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Speaker 1: Welcome to Money Making Conversations. It's the show that she has the secrets of success experience firsthand by marketing and Brandon expert Rashan McDonald. I will know he's giving me advice to many occasions. In in case you didn't notice, I'm not broke. You know, he'll be interviewing celebrity CEOs, entrepreneurs and industry decision makers. It's what he likes to do, it's what he likes to share. Now it's time to hear from my man, Rashan McDonald. Money Making conversations. Here we come welcome to when they're making conversation, I'm you a host from Sean McDonald. It's important to understand that everybody's travels a different path to success. That's because your brand is different. The challenges you face in your life are different. So stop reading other people's success stories and really start writing your own. Now. You can be motivated by this success because their stories can offer direction and help you reach your goals through your planning and committed effort. That's why I bring guests on the show to talk about their life. They're planning, they're committed effort, and the challenges that they may face and also the longevity story of trying to be successful over the extend this period. My next guest is one of my favorites. She's always on my show once a year. And Burrell. She has the trademark sparky blonde hair and sparking personality. And Burrels he's hugely popular and fan favorite host The Worst Cooks in America, my daughter's favorite show. You're also seeing Works Cooks in the American celebrity edition, but we'll be talking about Worst Cooks in America everyday. People. Well, she's on the show to talk about that show. Worst Cooks in America airs on Food Network every Sunday at nine pm, so you know where to find meat. She's this year with My Girl Call the Hall, facing off against My Girl and Burrell to see who can transform these these kitchen disasters into cooling error masters. Please work with the money making conversations. And Burrell, well, Hi, it's so nice to be well, you know, it means that we're both are working and that's a good sime during the pandemic. And uh, I'm thankful that I get to work every day. Absolutely, did it affect? Did the effect into your productions in Um. Well, luckily, I will have to say, we did a season of Worse Cooks before everything shut down, and then right around like after Labor Day in September, under September and October, when things were sort of calmed down a little more, we did a couple more seasons. So the season that's airing now, um, and and then one that will air in May. I think so. I mean, I've had some things cancel, you know, like in person stuff and food and wine festivals, but luckily, um, most of the big stuff has been able to carry on thankfully. Well, I'm gonna ask you, like I always telling you, my I'll watch the show. First of all, you're a fantastic host. You you have the right personality that keeps me engaged because you care, you know, because this this could be an interesting show for a host, because they could come across negative because you deal with people who really aren't good at what they do, and you're trying to motivate them to be pull what little talent they may have and put it in let's put it on display in the kitchen. What makes you and you are to show so much? Anne, Well, I have to say, I really do, um, I feel like every season when I start afresh, Um, it's like I start over and I take the journey with these people. And to see where they start and to see where they end up makes it all worthwhile. And to know that these people come into boot camp really pretty disastrously, and then you know, whether they say a little time or a long time, they somehow leave better cooks and they take it home to their families and they cook with their families and it really does change lives. And I take that, um as a responsibility. So I do everything I can to bend over backwards to really teach these people. And these people this season, you know, um, they have more Southern accents on this season than in the history to show. Everybody has an accent on this show. And uh yeah, am I am? I Am I wrong in saying that, No, you are absolutely not. I mean, I mean, I'm from Houston, Texas, and I know a Southern drawer without here, and it's dominating the show. But that's a good thing. I'm not saying nothing negative, but it means the characters of characters that you have to deal with on this show. And but when they couldn't open an didn't know how to use a can open. I really had to take a back seat to that. It does it really get that bad. It really goes down to that base of a level that we have to teach people out of open cans. And I mean, uh, Joey Uh, the guy that couldn't open the can on last night's episode was the sweetest guy, but he really was caned opening challenge. I mean, what you know, it wasn't just him, It was my girl too. She didn't know either that MICHAELA right. I mean, UM, and it just it's one of my favorite things every season. I mean, Carla's reactions are so fantastic, but every co host that I have, UM really does have some form of that reaction uh in some way or another to the recruits. And they look at me and they're like, oh my gosh, how do you do this season after season? And I'm like, to me, I just find it so sort of delightfully endearing. UM. And then I finished it up with an eye roll the part. And that's what I'm saying that this is, UM, you've been a host. It takes a certain personality because they're trying and there's no gamick here that they actually can't cook. And then finally they're thrown into a competition, and that's really their flaws are even magnified in the competition. And so when you're looking at talent, like first, as Joey we just mentioned was on a recent episode he was voted off. He was cutting himself every episode. I think he had a band aid on almost every single finger. And I loved his statement saying that, like, yeah, I've gotten to know all the medics and then he named them all. Um I just here. That was still liful. That was hilarious. But there's prize money involved here, twenty five thou dollars, Yes, a big prize money for whoever wins. And then it's also sort of eternal bragging rights between myself and my co host who is Carla this year? And um, and it's it's between us to see who is the better teacher. So it's like we are really striving to have our our recruits improved here because that's just a little funny competition between the two of us right now. But I'm got just tell you dollars for people who cannot cook, there's a nice hunk of money. You learn how to cook and you walk away with. Now, have Maybe I'm wrong, yere have you guys did a have you brought back any past champions yet and did a best of best of worst cooked championship series? Yet? We have not yet, But I M I think that might be uh something to consider, and I've pitched it to the Food Network before. I think it might be something that they might uh take under advisement, because because I would love because I would love to pick up with these people where we left off. You know, we only get a few short weeks with them, and I feel like we just get to scratch the surface of where they can go on their culinary journey or they may have fallen off. And that's another part of the show too, because that is true. A lot of people, after words, cooks don't really carry on cooking in the kitchen. A lot of them do, but a fair amount of them don't, you know. And so let me just ask you this question, and you come on my show we talked about you know, I'm a big fan of yours and the show which you can see every Sunday night on a nap um Eastern Standard time on the Food Network. Why why do you think people like me enjoy watching the show? Well, I think that there's a few levels that on which people like worst cooks. I mean, uh, people look at other people making mistakes that they're like, oh gosh, um, I feel like maybe I just learned something from watching someone else to make a mistake, or they think, oh jeez, I'm not that bad, so it makes them feel a little better about themselves. But then there's also the educational part where people actually learn something, and I mean at the beginning and the end of the days. To me, it's a very sweet show that there's a lot of layers in it. You know, people come into boot Camp, we start laughing I would say, with them because they know they're bad, so we're not really laughing at them so much. Um, but they are funny and um. And then you see the progress that they make by getting better, and that to me makes me feel like a proud mama every single time. But I think that you know, there's a lot of um, there's a lot of humor in the show, but there's also a lot of learning and a lot of good feelings. This is one of the reasons I like to show is that when you guys are explaining what they have to make, you know, you're explaining from such a common sense, basic level that I've been able to cook some things myself by watching you and the competing chef that's on the show of the show, because that's really cool that, you know, because it's such a Sometimes cooking can be so um so daunting, because it seems like if you open a recipe book and a teaspoon of this, and a couple of this and all this, and you gotta be said, at this certain amount of tempts you can't over over over cook certain things, or you or it becomes a gluten It's so many things you can do wrong. But when I watch you guys do that segments that right now, and they little notes so they can go into kitchen and mess up or deliver what you request. That part of the really right there, I find really informative with me, and I really get a big kick out of it because somethings y'all tell me I would never have done it that way because I would never saw it that way. But by seeing it being broken down to the basic levels, it really helps me as a cook. I agree, And that's why I teach the way I do. I mean, I remember when I was in culinary school learning new things, and I learn so much better by actually watching and doing than just by someone talking to me or reading it in a book. And when someone's uh explaining things to you and they can explain the wise, the why you do things and that kind of stuff, um, it kind of connects the dots and makes so much more sense. And it's also sometimes when you're reading recipes and you don't know what certain cooking terms mean, then that as another layer of difficulty. And that's what I'm saying that that is so nice because if I'm watching and I'm talking to Ambarrel, she's the the fantastic host of uh, you know, the worst cooks in America that you see them food. They they work on Sunday nights at nine pm Eastern. The thing I've really enjoyed that, especially during the pandemic time, you know, because we were all trapped in our home and we still trapped in our homes. I apologize and being able to and so a lot of home cooked meals and people are going to the grocery store shopping and buying things so they can cook at home and feel safe. That has really been a blessing watching your show, and there's just you know, pay per view. I can go and go back into in demand and watch your past show. That's what my daughter does. So it really is it really is fun watching it. Have you seen that play out or you on your social media? People being engaged because of the fact that you're providing them while they're trapped in their homes or or the mundane life because of COVID nineteen. Oh, I'm slutely, very much so. And the nice thing I have to say, you know, we're always looking for silver linings during the pandemic time. And I've been reached out to by so many former recruits that say, oh my gosh, thank you so much for everything I learned. Because I'm cooking all the time now and now I can cook during the pandemic and this has been a lifesaver. So, I mean, I just it warms my heart. It makes me so happy. What makes me happy? And next, it's the new season The Worst Cooks in America. Every Sunday and Nappy I'm on the Food Network. I'm talking to the host and Barrel first Prize. It's twenty five dollars Sunday finale February to the two most improved recruits, but all their newly learned calling theary skills to the test to press an panel of food expert and again I always thank you for coming on my show. I'll have a good time because like I have a good time watching your TV. YEA, well, it's always so nice to talk to you. Thank you for having me. Be safe now and need taps and we'll talk soon. Okay, thank you very much to my friends. Thank you, they thank you to absolutely. If you want to hear more Money Making Conversation interviews, please go to Money Making Conversation dot com. I'm with Sean mcgung. I am your host. It's finally here, the season of celebration, and no matter how you celebrate with family and friends, whether you're preparing for reys magos or Karamu lighting the Manura, are going to midnight mass, Coals has just what you need to make those traditions special. Plus you'll find gifts for all your loved ones. Send warm wishes with Cozy Fleece's sweaters, loungeware, blankets and throws. 