Black to Business

Name: Gieselle Allen

Business Name: Gieselle Allen Coaching

Current Title: CEO & Founder

Location: Montclair, NJ

Educational Background: Certified coach via CTI

About Gieselle:

Are you a leader of color who wants to lead and empower in revolutionary ways? Then you need Gieselle Allen...

Gieselle works with revolutionary leaders of color to support them in expanding their businesses, team, and leadership, while also ensuring their needs are met in the process. In her mindset-first approach, she combines mindset, trauma healing and intuition to help her clients create and expand their businesses and revolutionary leadership practices.

When Gieselle's not coaching, you can find her soaking up the sun in her hammock and taking outrageously long walks with her dog, Syrup.

DURING THIS EPISODE YOU’LL LEARN:

• How to be unapologetically Black in your business and messaging
• How racial and intergenerational trauma has affected Black peoples ability to show up authentically and lead
• How the white entrepreneurship world has missed the mark for Black people
• The impact that Black business owners concealing their identity or downplaying their role as owners has on our community
• Unpacking internalized capitalism and how it has impacted and molded our culture
• Why “Twice As Hard” mentality is harming Black people
• Code-switching, and the use of ebonics and African American Vernacular English (AAVE) in business?

Are you a business owner looking to get more clients and exposure? Does your business provide professional services that would be beneficial for a business owner starting their business? If so, submit your business to be listed in our directory, The Connect!

You may submit your business at: https://blacktobusiness.com/theconnect/

For complete show notes and resources mentioned visit: blacktobusiness.com/75

Thank you so much for listening! Please support us by simply rating and reviewing our podcast!

Name: Chip Dizard

Business Name: Chip Dizard Studios

Current Title: Owner/Lead Creative

Location: Laurel, MD

Educational Background: Undergrad from Coppin State University

About Chip:

My name is Chip Dizárd (pronounced Diz Hard). Weddings are my passion; photographing, filming, producing and distributing them are the way I choose to express that.

I love to create a visual experience by telling a story through images. This gives the audience a chance to relive the emotion and sensation of an event.

I feel most alive when I feel the camera in my hands. When I point at a subject, the subject becomes alive.

What I love most is holding my camera and being the DP, director of photography, just like in work. My cameras are my tools; wedding and event photos are my form of artistic expression.

When I’m not filming a wedding, working on editing or teaching other videographers I love going to movies, which, I suppose, is not a surprise. I also like playing golf, and of course, being with my family.

DURING THIS EPISODE YOU’LL LEARN:

• How to dominate your industry
• The importance of mastering finance in your business
• Knowing when it’s the right time to introduce new services in your business
• How to make sure you deliver a quality experience while managing multiple projects
• Tips for finding out what you’re good at
• Recommendations on how to find your ideal client

For complete show notes and resources mentioned for this episode go to: blacktobusiness.com/122

Thank you so much for listening! Please support us by simply rating and reviewing our podcast!

Name: Fanta Traore

Business Name: The Sadie Collective

Current Title: Co-founder and CEO

Location: New York, NY

Educational Background:

Bachelors Degree in Political Science and Economics from Howard University

Pending Masters in Business Administration and Public Policy from Yale University

About Fanta:

Fanta’s commitment to championing economic inclusion is ignited by her fascination with the economic complexities witnessed growing up in the dynamic, culture-rich, and also heavily unequal city of New York. A desire to serve the marginalized and disenfranchised, globally, brings Fanta to Yale, where she studies economic development, management, and public-private partnerships. Prior to attending Yale, she worked as a senior research assistant in the Federal Reserve System’s International Finance division, where she analyzed cross-border transactions data and the impact of financial market development on inequality. Fanta also spent nearly a decade in the social entrepreneurship ecosystem, working for Echoing Green and the Anzisha Prize, where she supported 100+ organizations leveraging her ability to use data for social impact and brokering partnerships across francophone Africa. In 2018, she co-founded the Sadie Collective, the only organization dedicated to addressing the pipeline and pathway access for Black women in economics and related fields. The Collective has been featured on NPR, Fortune, Forbes, and the World Economic Forum. She has been recognized as a Global Shaper with the World Economic Forum and is on the Board of Directors of WAKE Academy, an all-girls school in Guinea. Fanta speaks four languages and has worked across Sub-Saharan Africa. She is a proud alumna of Howard University where she obtained dual degrees in economics and political science and graduated summa cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa.

