Business Profile: Kimora Lee Simmons

I had to highlight Kimora Lee Simmons, President and Creative Director of Phat Fashions, because she is a member of my generation, a Mom Mogul, and from St. Louis! Since I'm just putting my Mom Mogul boots on, it's important for me to see that there are people who are doing it quite successfully. Her industry and way of life is different from mine but I am impressed by her ability to balance it all.

Kimora started her career in fashion as an international teenage model. Over the last 12 years, she has created a fashion empire - a lifestyle brand - with Phat Fashions and its labels. She has a diverse income stream with a career product portfolio including the previously mentioned fashion empire, a highly reviewed book Fabulosity: What It Is and How To Get It, highly rated reality show Life in the Fab Lane, and several other business ventures... she has a total of 20 businesses! Finally, she's philanthropic and gives back to several causes including a scholarship to young ladies in our hometown.

Check out this recent interview with Access Hollywood with words for how she views her life at this time:



Lessons to learn from Kimora Lee Simmons:

• Consistency is key to establishing a lifestyle brand. Although the products are different, the message is the same throughout - fabulous!
• Maintain relationships that keep you grounded to keep your head on straight and give you a calm spirit.
• Appreciate all that life has for you and go after those experiences you want.
• Do not be afraid to walk away from a partnership that is not good for you.
• Always think of fresh ideas for your business and include others in this brainstorming.
• No matter what your background is, be confident in what you are doing.

Keep up with Kimora on her official website: www.kls.com.

Blacks in Business: David Steward

David Steward of St. Louis, MO (1951- )

David Steward is founder and chairman of World Wide Technology, a St. Louis, MO based firm that specializes in supplying technology and supply chain solutions to customers around the world. It is considered the second African-American owned firm to reach the billion dollar revenue mark in the 1990s (the first was TLC Beatrice International, a global food and beverage distributor led by Reginald F. Lewis in 1987).

After rising in corporate America with companies like Missouri Pacific Railroad and Federal Express, David Steward scratched his entrepreneurial itch and founded (or actually bought) his first enterprise, Transportation Business Specialists in 1984. The function of this business utilized his background in the transportation industry and knowledge of accountancy. With the opening of his second company, Transport Administrative Services, he was able to capture a higher margin business within his same value chain in the transportation industry by pursuing larger corporate customers.

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What is the business equivalent of the Olympics?

Over the last week, I have really been into the 2010 Vancouver Olympics. I have never really watched the Winter Olympics before, but from the opening show to pair figure skating and so on, these games have really caught my attention. I have been impressed with how many of these athletes have competed and end up giving their personal best (according to the announcers). The camaraderie of the country teams and their pride to represent their country is outstanding. Outside of when I participated in sports in high school, I don't think I have heard the US National Anthem so much, not since I was in elementary school in Illinois.

I have watched these games wondering where the business equivalent is. I know the Grammys and Oscars are for entertainers, but what about people in business. Is our success only measured by the amount of profit we bring in? There are competitions such as SBA National Small Business of the Year and top lists here and there that measure so many different factors (from Working Mother's and Black Enterprise's many lists to Inc. 5000 to Fortune 500 and so on) - would these be the equivalent?

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Blacks in Business: Dr. Farrah Gray

Farrah Gray of Chicago, IL/ Las Vegas NV (1984 - )

Farrah Gray is a success story out of Chicago, IL. He began his entrepreneurial journey at the age of 6 years old! He made $1 million by age 14. Now, 25 years old, with experiences in real estate, consulting, writing, motivational speaking, philanthropy and much more, this serial entrepreneur has done in 19 years what many MBAs dream to do - and he hasn't reached his peak yet. See below for a 20/20 piece on Dr. Gray:



Lessons we can learn from this young man:

• Create the change you want for your life. There is no greater motivator.
• Fear can also be a motivator. Use fear as motivation to get on the other side of it.
• Diversify your business/investment portfolio so that all of your eggs are not in one basket.
• Give, give, give and you will receive.
• Never underestimate what a determined young person can achieve.

Black history month: Annie Malone

Annie Malone of St. Louis, MO (1869-1957)

Annie Malone was a pioneering African-American who some say was actually the first African-American millionaire in the United States (Madam C.J. Walker worked for and was trained by Malone prior to her entrepreneurial journey).