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And because everything is hosted in a single, easy to use platform, it can be as big or small as you want, remain convenient for anyone who wants to attend, and give you access to data you never would have known otherwise. Visit hoppin dot com to learn more and get started. Still living in and manually taking notes, start the new year with auto dot ai to generate automatic notes for meetings, interviews, or lectures. With auto dot ai, you can search and meeting notes, insert images, play back the audio and share them with your friends or coworkers. You can capture action items, remember meeting details, and keep everyone informed. Auto dot ai works for in person or virtual meetings like Zoom, Microsoft Teams, and Google Meet. Sign up for free at auto dot ai or download the app for free auto dot Ai. That's O T T e r dot Ai. My next guest is truly a dreamer. She's a person I met several years ago on air and I called her the meatball Queen and affects me, you know, I said like that because I've always interviewed her via podcast. It is the first time I've seen her and they called Donna tell her, I'll pay you a meatball queen doesn't fit. It doesn't fit. It's nice to see you in personally. We have a lot of money making conversations to talk about on this show, because in twenty sixteen, you know the debate of the quick service prof of Pizza Ball, which I've been to twice, by the way, and the very first time I interviewed you, I went there and had an amazing time. I took two friends, I got photos and all that stuff. But you're gonna probably expand on that, and you have another Probra Pizza bart Maxi New York City, NYC Times Square Hotel. And so now we're gonna talk about you being a regular co host. I'll CEO TV all the time. And it's amazing what you're doing in your life, your collection at Frank Gate. So it's a business show that we're talking about. We're gonna talk about all the brands of what she offers. Please welcome to money making conversation for the third time, the third time, Donna tell you, I'll pay you so much. Thank you. Well down to tell you. You know, you know you know him from Houston, Texas, and you know I got this Southern accent and I tried my best to spin the rotate those words and those curved those ailes and those a's and and I hope I'm doing a good job with your name. You're pretty good. Don tell you're gonna see stop stop you're just messing over. It's just stop. Let's talk about you. You know you we know we know. First of all, you look fantastic. You know, look, thank you for going to my restaurant. And yes, a few years ago, I launched Proba Pizza Bar in Grand Central Terminal in UM in the Moxie Square Times Square and obviously doing fantastically well until COVID, which right now happens to be the heart of the pandemic in those two locations. So it's very interesting to see how we're adapting. But we're still um fighting the fight and and looking at other locations because even though I think the hospitality industry as a whole has completely changed because of COVID, there's also tremendous opportunities. So you have to be resilient, you have to adapt, and you gotta you gotta fight the fight every day. Well, an interesting thing about let's talk about you know where I went at First, We're gonna talk about a lot of your other enterprises. You have available to pizza bar, which is casual dining, correct, Yes, I want to to be like what you know. Shake Check was the answer to Burger King. I felt like there is a need for artisanal pizza. I have a very unique pizza and with all natural ingredients, and the pizza has a long rise and it's highly digestible, high water content. I am from Naples, my father's birthplace, and I studied in Naples, and I'm really using fresh quality ingredients because you know, you get what you pay for. And a lot of the pizza chains out there, you know, you can get pizza for you know, five dollars, but a lot of times it's not really pizza and it's not really cheese. And and so we really I'm committed to the best ingredients, the best meatballs, of course, because I am the meatball queen. And uh yeah that that that's the goal. And it really was a huge success. Um And to launch in places like Grand Central in Times Square is where you want to launch brands. And I'm gonna tell you, I always be a see whenever I went, always packed. The service was always fantastic because the reason I say that is that because Grandson was a touristy. You know a lot of people come through their fast traffic, and so sometimes you get whatever type service. I'm gonna tell you something, the two times I went there, I never told him I knew you I went. I always like to do that. I don't come in there trying to get anything free and cut me a deal. And because I really want the experience, and I enjoyed it. I took photos and and all that, and I posted it on my social media and I said, well, you know, that was one time I went through they let me go back through their a gee because New York tea is my favorite city, so I always I brought a couple of more friends. I brought one of the first time she was female, and I brought two of my buddies. You know, guys, you know, bring us some rough people into your place. And they all loved the pizza. Cuse hamburgers and pizza and and is my two favorite things. And so your pizza, you are right about the dough. The dough is different, and it and it and it and it was very fresh and it was it was amazing. And so when when you talk about the service, you talk about quality. Now you're talking about I hear you the word dominot. How you word shape check. That means you're trying to take your brain in a national platform, which means that quality control is very important. How do you maintain that? Yes, quality control and consistency is everything. Um. You know, I've been in the restaurant business for twenty years and I came from fine dining. So thank you for the compliment on service, because I do feel that even if you have casual, service is important and more than ever, I think we lack the personal touch. And when you get good service and you get an actual smile from someone, people remember. So that's really important. And Grand Central is very touristic, but it also has a lot of consistent people, so we have a lot of regulars. The bar there is like cheers at night. So, but quality control is everything. It's about systems, a lot of paperwork, protocol, consistency, um. You know, you have to really build can existency. It's all about consistency when you grow. So hopefully as I expand to other cities, if you get my meatballs in Texas, maybe I'll come to Texas will be the same as New York. That's the goal. And I think the most important thing is to not expand too quickly, but not too slowly either. So if you have a good team, you reward them well, set up incentives and and you know, keep things consistent all the time and stay true to your brand. Well, you know, the reality is we are in COVID and it's talks about people. And you like said you landed in great locations because they were heavy traffic, natural heavy traffic. Then you hear COVID hits starts limiting people. Travel starts limiting, especially on transportation, especially on a tourist area. That's where the town Square is really tours because people come down there, and then transportation wise, the Grand Central station was perfect location. How did you pivot in those two locations? I'm sorry, how did you pivot in those two low ocasions with traffic being diminished in those two locations in Times Square as well as Grain Central. Yeah, it's been very difficult. I mean we have to. You know, we're just talking with the landlords about renegotiating rents right now. Delivery is also an option, but to be honest, New York City is a tale of many cities right now. So you know, on the Upper east Side and Lower east Side, the residential areas, the restaurants are doing well, but Midtown right now is a bit of a ghost town. So it's it's very difficult. The idea is just to stay consistent and to work with landlords and do the best we can right now and ride this out. I hope, let's hope. There's only so many things. I'm usually the type of person I think most restaurateurs and entrepreneurs are that we always find a way COVID is something, you know, it's a once in a century pandemic, and the way it's impacted New York, especially in Midtown, has been quite devastating because you have all the people in the offices still not coming to work, they're working remotely, and tourists obviously are not there. So you're starting to get weekenders. Slowly, I'm starting to see the light a little bit. So that's that's been a little. Um, that's been a little difficult. You know, we keep I've been through worse things before, and um, the product is excellent and we're consistent and we're gonna we're gonna keep at it. Well, you know, you still do your TV, and that's that's that's been a huge opportunity. So interestingly enough, during COVID everyone's talked about food and medicine. And I'm married to a world right no heart surgeon and in February now upcoming as heart health months, so everyone was constantly interested in how to cook at home because for the first time people how to cook at home. You couldn't go out to eat, you couldn't get take out. And you know, I'm a working mother too, been though I'm a chef. I'm zooming into wonderful shows like you, and I still have to get dinner on the table. So other beautiful opportunities came about, which is I've become the brand ambassador to Phillips air Fryer and their Home Whole Home Kitchen Appliances Network, where I'm creating recipes for them and for the busy mom who's working or staying at home or doing remote learning. It's been trying, but through that many opportunities have occurred. So this has been a very exciting new partnership that I have with Phillips Hotel. You're telling me that you're the brand a browsador for Phillips for us. Yes, do you know? I'm so man that you I bought one in September from my house and didn't know what did you become the brand ambassador? It just happened. So I'm gonna, well, you know what, I'm gonna have to send you there other products? What do you have an air fryer? Absolutely absolutely, having a fun air friar is the best. And you know, for me, it's very important how you attach yourself to brim. I just started using the Phillips air Friyar at home and it came authentically um, and I became obsessed with the product. And yes, so I'm going to create a whole website of content and they will be giveaways and recipe. You're gonna be part of my next competition. We have a postamator. Maybe I'll send you one if you're a good boy. I'm you know the posta that's a little work, though, I would just tell you, I'm I'm telling you, no work, No put it in the pasta. You kidding me? Because the posta can. I got the little thing you put on in front of the d I got that. I got the kitchen aid to make the work. Oh my god, I'm if that's why, that's why I throw my hands up. I am not doing that. But if you tell me that I could do something with pasta because I love pasta and it's easy, you got it. You got me. That's when in five minutes, I'm telling you, and then I want you to make a recipe for me and posted on social media. You know I do that. That's that's easy. Now. Now now that I know that you part of Phillips, I gotta show people take photos of me and the photo of you. This is MC girl, This is my girl right here, Phillips, because I got the Africa, because I bought a building and I got another a friar here and my new building I bought in Atlanta, and I'm gonna have to send you another one. Then they're the best. They're the best, and so so. Now now, but let's talk about this pasta maker, because like I said, I got all the little adapters from my kitchen aid, I swear to you, don't tell her I do not use it. I used it one time in Chicago when I bought it in that's what I bought. I got wise I saw it, I went to I said, I'm not gonna do this ever again. So well, that's the whole thing about Phillips, and I am attracted to them, and I'm not just the brand ambassador. I'm creating tutorials because you know today everyone when they get whatever equipment you get, it's no use unless you take it out of the box. Yes, and so I'm gonna have video tutorials to make it easy. But I'm telling you, you put flour, water and egg, you jump it in and pasta shoots out in five minutes. It's that easy. And so I'm gonna have a lot of videos, a lot of tutorials. It's very exciting stuff, very exciting just between me. I'm just telling you, I'm announcing something to you because a lot of a lot of people don't know there's done to tell them I am. I'm gonna launch my own Rochan's Kitchen. It's gonna be a local in the Georgia area by two million householders. And I love it. At the top of the show, I always either bake something or cook something at the top of my show. In a launch of April, I want to do if you say it's that easy, If you say it's that easy, I want to do it on you on my show. That's the first recipe I want to do on my show if you say it. Because because I'm telling you is that if he was on the show, I would get I would bring this box and said it right on this death right here and show you. I've only opened his box one time, and when I used it, I put it right back in his box. That's the last time I've ever attempted to make pasta ever. Yes, well, and you know what the good thing about this, you know during COVID. Like I said, my husband Dr Alan Stewart, he's a world renowned heart surgeon, and we have to I love food, so I'm not going to be puritanical here, but we have to be healthy and I love pasta. With this pasta maker, you can make keto pasta. You can make high protein pasta, so you don't even have to feel as guilty. And obviously the air friar too, you're cooking with less fat. So I'm trying to come up with a lot of recipes that still are delicious, but you know, are nicer on your waistline because as you know, I had twins a few years ago and and I was a little bit older, so you know, getting the weight off took a while. And health and health and being an entrepreneur and how you feel is very very important for that equation too. So okay, now let's talk about Now you still have your lifestyle brand in front Gate, I do. I have a lot of products there and I'm also the brand ambassador for Galbani Professional, which is the number one cheese of Italy. And that happened because I did a blind tasting for cheese at my restaurant Pro BA and so I do wonderful work with them and the restaurant industry, and I really promote because they are to me, the best cheese in the industry. And I create a lot of delicious recipes there too. And do you like dessert? I'm so, what's your weakness dessert? Let me take some, don't tell you. Here's the funny thing about it. Front Gates my favorite store. Okay. All my outdoor furniture in my home in Houston and in uh Atlanta is front Gate, and so I'm to figure that's the highest quality. If I turned my camera, you could see my outside to the best customer service, the little the little brandy. Um. Yeah, I can't wait to start working with them again and creating a new collection. Okay, cool, because you gotta tell me, because I do want to buy some more things because I gotta outdoor a fireplas area that I want to I want to upgrade the furniture there. So let me know what. Because I do buy from front Gate. That's why it's so funny. I bought a bought Phillips. Didn't know you was part of that brand. By all my outdoor furniture from front Gate didn't know you had an entertaining collection and at front gates and so in our Garbani professional chief, I love that cheese. So I'm trying to figure out. I'm gonna send you some cheese. I'm trying to figure out. And I'm just gonna let you know this. This is the funny point, because I don't want to like I don't try to blow smoking people. I don't try to act like I do these things. This is my life, you know. And the fact that you're doing all these things and I'm a fan, our purchaser of all these products is a testament that even living the right life, I'm heading in the right direction. We're gonna bump heads somewhere, you know what. Maybe come visit you and Georgia sometime when all this craziness ends and we'll cook together. That's you in my office. When I bought the building, it has a full kitchen in it, it has an oven, It had my staff. Like, for instance, I have some people coming in from another office. We're gonna cook some red beans and rice and as a corn bread background in your cheese, I'm an bake some chicken. I'm gonna have to cheesese cakes. So you asked the question. I gotta answer because