COVER STORY ing Jamaica, not only for jobs but also with young women. I was talking to the first lady about being able to impact young women and boys as well. But my focus is young women and how to get them scholarships in different formats to enhance and collectively get them in the places they need to go to thrive," she adds. The economic prowess she employs today stems from the steps she took to build her lucrative enterprises by focusing on providing service to the medical industry. Providing optimal service is paramount to Bailey's vision and essential to building "any successful business [through] service and consistency." This concept is simplistic in thought but challenging to implement. Her first foray into entrepreneurship began in a 600 square feet space because one of Bailey's business methodologies is predicated on sustaining a low overhead, "With a low overhead, the stress of maintaining a large overhead and not knowing if sales are coming in will become the death of you. When I started, I had a very low overhead; my office rent was $600. I ensured that the first employee I hired was a sales rep. Why is that important? I'm in the office, taking care of the clerical things and patients, but I need someone to bring in the business. So, my first employee, who is still with me today as my CEO, was a salesperson." Utilizing the Medicare Competitive Bid, which is technically still in existence but to a certain extent, the bidding program permitted suppliers to submit bids to provide particular services or supplies to people with Medicare. "If you win the bid, you get to provide services to all Medicare patients within the geographical area that you win for [like] all disabled and elderly, patients over 65 are Medicare patients, whether it's Medicare replacement plan or straight Medicare. If you're an equipment business, you don't get the bid; you're out of business, essentially. So, when they implemented it, it was not in the area where I was; my home offices are in Vero Beach, Fla. I said, let
14 ONYX MAGAZINE
me try to see what I will mess up on, and that way, if they come to my area, I will know what I did wrong and what to correct so I can continue having the business," she says, and continues. "I applied for most of the South Florida, Central Florida areas, and I ended up winning all of the bids I applied for." She then had three months to expand to Central Florida, such as the Orlando area and South Florida; from there, everything Bailey had planned for began to rocket upward. "Then the second round of bids came about, and I won all of them. I was doing more and more expansion at the time. Subsequently, later on, there were no more bids because they decided it wasn't financially feasible for the government to continue the bidding process," she says. Instead, the government allowed all providers to service any area that Bailey saw as an opportunity and expanded throughout Florida, Georgia, Texas, Tennessee, Connecticut, Illinois, and New York, to name a few. In her first year, the business drew in revenue of approximately five million; in her second year, she landed a government contract. Her company is in its twelfth year of operation. As a mother of five, Kayla,8, and Ocean, 4, Bailey is actively training her children how to become entrepreneurs. Her oldest daughter, Tia, 23, is enrolled in
medical school, her 20-year-old daughter, Natalia, is part of the Innovation Academy program at the University of Florida, however, her 13-year-old son, Gabriel, is heavily engaged in planning and developing to one day take over her company. "I've been prepping him where he's joining the first official meeting that I have will be with my estate and trust attorneys to go over all the assets and the company," she proudly states. Balancing motherhood while building her business was challenging; Bailey had to work 18-19 hours daily while raising little children, and her mother sometimes brought them to the office to visit her. Bailey declares all of her hard work was for the benefit of her children, "My foundation, which is my children, is essential to my success outside of the home because success outside the home it's not relevant if there's none inside. I've always made sure I take time, even though I was in the process of building; when I had a little personal time, it was always theirs. I didn't even engage with friends at all." Bailey's advice for Black girls and women inspired by her story and who would like to follow in her footsteps is to become disciplined when managing their money. "I always say be disciplined first and consistent with money, which affects every aspect of your life. If you are
working somewhere and you are not the best employee at that job, you won't be the best employee when you start your company. So, you should stay employed. If you're working somewhere and you're there early, you're leaving late; you do all these extra things, you're practicing behaviors of being an entrepreneur. When you become an entrepreneur like myself, what will naturally happen is you won't feel like you're killing yourself because you have developed this skill over the years. So, when you get into your own space, you will apply it and be successful. As long as you've been consistent with what you're doing, service well, you will be successful in your endeavors," she advises. Bailey continues to pay it forward by donating a significant amount to the University of Connecticut, being the lead platinum donor for a scholarship program, and funding after-school activities. She also oversees another program for young Black girls interested in science that awards recipients full scholarships. "I also did this with Sandra Fatmi-Hall and served over four million meals since the pandemic for a food drive. I also donate to cancer research societies and a plethora of others. But my Christmas toy drive is very near and dear to my soul and heart. I've been doing this since I owned the company, so this is the 12-year mark, every city we're in, we choose one or two charities for the children. We buy Christmas toys for each charity so that children can have the things they need or at least bring a smile to their faces. I do because when I first came to the United States, we lived in a one-bedroom apartment in the ghetto. My mom didn't have much, my sister and I were sleeping on the sofa bed, and she didn't have money for toys or Christmas presents. So, she took my sister and me to a toy drive, and the first toy I ever had in my life was at age 13, and it came from a toy drive. So, that part of my charity is near and dear to my soul and heart; it's something I will always carry forward," Bailey says.
Mercy Gilbert
M
INTERNATIONAL WOMAN OF THE YEAR CEO GILBERT MEDIA & PUBLIC RELATIONS UNITED KINGDOM
ercy Gilbert has been chair of the Conservatives Party of Orpington (United Kingdom) for five years. During her tenure, she has met and welcomed several prime ministers into her constituency. Gilbert also has been a key part of Shaun Bailey's campaign which saw him come second in the mayoral elections. A native of Zimbabwe, Africa, and a citizen of the United Kingdom, (UK), she is considered to be the most influential Black women in London, England. President and CEO of Gilbert Media Group and public relations, Inc., Gilbert has worked to organized high-end and political events for her “A” list clients. A sought-after public relations and marketing brand strategist, Gilbert has uniquely used her influence to connect people and resources throughout the United Kingdom and Africa to address the issues of race, diversity and inclusion and women’s suffrage. Gilbert made history in the U.K. becoming the first Black woman ever to be elected chairperson of Petts Wood and Knoll conservative party, which she’s won consistently for the past five years. She is vice-president of the Clapton Football Club and currently is setting up a women’s football team under that club with the goal of women receiving equal pay while playing both nationally and internationally. Gilbert’s enthusiasm and passion for women’s empowerment has led her to be appointed as the country’s head for the Global Women Development Network (GWDN), part of the United Nations initiative for women’s empowerment. She also holds the title of United Kingdom ambassador. Gilbert has previously served as a United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF) children's ambassador and she lobbied on issues pertaining to child immunization. She has helped African countries in development facilitate sanctions as well as assisted in other political issue solutions. Gilbert moderated panel discussions for Commonwealth Summit in 2022, co-hosted several trade missions from Africa, which include London political summit, Nigeria trade mission and an investment mission from Africa. She has hosted various African country leaders and will soon organize a summit in the U.K. She holds her yearly events in parliament and House of Lords and in Mr. Speaker’s palace to empower the Black community. She has spearheaded numerous political programs, interviewing politicians from across the continent, and has written for various publications showcasing African culture.
"Always treat everyone well on your way up."
ONYX MAGAZINE 15