Around the beginning of the 20th century, Malone developed the first chemical straightening product to not damage African-American hair. Since she could not use traditional channels methods of selling products given the racial climate of the time, she became innovative and adopted door-to-door sales, in-person demonstrations, and marketed through the Black press. When she was ready to grow nationally, she hired local agents in cities across the country (and even the world) to do the same thing - providing opportunities similar to what we would find in network marketing today.

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Check Your Sanity

Last night, I had the pleasure of being on the "Create Your Economy" conference call hosted by the Urban League Young Professionals of Philadelphia.. It featured Ephren Taylor, CEO of Capital City Corporation and Dezmon Landers, Co-Founder of A1 Marketing Corporation. Here is a recent CNN interview with Ephren Taylor:


Great nuggets there too, but I digress. Back to the conference call - These gentlemen provided

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Entrepreneur Evangelist

I have spent more than a few years advocating for, encouraging, and teaching small business ownership to people in my community. Over the last year, I have been doing this evangelism strongest with some of my closest friends, neighbors, and former classmates. The environment has been ripe with corporate downsizing and life awakenings. Given my background, they come to me for advice and I freely give it (literally).

Entrepreneurship is not only good for the business owner, but also his or her community. A commonly referenced 2004 study by Civic Economics, Inc showed that in Chicago, IL, $1 spent at a locally owned restaurant would yield 27% more back to the local economy than a chain restaurant. When it came to retail, the benefit was increased to 63% when comparing local to national chains, and 90% more for services (uhem). This is because the local firm is more likely to use local suppliers and spend profits locally as well whereas the national firm sends many expenses back to their out of state headquarters to pay for overhead and is likely supplied by out of state vendors. The benefit is called the "local multiplier effect".

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Video of the Week: Ten9Eight: Shoot For The Moon

Highlighted is a trailer for Ten9Eight: Shoot For The Moon - a documentary that follows several at-risk youth from across the country as they compete in a business plan competition as part of the Network For Teaching Entrepreneurship Program. The film is not only about their opportunity to win $10,000 but also about their opportunity to be recognized for what they can contribute to the world.



I strongly believe entrepreneurship should be a part of our national high school curriculum. There is so much that having a foundation in entrepreneurship (as well as financial literacy) could do for American children.

The well-reviewed movie debuted this week and currently has limited showings. You can request a showing in your city or school via this webpage or purchase the DVD which will be available in January.

Let us know how you feel about the movie after you see it.

October 2009: My Entrepreneurial Journey

Over the last couple of weeks, I have been looking at what to do to increase my income and still harness this drive I have around entrepreneurship. This blog has been very helpful with keeping me motivated to keep it moving (along with having these two babies). I know that I want to develop my business offline - pursuing more paying clients and output. To do that I have:

• attended a couple of business networking meetings as discussed in my blog post The 30 Sec Sell! and have been invited to more
• reached out to my network as suggested in the post Leveraging Your Rolodex... to seek business building opportunities
  
• submitted my first physical ad to run throughout the year in 2010

I am also building my presence online via the following methods:

• updating my website to attract new clients
• continuing to update this blog on a weekly basis, really to help me grow and share information with you as suggested in the post Seth Godin and Tom Peters on Blogging

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Video of the Week: Leveraging Your Rolodex...

So, I've been searching for a video to highlight in relation to this month's theme. As basic as the following piece of advice is, there are so many of us that do not follow it. Calling on your contacts seems so hard to do. Questions like "What do I say?" "Can they really help me?" "What will they think of me if I ask for help?"

Really, people enjoy providing help. Think about how you feel when someone asks you for help...

Entrepreneurship Guru Ingrid Vanderveldt provides a real life example of calling your contacts to pursue a business opportunity.



What she does not mention is the importance of actually contacting those people that you have been given the names of, then following up with those who provided the name(s) to let them know how the initial contact went. This can be challenging but very rewarding and likely worth it for you and your business.

Do not let fear hold you back from taking this advice! Remember, this blog is as much for me as it is for you... I'm preaching to myself...

What is a Cardinal Business?

So, you may be wondering "What is a Cardinal Business?". Well that's a great question! It represents the inspiration for this blog and was inspired by my new business, Cardinal Business Strategies, Inc. (launches early 2010).

A “Cardinal Business” is one owned by an individual(s) who is passionate about the line of business he/she is in and extremely driven to utilize his/her talents. His or her firm provides products or services essential to his/her respective marketplace.

So, in case you missed it, every month there will be a new business selected and highlighted on the blog. These are firms that represent the essence of a cardinal business. So far, two have been highlighted:

- XTreme Designs Web Solutions, St. Louis, MO

- M Portrait Photography, Raleigh, NC

And yes, this is a term I have coined :-). Ain't I creative...