everybody knows I'm a dessert nut. I have eighty recipes I have on the app. So what desserts were you talking about this? I'll pay you. What dessert are you trying? What kind of desserts are you trying to get into my You a chocolate person or like, tell me, okay, my wife loves chocolate. She loves chocolate, so so okay, So for Valentine's Day, I'm gonna send you my recipe. It literally takes seven minutes for the molden chocolate lava cake and the air fryer. It comes out perfectly in the Philip's air fry. I just made it. I'm gonna post it on my social media site, Donna Teller are Pie. You gotta follow me on Instagram and I'm telling you you're gonna have chocolate lava cake and it is so good. So it's all about getting good quality chocolate and in seven minutes you can have chocolate lava cake. You're making me. You're making me happy man. Happy man. Happy man is meaning that all these things I've walked away because it's been so difficult. Now you're telling me we shall come back to the dog side. Come back over here, come back overa, come over here to the d A. D A got something for you. We got some easy pasta. We've got some easy chocolate to search for you to make. I'm a post it on my social media tell the world. Indeed, you know, I think, uh, I knew. It's so good to finally see you because I knew when I spoke to you that you were a food person, that you love food. It's just the way you speak about you know. I had interviewed a lot. You can tell that the hosts that are into food and that are not into food. I think people that are into food have an extra passion for life, which is the key to success with anything. It shows. It's authentic, just like your show. You love what you do. And I thank you for being a guest again today because you just are, you know, infectious the way you interview. So I really thank you and I and I'm so glad that you went to Proba and you loved the food. And I am a meat poke leon. I'm very proud of it, very proud of it. I want meat ball madness two years in a row, and now I'm coming up with some meat all air fryer recipes to cut on the fat so we can save room for a little dessert so that we can stay hard healthy. So it's good. It's good. Life is you know what. It's been a trying year, but it's true, which does not kill you makes you stronger. And I think I've come out of COVID stronger with exciting new opportunities that would have never come up before with Phillips and my continuing relationship with Galbani, and there are some pizza restaurants in the future expanding. I'm just I'm just waiting a little bit right now until this all calms down with the vaccines here. So hopefully my husband seems to think that by the fall things should normalize again. Well I hope so. Well, I want to stay. First of all, you're amazing and for me for and to call you the meatball Queen, and you're beautiful that you know, it really a struggle. I'm just going to the struggle. But you you wanted twice, you deserve that title. Secondly, I'm I'll tell you pr people to contact me. I'm gonna send you a photo of my kitchen so you can see because what I want you to understand, d A, is that I'm the real deal. When I come to food, I will I get up at four o'clock. I probably get him off for his six must have come in. They have muffins, wig known, they have some corn bread. I've done taco salads for them. I've done barbecue settings for them. I enjoy That's the part that relaxes me. I don't smoke, I don't drink, and that this is negative. I just enjoyed life. And that's part of the you know, God gave me the gift and I can do with things and I can share. And so I'm just telling you is that I'm gonna send you my address, and uh, let you know you better. I'm gonna send you lots of Phillips stuff, and we're gonna start cooking together. And hopefully you'll see all the exciting things that I'm doing with Phillips this year. We really are are. It's it's an exciting relationship that we started. And you know what's interesting. The number one Google search that occurred with food when COVID happened was not what recipe, but how to cook? So I'm hoping and I think you're the same way that there is a return to cooking because it's a way to show joy and love. You know, I'm first generation from Italian immigrants that sound My mother, God rest her soul, showed her love to me every day. And I don't know if you know this really quick. I used to be a lawyer for half to half a minute, but I left to follow my passion for food because I love to feed people and I love to bring people together, and I think at the end, that's what it's all about. And when you follow your passion, success follows. Well. You know, I remember that I've read that we talked about it for the first time when you left your career as a lawyer, I think the age of twenty seven, I believe. Yeah, I remember, and I always because that's important, because it was important for me because a lot of people don't follow their dreams because they fear they areknown. And I see the journey that you've been part of, and I'm really the reason I like my show is that, you know, I've watched my relationships grow and I consider you one of those great relationships. And to see that you were a couple of unknown people you came on mar show, respected what I was trying to do, and I promoted your brand. And to see now that you've being such a strong entrepreneur. And the funny part about it is that I'm already purchasing. I participating at front Gate, and I bought the Phillips already and got Banni. And you're gonna You're gonna send me a recipe or some device on how I can be five many uh pasta, which is crazy, and this recipe on how to do chocolate in seven minutes. I'm gonna tell you you have no have no fear Rashard McDonald. The thing I want to do first is please tell your PR person to email me. I won't let you see that Rashan is very serious about this kitchen. I will send you a photo of my kitchen in my office, in my office, and you go, He's the truth, Because when you talk to me, I want you to know you're talking to the truth, not a hype man, not a man trying to make Dinna, trying to make a fie get inside. I'm the real deal. I love dessert, I love food. I like it's more. People come on my show. Who has ship? Did any talk show in the country. I have everybody on my show. I have and on my show. I rock on my show. I have Samuel s on my show. I was talking to show so this earlier on my show. Area Cheff comes on my show because they know I love food. I have a passion to support the branches. You guys career. I know y'all got victimized by COVID and eighteen. I'm gonna help drag y'all out of that and let y'all know that your boy is there with you. More importantly, I'm a fan. You look fantastic, meatball queen, and don't stop. Thank you so much, Tri Sean, thank you. Yeah. So I Mikey, people are listening in and there's gonna you send me that photo today, I'm gonna send to you all these beautiful products from Phillips and we're gonna get cooking. I say, thank you, I appreciate you. We will be right back with more money making conversations with your host Roshan McDonald. Sticky notes, email alerts a string around your finger. They're just not big enough. So here's a big reminder from the California Lottery tomorrow's making millions. Jack parties three vermillion play now. Please play responsibly. Must be eighteen years older to purchase player by Adoption of teams from foster care is a topic not enough people know about, and we're here to change that. I'm April Dinuity, host of the new podcast Navigating Adoption, presented by adopt us Kids. Each episode brings you compelling, real life adoption stories told by the families that lived them, with commentary from experts. Visit adopt us Kids dot org slash podcast or subscribe to Navigating Adoption presented by adopt Us Kids, brought to you by the U. S Department of Health, that Human Services Administration for Children and Families, and the Act Council. Look to your children's eyes to see the true magic of a forest. It's a storybook world for them. You look and see a tree. They see the wrinkled face of a wizard with arms outstretched to the sky. They see treasure and pebbles, They see a windy path that could lead to adventure, and they see you. They're fearless. Guide through this fascinating world. Find a forest near you and start exploring at Disco for the Forest dot orgon brought to you by the United States Forest Service and the Council. Hi and ra Sean McDonald host the Money Making Conversations. The Cafe Marca Swagg Award is a celebration of black men who are making a difference in our community by empowering others to reach their life goals from civic leaders, businessmen, activists, celebrities and everyday days. The Cafe Marca Swagger Award win this week is James Lopez. He is the president of Willpacker Production. As a producer, his films like Girls, Trip, Night School, Think Like a Man, The Perfect Guy, and many more have grossed more than eight hundred million dollars at the box office today. Box office numbers are great if you have a piece of ownership. When you got brothers like Tyler who owned the films, and that's what we got to strive as people to work towards. There's the ownership. The Cafe Marca Swagg Award represents men that have strength, their vision as assert and they are genuine and their spirit. Welcome back to Money Making Conversations with your host Son McDonald. It is important to understand that everybody travels a different path to success. That's because your brand is different the challenges you're facing, your life will be different. So stop reading other people's success stories and really start writing your own. Now. You can be motivated by their success because their stories can offer direction and also give you an opportunity to see how they were successful at what they did. But it's about what you're trying to do with your life, how you plan it out, and what commit commitments that you make to your efforts. That's why I bring guests on my show. Just like my next guest, who is Tommy Duncan. He started his first healthcare company at twenty six years of age, then he sold it. Then he started Trusted Health Plan and Medicaid managed care company that ensued fifty thousand people between DC and Detroit. Then he sold that in January of the Blue Cross Blue Shield. A week later, he started jet Doc. Jet Doctor is a telehealth platform provided an immediate virtual urgent care visits plus access to the prescriptions and pharmacist across the country for the twenty dollars per visit or ten dollars per month. Please working the money making conversations. He's ever selling and he's ever moving. My man, Tommy Duncan, Hey, Tommy, Tommy first of all at a young age, let's let's talk about your dude, your college background. Is that college in your past history? Or you a guy who just has a strong entrepreneur spirit. No, we don't want to FAMU Okay, fam mute, HPC. You know I knew that, but I want you to have a little bit more energy be having man because you know you say, fam mute, you got the bunch of basing all the way, okay, because you kind of got underrated if HBCU second place to Howard, right, but fam is the truth. We're gonna tell you something. You made me a lot of successful attorneys, right, doctors right, Howard right in these other HBCUs, which I'm a big supporter of, leve them right. But when you find entrepreneurs that's successful in business fan news where they come from, well I can't argue with that. You know, I think that when you look at what has happened this year with their COVID and eighteen somehow people have discovered I say people, the general market, the general public, the the donors have found HBCUs. Why do you think it's popped out like this? Why do you think they recognition for HBCUs being a critically acclaimed academic institution for African Americans or people of color. You know, I'll be over with you man. You know, in my travels and business, um, a lot of people go to majority schools and define success. But in my experience, some of the most successful people with HBCUs, Right, that's just I'm talking about those that are high up in corporate America that I come in contact with, or those of entrepreneurs, they went to HBCU. And I talk a lot about FAM because that's where I went with Howard Moore, house Held, and I mean, you name them. A lot of successful people come out of HBCUs, and I think a lot of it is because I just think there's a competitiveness amongst our people that in the HBCU environment just creates very successful, driven, gritty entrepreneurs and business people. And I think it also helps when you look at the fact that Kama Harris, you know uh has been Vice President elect, is from HBCU Hollywood. I come from Houston, Texas, so I'm surrounded by HBCU schools, you know, pre View and m Texas, Southern Gramlar and Southern you know, going down the line, Dillard go down go up to Jackson State is twelve HBCUs in the state of Alabama, which has the most hbc used in North Carolina. I think that's the second most at ten, but they're they're based in the southeast part of the tree. What what invited you to come to an HBCU. What what attracted you? I should say, to go to an HBCU. So I went to a majority of white high school, and I kept trying to persuade my mother to let me go to the schools in the city, which where all my friends went and my girlfriend's, but my mother won't let me do it. So FAMU In, which is a year before I graduated high school, had one the Prince Review top ten business schools in the country, and the president at the time was coming to the Midwestern cities Detroit, Chicago and really marketing Family as a place for us for students to go to college. I found out about it, went to visit for homecoming. You know how that goes. You know I went for homecoming once and don't want to go back home. How was it homecoming? Now home home coming and a black school is come it okay? Come on high bus? Tell us tell us about tell us about a familyes his first, of all, family has always been known for marching band. Family has always been known for a successful football program. Okay, and now to my understanding, they're going to the Squack. They transferring their football program to the Squack, which is even more incredible because you've got Dion Sanders down there in the Swacks with Jackson State. So I look at the Squack has becoming like a sec version of HPC for the HBCU, a powerhouse where the top athletes are gonna come and it's gonna put them on the map. So that's why that's what Family is about to get into. But from but where I hear you talk from Jump ro Sean, it's about the academics. It's about that's what attracted to YouTube. I went to Homecoming. But but the top business school in the eighty seven be recognized that it's really what really caught your eye, caught the eye of your mom. That's right. It was the School of Business and Industry, which