communications and advertising industry professional for CBS and Outfront Media, first dipped her toe into flipping single-family properties two years ago after "watching one too many episodes of HGTV.” With the business acumen she’d honed over her years in corporate America, her side hustle quickly evolved into a fulltime gig, edging her closer to another major career goal: “owning over 1,000 doors in the commercial real estate space” she says, referring to flipping single-family properties. Myers and Reaves also maintain their own companies, The Vonne Group and It’s Jessica Myers, but in 2019, they also formed Epiq Collective, to collaborate on commercial real estate ventures.
“Our goal is to own at least 1,000 ‘doors’ and create 221 hotel owners in 2021,” explains Myers, of their commercial real estate plans and desire to draw those who have not traditionally been represented in the industry – such as young people, people of color and women – into the arena. “If you have some capital and you’re looking to grow it, we’re open to having those conversations,” explains Reaves, who has dedicated her first major commercial real estate deal, to the memory of her late grandmother, Elizabeth Swans Smith.
“She passed away in January 2020 and I’d told her that I was going to own my hotel one day,” remembers Reaves. “I told our team of investors that I wanted to own this hotel by February 6th. That’s my grandmother's birthday and coincidentally it’s Jessica’s birthday too. Knowing that I’ve done that, just gives me chills!” Myers says she’s equally excited. “We’re so proud to bring that ‘Black girl magic’ to the commercial real estate industry; this is just the beginning!”
Reaves and Myers are available to share their story of inspiration, education, and empowerment through all media platforms. For more information, visit EpiqCollective.com. To arrange an interview, contact Victoria Lightfoot of Lightfoot PR at 404-578-2821 or victoria@victorialightfoot.com.
About Home2 Suites by Hilton Home2
Suites by Hilton, one of the fastest-growing brands in Hilton's history, is a mid-tier, all-suite, award-winning extended-stay hotel concept designed to offer stylish accommodations with flexible guestroom configurations and inspired amenities for the cost-conscious guest. With a commitment to environmentally friendly products and hotel operations, Home2 Suites by Hilton offers complimentary breakfast selections; innovative and customizable guestroom designs; laundry and fitness areas; complimentary Wi-Fi; multiple outdoor spaces; 24-hour business centers; expansive community spaces; and pet-friendly environments.
Alyson Rae Lawson, Entrepreneur
Owns Two 7-Eleven Stores Across the Street From Each Other
Meet Alyson Rae Lawson, the CEO and founder of RaeLawson Enterprise LLC, a franchisee/operator of two 7-Eleven convenience stores with gas stations that are located right across the street from each other in Arlington, Texas. She is the only African American in her city to have accomplished this. Originally from Dallas, Alyson is an HBCU graduate who earned her Bachelor of Science in Business Management from Hampton University and later, her Master of Business Administration from Texas A&M University. She knew from an early age that she wanted to be a franchisee because her father franchised three McDonald’s in the Oak Cliff area when she was younger. By the age of 30, she herself was a 7-Eleven franchisee with not just one, but two locations.
She recently made history after partnering with a Black-owned wine brand whose products continue to sell out in her stores.
There were challenges along the way
She says that she believes the biggest struggle when having a business is employment. She comments, "In this industry, it is a challenge finding the best help and longevity because although I am there most of the day, I have to be able to trust my staff when I am not there. So, the hiring process is very tedious and selective."
She also says that there are new challenges every day, but nonetheless, she describes herself as a teamoriented leader who combines motivation, drive, and the ability to adapt to various opportunities and work assignments. She says that she anticipates and readily accepts challenges.
In addition to running her 7-Eleven franchises, she is also a motivational speaker that empowers high school and college students. Follow her on Instagram @7Eleven_RaeLawson
It’s a Lifestyle… Enjoy A Corner of Calm
PHOTO BY TARYN ELLIOTT
Order back issues Call us at 972-765-1735