Video of the Week: Seth Godin & Tom Peters on Blogging

I'm going to start posting videos once a week in relation to the topic at hand.

I chose this clip because I just saw it and totally agree with it... it puts into perspective why I should keep this up! It is related to the topic of relationships because blogging connects you with others. It establishes you as an expert in your subject matter and allows people to get to know and trust you. You just have to be consistent.

Check out the video, think about if you agree with the speakers, and let me know what you think.



Thanks to Janet of TheAbundantAllianceBlog for the inspiration!

Recommendation: August Turak: Business Secrets of the Trappists

Last night, I went to a lecture by August Turak at Duke's Sanford School of Policy. It was co-sponsored by Leadership North Carolina and was so close to home, I had to attend even though I had no idea who August Turak was and was leary of the topic. August Turak is an entrepreneur who spent several years visiting with the monks at Mepkin Abbey in SC. This was such an inspirational speech, I recommend anyone who gets a chance to go hear Turak speak and be transformed! It was based off of Turak's 4 part article series in Forbes magazine, Business Secrets of the Trappists. He was transformed by his experience with them and now spreads the gospel through a business filter. 

My biggest takeaway from this speech was the importance of the "transformation of being" and how going through this process can help you reach your greatest potential. He applied this concept to organizations as well. The greatest way to get to this is by being connected to a community of people who also want to go through this process (and staying away from those who are negative and against it). Attending this session gave me confirmation for a route I'm considering with my new business.

Definitely attend seminars like this to get inspiration for your business. Especially if you live near colleges and universities, they always have free, public lectures given by very prominent speakers. Check out a few of the lecture schedules for business schools in the Triangle:

Duke's Fuqua Distinguished Speaker Series (also has video archives of previous speakers)
NCSU Wachovia Executive Lecture Series
UNC Kenan-Flagler Dean's Speaker Series & Weatherspoon Lecture (also has video archives of previous speakers)

Cardinal Business: M Portrait Photography

This area will highlight businesses owned by people from across the country and in various sectors. Please read a little about these driven entrepreneurs and check out their company websites by clicking the company name.


M Portrait Photography 

     Our goal is to allow you to be comfortable, beautiful, and to create memorable portraits.

 M Portrait Photography is owned by Monique Harris and based in Raleigh, NC.  It was created in response to her love of photography and providing people with beautiful images that enables your personality to shine.  She specializes in non-studio portraits that are captured in the comfort of your home or location that holds special meaning to you.

In her words:
I've always held a life-long love with all aspects of photography.  Whether it is attending a new museum exhibit, reading yet another photography book or magazine, practicing new techniques, immersing myself in classes, or simply engaging in conversation with other photographers. Photography has constantly been front and foremost in my life.

With M Portrait Photography you will not worry about waiting in line or feeling the pressure of a rushed photo shoot.  Our goal is to allow you to be comfortable, beautiful, and to create memorable portraits.

It is my wish that affordable, professional portraits be assessable to everyone.  Why not hire a professional photographer to capture your newborn's precious first moments, family reunion, business portrait, club members, or to simply create an amazing online profile picture. Whatever your photo needs, M Portrait Photography will capture the essence of you, your family, or event.

Cardinal Business: XTreme Designz Web Solutions

This area will highlight businesses owned by people from across the country and in various sectors. Please read a little about these driven entrepreneurs and check out their company websites.


XTreme Designz Web Solutions
     Creative web design and internet marketing solutions for business

XTreme Designz (XD) Web Solutions is owned by Lakesha "Kesha" Brown who has been developing websites since 1996 which started as a hobby creating websites for friends and her local church. Throughout the years, she kept abreast of web design techniques and took several design courses, along with her college courses, to better understand the web and the trends in site development. In 2004, Kesha decided to launch Xtreme Designz and do what she enjoys most!

Kesha graduated from the University of Missouri - Columbia in 1999 with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Computer Engineering. She then earned a Master of Arts degree in Organizational Management from the University of Phoenix - St. Louis in 2002. She continuously takes courses and engage in joint ventures to expand her skillset.

 Kesha has been awarded one of 19 2005 International Femtor Awards in the Emergine Leaders Division granted by the eWomen Network Foundation!!!

A native of East St. Louis, IL, Kesha enjoys reading, writing short stories, traveling, scrapbooking, and passionately supporting minority and women business organizations.