has been acclaimed as being one of the best business schools UH in the country. Agnostic to hbc U or otherwise deemed mildly created the program, and it just so happens that the year she retired as year I graduated two thousand and three. Right, um. A lot of success of people came out of that program and still do. It's a school of business and industry. The program was so strong that every week we would have a CEO from a fort five of the company come and spend a full day with and I think that experience and there is this program called professional development, which is all around the soft skills of leadership and confidence in entrepreneurship because you can be an entrepreneur in corporate America, right right. You don't have to own your business be an entrepreneur, but all of those tenants and in skill sets we learned through that program and and I think more than anything, it gave us confidence to be leaders and to speak our mind and to uh and have confidency to growing something. You know the time you said something, cause I always tell us to people always tell this about being entrepreneurs, I said, I said, A forty our week jaw really is the best training to be an entrepreneur because you can't accomplish the responsibilities of a forty all week job, arriving at work on time, meeting your deadlines, being able to be accountable for the responsibility to given to you and also walk working outside of that for the our window, then you won't be an entrepreneur. That's basically what you're saying when you said, hey, you could be an entrepreneur working a ford our weak jaw, because the same responsibilities are built there if you wanted to come an entrepreneur, and I am I defining that correctly. That's exactly right, exactly right. You know, it's funny. I saw the OUs versary young I was actually had fami. I started like a little Friday sailor shop and at one point I was in the UH in the mall and I got into the airport. So I was twenty two years old. I had a little sandwich shop and the airport. Um. So that's not easy, Tommy, that's not easy. Now, No, it's not easy. It's not easy at all. But I did that. And if I said, this entrepreneurial kind of spirit if you want to call it that, and my parents were entrepreneurs, so I had that in my in my blood. But one of the best de cities I made as I started another a small healthcare company that I sold, one that you referenced earlier starting seven. But the company I sold to decided to buy my company for stock options and theirs, and so essentially became a job offer with equity associated. And that was my training ground. And when I went to work for them, was a corporate corporate company end up on the New York Stock Exchange UM called a Creative Health out of Chicago. I learned how to operate at the highest level of wills said in corporate America at that moment in time. And it was from that training that I took that to my most latest company that I just sold to go across from shield on how to operate at the highest motels you know what meant, how to be analytical, how to in the in the world of big data, how to identify the data message that actually move the needle, and then how to create operational rigor around it to make sure we continue to improve our numbers across the board. And so when I sold my last company of trusted in our industry, the average medicaid maniacare company did one percent profit. Mind I was doing temperacent profit marnd smoking for but I was smoking because of the skills I learned work from corporate America. So as you talk about the soft skills are showing up at word, you know, coming to early, staying laid and all that kind of stuff critically important, but then learning how to operate at the highest level, because when you operate high you have higher performance and you should have higher profitability. And that's how you create founder. And that's really what you're saying right now. You know, It's just the thing that I'm talking to you, Tommy, is like, first of all, where did this start? Because, like you said, it's in your DNA because you're both of your parents with entrepreneur But when did it? When did that DNA get into your system? You know what I'm saying, When you went, Wow, I can be I can be a self made man. I can go out there and do what they do. Is this It's important because they were like mentors to you. They were parents, but they also were like mentors to you as well. Correct. Yeah, I think, um, I think you aspired to what you're exposed to. And in my household and my parents friends, there was a lot of entrepreneurship, So I always expected to own my own business. A matter of fact, when I was in I'm like the average entrepreneur. Right when I was in middle school, I had a psychic hot line. This is remember back when when you were actually a magazine and you have all little ads in the back of the magazine, right like remember Cleo called me. Now I had one. I was in eighth grade, you know, and so I had that. I went to family. I had ice cream truck because to my surprise, you go to Florida and there weren't many ice cream trucks, right, So I had an ice cream truck, and so I thought that kind of thing sold on, Hold on, hold on the topic the ice cream trull. You know that that's the truck to come in the neighborhood, you know, stops traffic with kids. Now, yes, And I talked about how you by you you came about getting the ice cream truck, and what would the whole concept been making money? Because like, since all my profit margin with you, because I understand that's what happened. So I come to Florida and at many ice ice cream trucks, which when you're from Detroit and it snows nine months out the year, you can't understand how place that's always hot doesn't have ice cream trucks. So but I was a freshman in college, so I converted I had a truck. I converted that to an ice cream truck, and I would play masterpiece ice cream. Man. It's a little more little, a little more adult ice cream truck than the average one kids, right, right, right, But then I learned you gotta have you know that hot I used to keep the cold and myself was melting and become a disaster of a business. Right, So how did we get to healthcare? So we were ice cream the little little little a little sandwich shop in the airports, the airport, the healthcare. What shifted you to that? That that uh, that angle of business because my parents were in healthcare and all those other businesses are felt reasonable, right, so there were disasters. But I grew up in healthcare and I just had conference. I don't know, you know, I came home to help us. So I graduated from Family two thousand three with my NBA, and I thought I was gonna come home and take my family's business to the next level. And instead I came home and literally everything was on fire. Once in a year, everything went in the bankruptcy. So you know, the business went out of business, the home I grew up and with the foreclosure, you know, everything is repossessed. It was like a disaster of of a story. Um, which I think it's hard for most black entrepreneurs and people is we're always starting over. And I think we're starting over because there's a lack of true business guidance and mentorship. Because even my parents who that success of business through the nineties lost everything by the early two thousand's. And but because I grew up in entrepreneurship, you know, and everything went under, I thought I had a confect like gonna start my own company and kind of you know, rebuild the family. Uh business. It didn't go exactly like that, but it ended up getting there through its own path. Win. Now did you did your parents participate and uh and structuring and other business and on the board of your business? How are they How are they tied to enny of your business dealers today? You know it's interesting, man. So my mother and stepfather were together through the nineties, and uh, he was always an entrepreneur who got my mother an entrepreneurship. She was a master in public health, so she just want to give people access to healthcare, but didn't really have a business experience, so that relationship married them too together because he didn't finish high school, you know, or certainly didn't go to college, but he had the entrepreneurial get up and go. My mother's um education and academically as a person was a good marriage. Um. But when they so what happened in two thousand and four, so you have to got out of school and everything completely went into the ground. I was in the kitchen of the house and winter foreclosure, and I was hugging my mother and stepfather, and I said, I'm gonna pull us through this, and my stepfather kind of went his own direction. You know, I think he got real hot in the kitchen. He decided to uh to leave, kind of advocated the throne, if you will. Uh. So, my mother and I when I started mind and she helped me out, and then this business is sold in DC, she was around to help me do it. So she's always been my secret weather, right right. You know it's really because we're all talked about support, because somebody has to support you, and that somebody has to be there because you know, you can't be the smartest person in the room. We know that, but you also have to have somebody that's smarter than you that you can trust and also have been there, done that type of personality, and somebody that you know can you know, I guess you can respond to this time may because being a leader. The worst part about being a leader you can't show weakness. And then you have to pick and choose who you show weakness too, because your weakness to the to the wrong people, then they can take it as a sign of failure or a sign of doubts or lack of confidence. So what was that for you as a leader? A guy who's building companies selling companies in a very white world. Health health care is white. Let's teach real about it, but it also impacts the minority community strongly. And we're gonna get to the jet docum minute, but talk about the support system of being a leader and being able to you know, build your brand, but also being able to have a place to relax and take a deep breath, a place to pause. Yeah, you know, I agree with what you're saying. I think. Uh, when you're on entrepreneurial side of business, you quickly learned the most important thing you have to do is to make payroll. Yes, and so there's always the pressures of making payroll. They come around seem like, uh, you know, too quickly. But you can never show that you're sweating to make payroll because it's you lose that confidence in your people. Then it's like the Titanic. You know, you're not gonna have folks fully committed because they were looking for something that's more stable. Yes, um, but that aside, I think you have to fake until you make it, you know. I think you just gotta keep pushing and keep showing face, keep having that that faith that comes from from within to keep going and had a confidence that you're gonna make it of what you just get up every day and go forward. When you see like this, man I'm in I'm in my third health care company, my tenth business. I've had a thousand and I've had two successful companies in healthcare. One I created, you know, sold it. The company I sold to in publican me a million three when I was thirty years old. Then I started this one from scratch out of nothing, and I just sold it for nine figures UM six and a half years later. And I'm in another company, jet Dot, which is telehealth. Do you see a doctor in his cell phone, twenty bucks for urgent care business virtually and um, you know you have access to pharmacies all across the country eight five off your medications. Every CBS Walk brings war market, you name it. And I'm struggling right now. It's my third one and I thought it's gonna be easy. But I'm back at it, back in the Nicks Weaton every day questioning why am I touring this. I don't have to do it. I got a team depending on me. So you know, I think I did have it in you. And if you really have, then then you'll be doing it. If you really don't, then lady, don't give up the sticks. Right. But you know the thing about it, when one thinks about telehealth, you know, which is it's being able to talk to a doctor. Because we didn't think about that prior to COVID ninteen. COVID ninteen has brought that to Okay, this is the way to go see your doctor now. I know at the end of the year, I had that option. Do you want to talk to your doctor via zoo or do you want to come in? That's all I want to come in. You know, I would not have said that in May. Now now December, I said, I want to come in. I'm a lot more comfortable with the environment. How to take care of yourself going out in public in this new COVID world that we live in. Now, tell her health is jet doctor explained, Everybody is a telehealth platform provided an immediate virtual urgent care visits, plus access to up the prescriptions and pharmacists across the country. Like you said, Walgreen's TVs for either twenty dollars pervision or ten dollars pervision. Now in the minority community, that twenty and that team my man's is priceless, like they said, you know, how did that come about? And who or what celebrities involved? And are you using celebrities or brands to get your product recognition out there? Yeah, So this time last year I was at the closing stages of selling Trusted. But a year before that, I wrote a book on health care policy and three things that could be done to change the trajectory of the cross health care system for this country going forward. And I met with the number one regulator for healthcare in this country and sharing with him my book and the three policies, and he told me that it would take an active legislation to implement the most important because it was enacted into the Afordable Care Act, So that would be impossible or highly improbable. And so but through the research, writing a book, and the fact that as a company we were doing two million dollars in revenue, I paid over one million claims um that the biggest cause of the rising cost of health care and the the bad statistics of the quality of health care is because of lack of convenient access to healthcare. Correct. And that's up and down the range of economic situation. So somebody who's lower income will medicaid all the way up to having concierge medicine for commercial insurance. People wait too late to get diagnosed and to do something about their issue because it's inconvenient to go. You're going to emerge the room. No one wants goes to emerge room. You gotta to get a doctor. Woman takes to three weeks um. The health consystem is just a pain in the backside. But to telehealth creates creates a lot more convenient access for me. So I decided, Okay, I'm gonna make it super convenient. But then to get people to do it, have to make it affordable, so I'm gonna do it as cheap as possible. So the average tell health visit now is eighty bucks to