To call the panelists of the US Bank Black History Month Salute to Small Business owners of small businesses is a bit misleading.
Sure, Pimento Jamaican Kitchen is not franchised globally like a Chipotle. The beauty and wellness company HuesBox is not a MAC in terms of volume. McFarlane Media Interests (parent company of Insight News) doesn’t have global satellite offices like a CNN. But trust; there’s nothing small about any of the aforementioned entities. And when discussing what they are not, the word yet should be applied.
US Bank called upon Pimento owner Tomme Beevas, HuesBox co-founder Dr. Jasmine Harris and Insight News founder and Editor-in-Chief Al McFarlane to share their stories to a room of current and future entrepreneurs during a Feb. 22 event at the Machine Shop in Minneapolis.
The resonating theme of the conversation was to never give up and let doubt rule.
“I had an amazing job with Cargill, but I had a passion to take my grandmother’s recipes and give them to the people,” said Beevas, who was the community involvement director for Cargill. “Pimento literally started in my backyard, cooking for family, neighbors and friends.”
The backyard business has grown to two successful metro locations – one in the Burnsville Mall and the other at 2524 Nicollet Ave. in Minneapolis – and won a Food Network restaurant competition.
McFarlane said his business epiphany came one day while working as a reporter for the St. Paul Pioneer Press.
“I had just turned in a story and I knew this was an outstanding article and at that moment I said ‘I can own this joint,’” said McFarlane.
McFarlane didn’t take over the Pioneer Press, but in 1974 he did start his own media company, which today includes print, television and radio programming. He also encouraged those in the audience to find a need and develop a business out of that need.
“Everything that is considered a problem is really an opportunity to make some money,” said McFarlane. “If there are challenges in the financial services industry, why not put ourselves in that business?”
Harris’ HuesBox is an example of recognizing a need and developing it into a business. Harris said it was becoming more and more difficult to find culturally specific hair care, health and beauty products, so along with her mother and sister, she created a subscription-based beauty and wellness company catering to people of color.
The health and beauty entrepreneur called on the audience to rethink what a business owner can look like.
“I have tattoos, I have crazy hair, but I also have a Ph.D.,” said Harris. “Studies say by 2050 people of color will have greater buying power than whites, so get ready because we’re coming.”
USBank seems to be recognizing that economic clout of Black Americans and is embracing the opportunity to do business in and with the Black community.
“Diversity is a fact, inclusion is a choice,” said co-host and co-moderator Kamali Williams, African-American strategy leader for US Bank. “We (US Bank) are trying to create a meaningful and culturally relevant strategy for diversity inclusion. Tonight isn’t one and done when we talk about US Bank and African-American entrepreneurship.”
The event also offered business owners an opportunity to network and counsel with bankers from US Bank.
“While the event is an opportunity to meet with some bankers, the real magic happens when you network with each other,” said co-host and co-moderator, Greg Cunningham, vice president of Global Inclusion and Diversity for US Bank.