Fanta Traore is currently pursuing a joint Master in Public Policy and Master of Business Administration degrees at Yale University and is slated to graduate in 2024.

DURING THIS EPISODE YOU’LL LEARN:

• What an economist is and their impact on society
• Why Black economists and their lived experiences are so important when it comes to creating policies
• What it looks like to improve outcomes and build wealth for the Black community
• How centering Black women as influential people within the economy through becoming economist is the solution to social issues
• Why race matters and should be acknowledged
• The power of fostering relationships in cultivating change

For complete show notes and resources mentioned for this episode go to: blacktobusiness.com/88

Thank you so much for listening! Please support us by simply rating and reviewing our podcast!

🙏🏿 Support:

This week's episode is sponsored by NYBeauty Suites.

Flexible Beauty Suites Designed Specifically for Beautypreneurs and Wellness Professionals.

Name: Chantel George

Business Name: Sistas In Sales

Current Title: Founder & CEO

Location: New York

Educational Background:

Pace University

Bachelor of Arts - BA, Liberal Studies with Minor in Communications and Pre-LawBachelor of Arts - BA, Liberal Studies with Minor in Communications and Pre-Law

About Chantel:

Chantel George the founder of Sistas In Sales (SIS) - the largest global organization for women of color in sales. She founded Sistas In Sales out of a determination to promote, support, and encourage women of color in sales across all industries. Sistas In Sales partners with Fortune 500 companies, tech start-ups and consulting businesses to help them attract, hire and retain women of color sales professionals. SIS also provides world class training, networking opportunities, and above all else, sisterhood for this underrepresented community.

Chantel is also an experienced Senior Enterprise Account Executive in AdTech, MarTech & SaaS. With her attention to detail, thoroughness and client-first mentality, she has exceeded quotas, trained and managed Account Executives, as well as on-boarded larger scale clients for her previous companies.

Her work experience spans from Public Relations for BonFun, an international cognac company to a 4-year tenure at Yelp as a Senior Account Executive for their National Business, Dataminr as an Enterprise Account Executive enabling Public Relations, Corporate Communications professionals with the same technology that over 400 newsrooms use to extract impactful events from Twitter, and LinkedIn where served as a Senior Account Executive for strategic tech B2B marketers from Alibaba, Sony, Lumen/CenturyLink, and Neilsen. Chantel was most recently a Senior Client Partner for the Technology and Telco business at Twitter.

DURING THIS EPISODE YOU’LL LEARN:

• The power of storytelling in sales
• Why you don’t have to be the one doing the selling in your business
• Deciding when to hire for your sales team and how to train
• How to create your outreach and target strategy
• Tips for crafting and developing a good pitch
• How to deal with fear and rejection in sales
• Why getting a “NO” isn’t always a bad thing

For complete show notes and resources mentioned for this episode go to: blacktobusiness.com/138

Thank you so much for listening! Please support us by simply rating and reviewing our podcast!

In this episode, we address a staggering fact that despite Black people being one of the largest groups employed by the US restaurant industry, only 8% of restaurant owners are Black.

Our guest, Randy Hazelton, a founding partner of H&H Hospitality, has over a decade of experience in the restaurant industry. His portfolio includes several local, regional, and nationally recognized brands, including the popular Shake Shack. H&H also operates a joint venture partner at two more airports nationwide: Washington Dulles International and Dallas Fort Worth International.

Randy is recognized within the industry for his excellence in leadership and was formerly appointed to the Board of Directors for the city of Atlanta’s Development Authority, Invest Atlanta and was elected to the Airport Minority Advisory Council (AMAC).

So let's just say, he's the perfect person to discuss this topic with.

Here are some things you'll learn during this episode:

• The difference between full-service and quick-service restaurants
• The importance of location and other factors to consider when starting a restaurant
• How to compete in a crowded market
• Some costly investments and mistakes to avoid when starting out
• How to know when it's the right time to scale and open another location
• How to maintain quality and consistency as your restaurant grows
• Why franchising can be a good move for Black entrepreneurs looking to break into the industry

We're excited to share this episode with you as it is a must-listen for anyone looking to start a restaurant or already in the industry. Let's take the first step towards leveling the playing field.

For complete show notes and resources mentioned for this episode go to: blacktobusiness.com/147

Thank you so much for listening! Please support us by simply rating and reviewing our podcast!

Got a question? We’d love to answer it in an upcoming Q&A. Simply record your quick question → https://blacktobusiness.com/QA

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