visit. Ours is twenty bucks a visit. If you want to do a monthly you can pay ten bucks a month for your entire family in your household have access to telehealth. Those are doctor visits twenty seven and the pharmacy benefits included where you get a five shop to cost of medication. That's less ten bucks a month. So my vision is make it create admits access because it makes it easier through using your cell phone you see doctor one twos, and then to make it super affordable by making it, you know, lesson ten bucks a month or twenty bucks a visit. And when I started to do this, it's a pre COVID, right, And at that moment in time, the projection was at two thousand twenty would have eight hundred thousand telehealth visits and less than four percent of people knew what it was us. A month later, COVID hit in March, and now it's the highest thing in healthcare technology. And instead of eight hundred thousand, tell Health business in two thousand twenty and there have been over one billion in two thousand twenty, so the space has gotten from when I started it was a white space needing no one's doing it. I can kind of just you know, paint on the canvas to being super competitive and me having to figure out and this incredibly competitive market, now how do I stand out? How do I get eyeballs and attention to something? And the celebrity um factor came to play. We launched in Florida and on the celebrity side, particularly from our community. Rick Ross stands out of someone who's from Miami represents Florida in a major way, so reached out to his camp. He researched me to figure out who was behind it um Research Telehealth, and decided he actually want to be a part of it as a real partner. And so he and I became partners about six weeks ago and he's been a wonderful partner ever since. So Rick Ross is involved. We also last week brought aboard Dr Jackie from Mary to Medicine, which is a show on Bravo Positions. So she's now on the team at Jet Doctor and we're just putting together momentum to get the word out now here's a great thing the doctor visits that you're saying there twenty dollars and ten dollars or that's tied to the pharmacist. There's twenty bucks um per visit or if you pay ten bucks a month or on limiting. Okay, cool now, because I'm just I recently went to Emory and I have Humana, and my doctor visit was like forty dollars and and so I'm just letting everybody know an example of and believe me, I don't play ten dollars per month for humanity. Okay, that's gonna be real about that, Okay. And so so so I'm playing at forty dollars on top of what I paid Humana, all right, So with the rate that I'm paying, I should be getting it for free and so and so you're saying ten dollars promot for ts perfessive. That right? My closest statement to you and jet Doc and Tommy. How can ru Sean mccow my platform money making conversations? I have named two thousand subscribers to my fan club list, I got all the roughly a million social media followers. You know, how could I? How would you come to me. I'm not trying to be a partner in your brand. I developed this platform to be able to take entrepreneurs like you and make you you're the stars, and but also get your platform. You say, hey man, can you post this phone me? Can you post this from me? Because I want to be an asset to you, because that's why I believe that Black entrepreneurship is the key to this country going to the next level. And we also need to understand that we have value. Sometimes we are under value because they want to show the negative time side of being an African American mail or email and so that's why promote HBC used the way I've promote with HBCUs. So how can with jet document a strong teller help is a very competitive field. It wasn't competitive COVID hit Now everybody wants to use it. So now how do you slice that line? How can money making Conversation help you? Well, what I want to do is we'll offer we'll create a promo code for money Making Conversations UM where everyone who puts in your promo code, they'll get their first vision for free. Okay, wait, okay, this we didn't even about that. I would just be honest you I'm not I'm not trying to look for a discount because you're trying to build a brain. I'm just saying, you know, I appreciate that rushing about. I'm also saying I want people to try it right, you know. And and the thing for me is, uh, just been open with you. My last exit we did well, yes, And so I'm not in a rush to make money. I am self financing it, which you know get uncomfortable with times. But I'm not in the rush. What I wanna do is get our people in the healthcare faster. And the way to do it is make it super convenient and super affordable. So I just when people try and and I don't care what it costs, you know. Um, I like people just trying to get used to it because, like my eyes, she passed away last year. Last year is a real situation. I got, man, give you a thousand of these, but this one you're you know, you have empathy for it. So very sophisticated woman in attorney for forty years. Um uh, you know ran every day five miles a day. You just catch a running around upon the park in Detroit. Super successful, stylish fashion East, the best conversations, you know, wine kind of store, just an amazing woman. And so she felt a pain in her back and she thought from running, so she ignoredered for a few weeks. Then after a few weeks she decided maybe she just needed a massage, you know, So she got a massage, and then a few weeks later it still didn't go away. So she finally caught her doctor, and then her doctor said, maybe just taking the rest, don't run, or do you know all your your robots take off. A couple of weeks, she did that, and the pain was still there. So she finally decided to go to the emergency room and come to find out, after imaging was done, she was like a stage four and then she died five months later, and it was it was blessed to live five months. So what things have been different if she had went to doctor the first time? Probably now when she went to the doctor instead of just doing them assize, if she could just do a quick tell health visit, just to talk to a doctor, probably and the doctor may have referred her to go see go to emergency room, gonna go get some imaging done, and it would have been more convenient to then you know you gotta go wait two weeks, get in front of a doctor, going a way to room, parked the car, you know, all the inconvenience of it versus just making easy and so well, I wanna tell you this, Tommy. I'm a cancer survivor, Thyrod cancer survivor, and I survived it by going to a doctor and uh and getting the blood test. And so I know what what you're saying is truth, you know. And it was funny because my the doctor I do my annual visit with, he missed it. And in December, my dentists missed it because Thyrod's up here and so and so my blood the person I went to through my blood example, she said, can I just touch around your your your throat area? And she said, could I do a biopsy? And that's why if I did. If she didn't do that, I would have went another year. And so no telling what that year. That's what you're saying right there. That year, I might not be on the phone right I might not be doing this interview right now because cancer would have I've been ravaging my system for an additional ten months and I may have, like you said, uh, my neck is sore, maybe from lifting weights or maybe I've just slept with a crook in my neck. That's why it's important to get these uh, these these opportunities. That's why I wanted to get you on the show to talk about jet Doc. I know that black people have cell phones, and black people need to understand the value of cell phones is not just making phone calls, taking pictures and texting, is financial literacy comes out of their phone. And now healthcare can come out of the phone by the form of the jet dot and we need to understand that. And so my, my, my, My commitment to you and jet Doc is that I want to help promote it on my social media. I want to feature you on my Motivational Mondays, talk about what you're doing as a brand and your commitment to lower healthcare and Twitter dollars per visit ten dollars per month through jet doc and it's all about you, my man, your HBCU grad. I'm proud to bring on this show and talk to and your commitment to just change your lives. Like I said, this is self financially self sponsor financially by you. But we don't turn that around, so it could all be good entrepreneurship, healthcare industry, jet doc. Thank you for coming on the show. Tom, thank you brother, thanks for having me, and look forward to being on your show again sometimes oh you well, you believe me right. One thing about me, man, I wanted to bring on the show. I know it's a family show we're putting together, but it's just the first of the year, and one time, I know, think about the first of the year, people tend to listen about their health. They tend to listen about their money because they're putting those resolutions. So I want to use this as an inspiration to say jet doc. Jet doc is a form of a resolution for your health care as a reason, form of resolution for your health care that you should use and sign up for a register. That's my mentality because I'm a marketer and so so ah, they're listening different in January, then they listen to June. Okay, you know what I'm saying. You could ask any lifetime fits that, right, And so so I know that they're having you on the show, getting this air and then we're getting together, putting some stuff on my social media, putting some stuff in my newsletter. H having you back on the show a couple of times a year, different periods, just to let everybody know the progress of jet Doc is still out there. Let's let's build it and let that little that little crowd a few let's start, let's start put creating a scene, a jet Doc scene for you man, and let's keep winning. Brother. Now I want again, I want to take you. Thank you for I know you busy uh down in Florida, Fort Lauderdale. Thank you for coming on the show and finding a place to sit down so we can talk. Hey, I made it happy. It took me a minute, but that ship I'd just stick with it. Thank you. I appreciate you, Tommic, thank you for coming on my name. Thank you. And we're live here outside the Perez family home, just waiting for the and there they go, almost on time. This morning. Mom is coming out the front door strong with a double arm kid carry. Looks like dad has the bags. Daughter is bringing up the rear. Oh but the diaper bag wasn't closed. Diapers and toys are everywhere. Oh but mom has just nailed the perfect car seat buckle for the toddler. And now the eldest daughter, who looks to be about nine or ten has secured herself and the booster seat. Dad zips the bad clothes and are off, but looks like Mom doesn't realize her coffee cup is still on the roof of the car, and there it goes. Oh, that's a shame that mug was a fan favorite. Don't sweat the small stuff, just nail the big stuff, like making sure your kids are buckled correctly in the right seat for their agent's eyes. Learn more n h t s a dot gov slash the Right Seat. Visits dot gov slash the Right Seat, brought to you by NITZA and the AD Council. What grows in the forest trees? Sure no. What else grows in the forest Our imagination, our sense of wonder, and our family bonds grow too, because when we disconnect from this and connect with this, we reconnect with each other. The forest is closer than you think. Find a forest near you and start exploring. I Discover the Forest dot org, brought to you by the United States Forest Service and the AD Council. Look to your children's eyes to see the true match of a forest. It's a storybook world for them. You look and see a tree, they see the rink of face of a wizard with arms outstretched to the sky. They see treasure and pebbles, They see a windy path that could lead to adventure, and they see you. They're fearless. Guide. Is this fascinating world? Find a forest near you and start exploring and discover the forest dot org brought to you by the United States Forest Service and the Council. My next guest is Dante Simpson. He's the co filder and CEO of Eats bat tv, a premium e sports gaming contest agency, content agency and studio seamlessly integrating audience into cultural conversations. Each bat TV is a collaboration made up the world's most recognizable production studios led by Ridley Scott Creative Group and pr G. He He also oversees the rapid growth and the expansion of the organization as well as provide consult consultation to the company's global perspective. His work experience global gaming interests, branding entities, high profile in florences are that's me both on content, technical production and campaign matters. Please work for the money making conversation. Mr East Bad Tv himself, Dote Sampson, Hey Dante, thank you so much. For having me. Wow, that sounded like a lot. Maybe sound a little special there something when you do when you get to Ridley Scott, you kind of slow down right there. You know you gotta slow down we get to Ridley Scott. I'm just gonna let you know that. Now, slow down on Ridley Scott because people need to know your relationships from a production standpoint and also from a creative creative standpoint before we get to really Scott. Tell everybody what East or East Bat is. Sure, um East bat is. Come by with two different businesses. We have a licensed side of business. I want you to think of Getty Images. We license out photos. So if you watch somebody, if you watch Lebron do an amazing dunk, for example for the Lakers, and somebody captures that photo and you see it in Sports Illustrated or on ESPN, that's something that for example Getty or Associated Crestment, right, you do that exact same thing in the video game industry. So we are the only of our type that concentrates on licensed content. On the license side of business, I have the pleasure of heading up TV UM so TV does more than just that transactional business. We are actually the home of the creative. UM, so premium content. I give you an example of what that means and I'll just kind of toss out something for you really quick. Uh. We we recently did the free Fire advertisement UM internationally with Cristiano Ronaldo. Uh. You know, we did the Cyberpunk ad campaign with Keanu Reeves. Some of these things that we consider to be premium assets. UM. We are that space, so not only commercial but content as well, uh, as well as social. So we were partnered with the largest social platform, which is Movers and Shakers. So we tap into multiple verticals, um for the casual gamer as well as for the hardcore gamer, and that is e spat TV. And now now are you talking about the the Kiano Reads commercial that I'm seeing regular running regular on TV right now? That would be it. Absolutely, that's for Cyberpunk seventies seven. Uh. So we we received the call, uh they wanted to tap into our creatives for that campaign, and we were so happy to step in and assist with that. So, yes, I'm every time that commercial comes on. It catches my attention every time every time it comes on. That's why I knew where it is every time it comes on. It captures my attention. It's a great commercial. Thank you so much, thank you. And we always say, and I mean this, this can apply to any culture that you're attached to. The key to successful content, the key to successful commercials is actually tapping into folks who not only research the industries but actually live in them. Um and and that's that's who we are. We we are we're gamers. We we we played the game and we tell the story of So I'm glad to hear that. Thank you so much for well, you know, it's really interesting Dante when you don't want to stay on Kiano read because he's almost like had a career, especially with Matrix, you know, where he's almost played like he's been a video game. You know, he's almost been a person that there's always his career has been transitioning and building time, not a series he has now where he's a he's an assassin that's kind of like bending time and bending reality. And also he's constantly fighting like a video game, you know. So that's why that's what I'm saying is that he was a perfect charge because his brand, I think I have to say it's video game related from a standpoint of his career because if you watch any of his actions, always action packed. And so every time that commercial comes on, I go, I'm thinking it's you know, I'm listening, and it holds me through the entire cycle of the commercial. And even though I know after that I realize that's that commercial, it's still entertaining enough to capture me to the end. So congratulations on that man. Thank thank you so much. And he's really built. I mean, we remember him when he started with Speed Sandra Buck and you know, you kind of follow his career through his Matrix and you know, just the cult following that I had with John Wicks and all of these episode series of of that. You know that that was a cult film as well. Like you said, his career has really transitioned to being the voice of you know, the culture, subculture from that perspective, and like you said, it's it's an ongoing video game. And absolutely, you know, let say, you know all three John Wicks, I've seen all three of them. I don't know how at his age, especially in the third one he's fighting that much because he's actually doing all of the fight scenes, okay, and so and plus he just came out he was also in that last year he was offering that, Uh, in the Toss Story movie, we had a really really engaging character. So you're getting a guy that you know, well, you know, we we we create these relationships. But I don't think of anybody. You know, It's a lot of great people out there. Kevin Hart's out there. You know, you have a Rod Johnson's out there. But he is perfect for what you're doing because he isn't an action figure in that world of incredible you know, action engagement. He is actually to me, he's one of these guys way you can actually take his movie series and make it into a video game. He's that guy. But guy so eachs fat TV is hit a home run with him. Now let's go over to another guy that captured my attention in the intro, Ridley Scot talk to us about that. Yes, absolutely, Um, Ridley is amazing. Um. A lot of folks may know historically who really is, starting in nineteen seventy seven with his film Aliens Um and going straight through films that we love like American Gangster Withnzel Washington and you know, the Martian and and and different things. You know, even going back now to the eighties with Alma Louise and things that he's done. You know, folks can really have a passion to And one of the things that caught my attention is we were building this collective. Was not only the work that he's done that's on the silver screen, that's that really, in my opinion, has him on the mount rushmore of directors in Hotwood. But it's actually the stuff that we don't know. And I'm gonna you know, ask your audience. You know, if you guys are at a computer, you're put up on your phone, please go to Ridley Scott dot com and familiarize with yourself with some of the stuff that he's done. As I spoke to speak to folks from my culture, you know, people of of color like myself, I say, listen, did you know that he was behind Beyonce and you know a lot of the work with black is King. Did you know that he's worked with Berner Boyd? Did you know that he's worked with Childish Gambino? And people are like, oh, absolutely not. I never would imagine. And then they go and they start to see, you know, the work that he's done, you know, supporting Aba dvern A and different people who come from a culture that is like mine that you would not necessarily associate Ridley with. So one of the things that I know that we just came, you know, from talking about Keanu Reeves, I would apply that to Ridley as well. And that's somebody who may have started their their career in a specific place, but it's so multi talented that they are transitional in other spaces that quite frankly, many people aren't aware of UM. And that's something that really caught my attention with him and I I always tell you know, their team. To me, they're the convergence of content, fandom and creativity and and they do all of the above. And when you take a look at what they've done in the live performance space with Taylor Swift, and I could go on and on naming a listers that they've worked with UM that we would never really associate or imagine Ridley Scott from the UK that's done these you know, blockbuster films. UM has actually been a part of that's been supporting our culture for quite some time. So he was just such a natural fit UM as somebody that understood the world with offices around the world, UM and truly speaking to different cultures as a parallel, so nicely with gaming um and obviously gaming being one of the one of what I considered the three universal languages. So you know, you know, like I said, his his career. You know, Glad Aider Who just one of those. It was one of those movies. I'm telling I can if Gladia comes on, I'm watching the end. I don't care, I don't turn down, I don't care where I'm at. I'm gonna watch the end of Glad is that type of work and Aliens to which I consider that that that the as far as sci fi movies for female leads taking the dominant role, Aliens too incredible. So he's always had a history of putting women out front and allowing them to lead and be a dominant figure. You know, so many projects he's done with Denzel Washington, you know, A Man on Fire another movie, So I gotta watch the end of that movie. And so so with with that type of work, are you were you I'm not gonna use this, We'll be honest. Were you intimidated by the process of being in business with somebody like that? How did you take it from h I got it, But then you set back and go, wow, Okay, I gotta step my game up. I gotta make sure all my teas across my eyes. And how did you take that whole positioning with your brand? I'll tell you the beauty of it. And this is what I say to folks all the time. Look to become very strong or a leader or an expert in your space. And if you align properly with the right space, the so may normally intimidate others actually become very supportive, almost as a fan or support of what you do and deep you as an expert in spaces that they may not. And although you may be pitching them to be a part of what you're doing, subconsciously they're actually pitching you to select them to be a part of what you're doing. So there was an interesting dance that went on in the relationship where it was undoubtedly he has a brand to um. You know that that is to be respected, but from his perspective is to be protected. Um. But at the same time he understands the future of where content is going. I say the folks all the time, we may have grown up on Blockbuster, but our kids won't or our grandkids won't. You know, we may have grown up on you know, uh, driving theaters, but you know that went away, um in in a substantial way, although there are some left, and it still went away in a substantial way. Being able to understand the future and aligned with the future was something that he was savvy enough to identify and recognize, and it actually did not make it such a dawning conversation. They really were more so impressed with our knowledge of the space and our ability to identify and stay ahead of the curve. Okay, you know the beauty of having brands come to you name recognition brand. You know, we're talking household names in the industry. It also talent like Travis Scott, you know out of Houston, Texas, explained the relationship with Fortnite and how that plays a major role in your brand each bad TV. Yeah. Absolutely, um. I always feel like we're living through a pandemic. We're living through a time that hopefully, UM as a society, we won't have to live through again. But they always say during these challenging times, opportunities are born and those who find success actually are able to pivot and aligned with those opportunities. So one of the brands that I say, we're actually you know, we we've always heard, you know, stay ready, so you don't have to get ready. One of the brands that that I say, you know, during this time just so happened to be Ready and it was so great how they aligned. Was Uber. If if you were in California, if you were in New York or any any other major cities around the country during the height of the pandemic, you may have noticed that there were no cars on the road. Um, you know, so Uber as a business, I'm sure it took a tremendous hit, but simultaneously you had Uber eats, and and Uber Eats was actually keeping a lot of restaurants in the restaurant industry in business. They had a subset business that was actually able to skyrocket during a pivotal time when their core business may not have been able to. Now with that being sped, you asked me about Travis. We haven't seen tours in twenty money. Um, you know, we'll see what holds for us. But you know, Travis was smart enough to identify, Hey, you know, there is an opportunity for me to perform to my audience and their home their captive. As a captive audience. Let's identify a way to perform to that audience. Fortnite was the great way. There was another group that's done this tremendously and we'll give a shout out the Swiss Beats and UH in Timberland. They've done it amazingly with Versus, especially the selection of talent that they've had in utilizing iTunes and and and and Instagram. We were able to do this with Fortnite. We were able to work that production. We were able to actually be a part of the creation of that content that those who tuned in were able to see. So, you know a lot of parents heard about it because their their kids were addicted to that, you know, to that ten minutes of content that was created. But we were able to optimize UM and we call it an MTM. We were able to optimize them moment that matters and translate that and transition it into another MTM, which is metrics that matter. Million people tuned into that. The news came out a couple of weeks ago at the time of this recording, UM that Travis made twenty million dollars, you know, off of that performance and the purchases within that performance. So if it created a blueprint for folks to identify to to to appreciate the need um and the opportunity within the gaming community. And since then we've seen little Nozekx do the same thing with Roadblocks. Um he got thirty three million views. Uh, so we're starting to see a transition. When Live Nation is is not doing tours, when a e G is not doing tours, that all of a sudden, we've got a new player in the game, and that's the gaming community itself and their platforms because of the audiences that they hold. This is a platform that started with boxing, you know, to pay per view, the old school pay per view, and then you elevated the game. Now we're getting into the entertainers from a from a musical standpoint, understanding how they can do this. And we're not talking about driving the theater numbers you know that was really popular. We're talking about twenty seven and thirty three million. How does one make their money on that? They make it through subscriptions, do they may make it for a purview rate? How was he able to make his money? The money took place in the purchases. So a lot of folks don't understand that within the game, you can purchase what's called skins. So I'll give you an example of a skin purchase. He was selling cactus Jack merch in a virtual space. So if you had a gun and you wanted your gun to be hoo ho ho. Hold, they're not even taking this home. They're not even taking it home. They're not even taking at home. So you're buying a shirt within the virtual space, and it's living on your avatar within the virtual space. Absolutely, and that was the beauty of the relationship and of the relationships between artists and the gaming industry because now there's an opportunity that steps outside of the three sixty relationship with the labels. And you know, that's a whole different conversation that will say for another day of how the labels are monetizing off of folks more than they're monetizing off of themselves. Well, now you've got an opportunity to monetize off of yourself. And that's what this proved. So you you know, again, we we we do the math, right, we do the math around here. Um, if if if Travis would have would have sold out of stadium at forty thou people, and if he would have done a tour of a hundred stops at forty people, he would have only been in front of four million people million in four days. And he's very tired, by the way, he's very tired, and there's light and there's lodging, and he never left, you know, they never left the convenience of homes. So you know, when you're able to look at it from that perspective and what that means to the artist and kind of the bandwidth that it opens for them to do other things. And we've seen what that led to. I mean, who took advantage of that rashon We we ended up seeing that McDonald's took advantage of that during this time. And next thing you knew he had you know, he had a product on the menu on the McDonald's menu that opened up because he was hot during this time. He was relevant during this time and why not capitalized during this time? Wow. So with that being said, we were talking about the urban perspective, cultural perspective. You know, you know uh nas and uh nas X and uh and uh Travis Scott their cultural phenomenons, you know, they carry us Shorty Mark, Now you have a based in Atlanta, Jordy called Community X and the sports league that's UH geared towards HBCUs and also people of color. How did that relationship come about? I want and and and and I don't know the details of that entire relationship, but I'd like to talk about the top line of that relationship. First, I want to send my greatest support out to Chris p and I. I always like to any time I'm having a conversation about gaming and the sports mentioned some names along the way, So as we continue to talk, I'll mention some names because I think it's really important for the people of color that have stepped into this space where there's there's only very few, UM, you know, just to kind of acknowledge them as as I have an opportunity to talk about what we're doing. But I think that it's it's beautiful what Community X is doing UM with the HBCUs, and most importantly UM that they were able to tag in a brand like Twitch to support what they're doing UH, creating tournament opportunities, creating spot scholarship opportunities for students, creating financial beneficial opportunities for students, and also not just stopping there, but working with HBC used to build out their e sports program. So I often say, you know, and I use Little Cross as an example. One of the greatest college with lacrosse players is Jim Brown. And people don't know that. He obviously went on and became one of the greatest running backs in NFL history, but he was one of the greatest lacrosse players at the University of Syracuse. And oddly enough, you know, we don't have a lot of folks who play lacrosse, and a lot of that is because of just the economics of playing it. That goes along with hockey and that goes along with other sports. Just the economics. There is an economic factor around gaming. You've got to have high speed modems or else you're gonna be slow and delayed in in the game. You've got to have the equipment and so on and so forth. There are, you know, obstacles that exist. And to know that Twitch is willing to step in support our you know, you know, you know, kids of the future, young men and women of the future, is just a beautiful thing. And that's truly a commitment that I appreciate. So I always give a shout out to Community X and what they're doing. UM and what they're building. This is a long term. This isn't a one year deal, So this is a long term relationship that they formed here, and I definitely applaud what they're doing. Well. Your background is music, fashion, sports, How does that shape itself into what you're doing TV. Absolutely, I think that i've I've I've tapped into UM those elements of and I always I always use the word culture right UM and and I think i've I've learned from each one of them the identification of people, process and performance UM. And I think that those things are are what's tapped in. I mean, I was a part of the Tom Ford era of Gucci. That's a legendary era. UM. I was a part of, you know, the moment that Sony b MG overtook Universal as the number one UM music house in business like, those were legendary moments. And as a business development guy and and and and and a leader with both organizations, it was great to be a part of building something UM. And that is the part of this moment that's so intriguing, is that we're building things that don't exist. And I always say to folks, look for the white space of opportunity at ease something that doesn't exist or something that you believe that you can do better, but don't only identify it, and don't only make a plan, but truly make those goals and outperform your own goals. And if you're able to do that, then there is an endless opportunity for you in those spaces. And this was just a natural progression for me from music from fashion. You might start to see and not start to see this has already happening. Gucci has tied in with gaming, Louis Batton is tied in with gaming, Butlinciaga has tied in with gaming. You're seeing fashion come in from a merchandise perspective and they're tapping in. You're seeing music come in and they're tapping in. So these opportunities are less And I just feel like my background, the convergence of everything that I've done, um is actually taking place right now in the gaming space. Well right, well, right now. It's incredible. And uh you articulate the whole subject matter strongly. Uh so, what what so with that being saying the future of what you're trying to do with the goals, you know, because of the fact that my mind is flying you know when you when we're throughout those numbers and we're about to come out of COVID and one there's a there's all parts. What's the new model? What is the new model? You know, who knows Taylor Swift might be knocking on your door because of the fact that this seems so natural to what what these artists who have who understand their brands. These are brand centric people and that's what that that's what you're talking about. People who have are following and understand them and engage with their opportunities to be like that. Do you seek out the talent or the talent seeks you out? I think it's a combination of both. So I think that we do have our eye on certain folks. But the future of what we're doing right now, and I always like to use basketball is the example. Think of the different eras of the NBA. So think of the colorful basketball era is what I call it, that the dr J era, So think of the dr J era, and then there was the rivalry era. I'd like to say that that's magic first bird um and then you throw in the pistons in there as well, and then you have what's the current era, and that's the Michael Jordan Era. The reason that I call it the Michael Jordan era is because he was the first to become his own ecosystem, his own conglomerate. He was his own brand, and that brand transcended North America and became a global brand. That's where we are today with the sports. Part of that is how do you not how do you continue to engage the hardcore gamer but also engaged with the casual gamer um. And that's what our role is going to be in the community. So think of if you are an HBO fan and you watch Hard Knocks UM with you know, the New Our Giants or with the Atlanta Falcons on HBO and how they storytelling. You see what Brian Gumble does on HBO with Real Sport. So you watch Inside the NFL on Showtime. These are shows that actually are just shoulder programming that tell this story to create a higher engagement. Um, Floyd Mayweather did it great with seven series. I love this series. I love those cities outstanding, those I love those many I really missed. Those are really compelling, man, those are really good storytelling. Yes, absolutely, and that's that's the future of this How do you get the casual fan to become a fan of a specific team, a specific organization, a title, or a gamer. And that's what we're doing here, is we're actually, you know, telling the story for the casual while also telling the untold stories for the hardcore gamer. And that's the future of what we're going to be bringing here, Dante. Keep me on your roller decks man, some of aising information, um beautiful stuff that uh that you know you're a hair turner and understand that that's a positive thing to say about somebody who walks in the room and it goes that's a head turner because they want to talk to you, they want to communicate, they want to get inside a visionary. That's where you are, your visionary. Like you said, you know, I always tell people wouldn't luck being at the right place at the right time when those the Guccia thing happened with Tom Ford, that sony me and my thing happened. Now this is happening, all right. I think that's what you do, sir, that's what you do. You're a game changer. Don't change. Okay, Well, thank you, thank you so much. We will be right back with more money making Conversations with your host ras Sean McDonald Hi and ras Sean McDonald the host of Money Making Conversations. The Cafe Marka Swag Award is a celebration of black men who are making a difference in our community by empowering others to reach their life goals from civic leaders, businessmen, activists, celebrities and everyday days. The Cafe Marca Swag Award winner this week is Jeff Clangan. Jeff is an award winning producer and innovator and entertainment A long time business partner of Kevin Hart. He is the president of Pole Black Films, Laugh Out Loud and Heartbeat Digital. Despite Jeff's business schedule, he continues to pay it forward with his summer internship mentor program that he does every year. Okay, I've been doing this for probably the last five years. So I take five students every summer and I put them through kind of like a boot camp and social media. So they they're working on account they have to read books, they got to read articles, they got to do a predication every week, so they they it's actually like a bootcast why they're working and they're getting paid during it. The Cafe Mocha Swag Award represents men who have strength, whose wisdom is assertive, and who are genuine in their spirit. Welcome back to money Making Conversations with your host, Ra Sean McDonald. When I bring guests on my shows about their effort their dreams, some of them start right away, some of them will set back this dream. For these two gentlemen on my call today starting and win the year, my next two guests on the Vore Grievous and Mikale Piles there two HBCU Grass and Fraternity Brothers cafside Fraternity Ink. You know I'm an make a man, but you know I got love for Nat and Level who found it Quickly while attending Clark Atlanta University in Atlanta, Georgia in two ten. The company is a digital platform for wine, beer and spirit delivery that operates out of Miami, Florida, and while and while expanding, they will be in Georgia in early one. Quickly is the first black owned online alcohol marketplace and seeks to make arderent alcohol easy and convenient, while being committed to growing the culture of drinking responsibily. That's always important. Please working with money Making Conversations, the all grievous and Michale Piles Piles that's your name, right, you did, you did, thank you so much so well, you know, grievous. You know I had to work on that name. You know, that was a whole name. So HPCU guys, Atlanta, Georgia and okay, you guys were concerned about liquor delivery, it's talk to me, I thought, well, actually quickly was succeptualized. In eleven it was right. Michael I graduated from Clark Many University, was at a social gathering and everything on fine and well, and the party started to die down because it was no more liquor available. And at the time Michael and myself nobody wanted to make the liquor delivery. And we just thought, what if we had a website that we can go on and have alcohol delivery on every we can call what Theoctor circuit delivered alcohol to us. Again, this is in two thousand eleven, before its times, before uh East Door Dash Atlas. There's a lot of the gality back in two thousand eleven. So thus the party, you know, died down and there was no solution. Fast forward is when it became legal. Party companies like ourselves partner with alcohol store for all sorts of make deliveries, and that's kind of what we started to running. I live out here in Miami. We operate and headquarter in Mighty Beach. We started off as just an acpohol delivery and a team, but as we started to grow, as they started to change and start the partnering with rods Here's company. So now we're a full transparent Alllines is a market place for beer winning spirits. Now you know he did it? All that information up either talking man? Now now somebody coming and talk no cago come out of the back. Whoa man, y'all down? That was all those beautiful women, pau y'all pick the right sitting to kick off this business. Tell micall, tell everybody starting in Miami down there, because when I say beautiful women, you guys both know I am not lying. Listen, listen. You know. The good thing is my eyes are working, so you I can tell you sir, you are not wide whatever. However, just as a cavey, I I am married, you know, so you know I look but don't touch um. Starting in starting the business in Miami was really not only just a blessing for us, but a no brainer business wise. Miami is a multicultural, uh megaplex when it comes to demographics and age groups and people from all different cultures and walks of life. So starting a business in a melting pot like Miami proved to be very, very successful from us, not just from a sales and revenue standpoint, but from a standpoint of business analysis. A large part of what Quickly does is trying to make the world of adult beverages more convenient and accessible for our customers. So being able to work with Hispanic customers and black and brown customers and white customers as well, you know, all coming together in Miami has been a great success for us to get the business up and running and see how our products interacts with people from all different walks of life, and also international as well, because that's the beauty of starting in Miami. You know, you have that Brazilian brace, that Cuban base. You know, it's, like like you said, a melting pot, but also domestically as well as internationally. It's a great spot to go there. Now, you said in the var you were already down there. Yeah, I didn't. Living in my five years now and so to launch it down there. The whole concept of I want to step back for me because I want to go back to twenty level and the HBCU experience, the black fraternity experience, because you know, I remember making Silti fire problem member as your problem members of calf for side and the thing about in you know, HBCUs somehow started getting donations and people corp right corporations start recognizing the need to connect whether diversity. How did that affect you? And I let you start in the vau and definitely, Michael, I wanted to hear your reaction to this as well on hbc US and how it seemed to And it was before we had a vice president elect in Kamala Harris from hard University, so this was this was momentum before her. So talk about in the vault. Yeah, I mean that's the whole beauty of going to HBC For me, it's the relationships that you know now established going to clark Land University and just you know, being a part of cap Alpaca. You know, I met other fraternity brothers across you know, the US, and for us, you know, just being able to expand, expand, you know, our and company, you know as a whole. You know, from hbc US establishment, it's just meant the lock for us. Yeah, you know, um just just to its sound on that as well. Coming from an HBCU background, it really fuels our fire when it comes to starting this business, growing this business, being entrepreneurs and having a platform to really inspire and motivate other folks that look like us, that have similar backgrounds as us. I'm sure you know Sean that you know, the black and brown community in business, especially in the tech world, in the entrepreneurial world, we're majorly underrepresented. And so coming from PARKT Landing University, you know, an HBCU that was founded on the principles of you know, the Christian Church and the ideals of young black men and young Black women having all of the same opportunities as as the as their majority counterparts. You know, it's very important for us to reach back to the ABC community, to the Greek community, to our communities that we grew up in and show them that we can make a way in tech in business, and we've been able to do that. You know, we're extremely proud of the fact that we built quick Lit from the ground up with out any outside or private funding. We're completely self funded up until this point. You know, we have women on our chief executive board. You know we have black people on our chief executive board from an h B c U s and we're just very proud of that because we don't see enough people in the market that look like us, and we want to change that. Well, we will change that. Now nothing of are he's spent time over in China. Now I'm trying to figure out how he go over to Beijing. He was an h B c U beig not and I am it now now you you you're something else. All talk about that experience because I always tell people I remember when I left my job and uh ibm to tell jokes, you know, gonna be the next day Murphy. But it was a lot of unknown to that and because you don't know when you walk going next year, you don't know what. I know, a black man going to China. Why now, I'm very adventurous. I love, you know, trying something new, going to where else I've never been. And uh me, China was was open. Was an open experience for me over my eyes because a lot of things we say, for granted, you know, working uh in the bathroom, eating is things that they don't have. You know, these kids, their kids when I say, fourteen thirteen years old working sixteen hour ships NonStop and scared to speak to people, and you come here in America where you know, we're they're crying about eight hour ships or seven hour ships. Uh. And it's a lot of things just say for granted. So that really shifted my parodigm and just changed my way of looking at life. And UH really allowed me to take a lot of things that we take for granted here in the US and to run with it because you know, not to not to make that same you know, mistake that I may or I have had that same type of energy or I just wanted to carry an energy over from China to UH to America, because like I said, there's a lot of things that we take for granted that we could be you know, using to our full advantage here. When when you say that take for granted, you know, because you know, we take air condition for granted, We take a toilet supposed to be a bathroom supposed to be in your house. You know, you know, what what are some of the things. So if you said there's top three things that we take it that we take for granted the United States that we should appreciate more precise democracy. Uh, like I said, one, like you said, just the bathroom. The way we use the bathroom is totally different, uh you know the comfort And I just said, it's totally different from the China experience of how you use the bathroom. So I use the bathroom here in America. That was just a totally eye opener because, like I said, I'm sanitary. You know, our work life schedule, you know, we have work like balanced sort to say here in America where you know, work eight hour shifts, work four hours a weekend. We think, you know, that's you know, good balance. Whereas in China they're working sixty eight hours shifts like it's the norm, and you know they're not even you know, it's coming up for their breaks like thirty minutes. And I go to some of these you know, some of these places I was going to China. You know, these their customers were here to speak outside of you know, outside of their work because this is what they were stricting, you know, what they had to do. So that kind of just opened my eyes. Is just like man those things that we take for granted to work hours, how we eat, Uh, you know, a shower, Like I said, they're taking showers outside, some of them in certain certain places. Uh. And then also like I said, it's it's crazy because in China is a communist place, so you know, just driving cars, they only can have you know, driving cards six days out of the week. Uh. The seventh day they can't drive because of the population. So it's just a lot of regulations that they have to follow and the bide by that. Here in America week you know obviously got to free. The free didn't do whatever we want. Wow. Now Mr Pas corporate man talking sir. So that's what I love talking to about because you guys, and that's why I feel you guys are going to be successful because I always tell people, you know, when you've got people with so many different unique ideas and you're willing to compromise and combine those ideas. Because I look at the international flavor, I don't getting the vall. He's the international flavor. You know, it's he's both of you guys went to the HBU school and then you come from a corporate perspective. You know that corporate breakdown. Explain how that's being an asset to you and building out the biggers in the quickly. Absolutely absolutely so. You know, I was very fortunate to be able to cut my teeth in the corporate world working for large fortune fifty and fortunate one corporations such as Target at their corporate headquarters. Uh. It allowed me as a young man because I started working in the corporate world right out of college two years old. Um, I got got into it and had a lot of responsibility as a young man in a very big pond. And what it what it taught me was a few things. In order to make a company work and thrive, You need collaboration, You need teamwork, You need a diverse set of individuals with different backgrounds, just like you said, you know, Navarre bring something totally different to quick Lick than I do. And that goes for all of the people on our executive board and just on our team in general. And another thing that getting my start in the corporate world showed me was just to have polish and professionalism. You know, for us as African American men, really trying to revolutionize an industry that thousand severe years old, like alcohol, we have to work that much harder and be that much more tight and polished and refined in order for people to take us seriously and in order to grow this business and make the connections we need to take this business to the next level. And so getting that experience allowed me to work with people from all different backgrounds, people not just from HBC used like myself, but also the Harvards of the world and the Yales, and that sort of experience was invaluable. And then the last thing that working in corporate showed me Rushan was that working in the corporate world was great as a young man, but in order to truly establish generational wealth, which is me and of ours goal in life, to have a legacy to leave to our family and our kids in our community, you need to branch out on your own and take ownership of something. So corporate gave me the background and the polish, but it also gave me the motivation to say, you know what, if I want to get I've been saying it the way and I deserve to be compensated. If I want to build generational wealth, I can't do that working under someone. I gotta get out and bet on myself and grow a business like we did with Quickly. I want to follow up what you just said, Um, COVID eighteen, COVID ninteen hit we saw, you know, the ability to do curve side delivery, online delivery. Have you know Amazon gonna be announcing where they're gonna they're gonna drone in deliveries two people homes probably in late What impact? They said, time is everything. Being able to pivot is everything. The COVID situation with the launch of your delivery of quick Lick, talk about the advantages of that timing to the positive impact on your business. Uh yeah, so really it was divine time. And say say true, I mean we you know, because exceptionalized quickly in two thousand and eleven, it became mount in twenty eight when the pandemic happened, you know hit us all, you know by a story. We had to take a step back. We actually shut down operations for two days and kind of get an understanding of what was going on with COVID where we had to put hand make sure all our delivery drivers have mass and gloves of the time. But after we got a better understanding of the pandemical was going on, and really you know, hit like a light snitch. It became a necessity for all delivery. Especially with everything going on, Customers no longer wanted to, you know, make get up of the house and go to the liquor story to get to the bottom. So now having quickly got an option where you know, they can select the best beer wine expirits with just a click from their website or from their phone. We made that option and really, you know, ran what we had to make some you know maneuvers within our business model. For that's the most part they worked in our favor. That was just divine time and the bus teople putting their head down. And now that when we looked up, you know, it was just the perfect time and for the pandemic that happened for quickly. Now with that being said, okay, when I go to a website that sales lookally, it says click right here. If you're a team click you know identified. So my number one thought is, okay, who do you don't buy in your liquor? That the request in these deliveries? How do you protect yourself? Mr Piles, Yes, sir, so um, that's a great question. And in this business, you know, age verification We call it age gating, meaning you know, if you're not of age to drink, you can't you can't be on our website, you can't get our product. We don't even want to talk to you over the phone. You know, quickly has a huge corporate responsibility to make sure that we are being gatekeepers, um, to make sure that folks of drinking age, not miners of drinking age, have access to our products. So what we do is we have lots of different age gating sets in the process in order to order from us. So as soon as you go to our website or as soon as you go to our app, it's gonna ask you before you can even see the website, are you over twenty one years old? That's the first step. And then and you can you know, once you verify you are, you can go ahead and browse our inventory, see what you like to order, and before you check out, you have to verify again. And then before our delivery drivers give you the bottles, they're gonna check your I D. So we have at least three steps in our age verification process at all times. That's awesome. Now, so I'm about to talk about coming to Atlanta. I gotta go to the single guy here. I'm sorry, sir, you you showed me the ring. So I know this February campaign and got nothing to do with you. That's all the all right there, that's all I thought. That's for a fact it would look to because Atlanta. You know, you guys are coming to uh Atlanta February with a campaign called shoot your Shot. I I it sounds like a lot of fun the campaign and getting eyeballs and getting engagement is always the key to make it happen. Talk about the shoot your Shot campaign. Yeah, So, like I said, we're excited to be extend to uh Atlanta. You know, Mikell and I both went to Clarkland University, so Atlanta's home for us. And we thought of a dope marketing campaign called shoot your Shots. Amount of Time's day. Now it's shoot your shot. It's not just to shoot your shot. You know, you got the girl or the girlfriend and the girls you've been to Mari and there's all shoot your shot at businesses and you know, companies and industries that you probably want to you know, you know, pay way for it getting or get into uh So it's more, it's much more than just shoot your shot for amount of Time's Day. But yeah, it's a campaign that we've running group. We send our emails marketing the last to get the customers engaged. Uh and like I said, we'd love to shoot our shot, you know, in the Atlanta basket and see what transports from me. Oh, it's awesome about there. I'm just gonna let you what they sent me the ball. It's at the top of Februar word Quickly would want to shoot your shot campaign? What you encourage supporters to send their favorite beverage to their crush and all their crush, not business, not cousin their crush and on our Valenttie's Day. Quickly has been operating in South Florida for over a year and we're launch of fishing in Atlanta and February. You know, I'm having fun with you guys, and like I said, I'm just bringing that up and just having more fun. But when I see a good campaign and we know that and then the month of February, especially valortis that you can't find a restaurant. They alsold if you don't have a restaurant on the day of you trying to take your girl out, you gonna stay home with your girl. And now we're being able to realize that putting that campaign out. What can I do for you? I love to be able to put you on my social media or you're putting banners? What marketing techniques are you using not only in nationally because you know, but also in the local Atlanta market that I can help you out with. Oh, that's that's really really great. We would really appreciate that. You know, one thing that we really utilize in order to connect with customers and spread our message far and wide is our social media. So we would encourage you as well as all of your followers of your platform to follow click on Instagram at quick Lick Underscore. We can also be found on Facebook at get Quicklick and look on our website www dot get quicklick dot com. That's www dot get quick lip dot com. We're gonna be doing a very strong media push on our social media platforms, especially Instagram. We're gonna have some creative stories, some fresh content, some interactive content where people can see, you know, recipes and how to engage with our campaigns like shoot your shot and so if you can follow us, you know, repost something that we're doing on our online platform, that would be a huge, huge boom. But you're gonna start to see a lot of great content coming out of the end of this month as we get into February, which is not only the launch of Quicklick in Atlanta, which we're extremely proud and excited for, but also Black History Month. It was it was actually a strategic for us to pick in February because once again, you know, we always want to illuminate the fact that we are a black owned company, you know, operating as a bluetstrap self funded organization and this day and time, and so we want to pay homage to the people like Dr Martin Luther King and to all of the great ancestors. You know that that led the way for us to be able to have a business and a platform like this. What is it important? You know? We know, one man, if you don't understand what each month means, you have you know, you have a Father's Day, got Mother's Day coming up, got Easter to every one of those days in a marketing has to be a tool you used to you know, gain leverage for your brand. You know, you know, Mother's Day, Father's Day, Black music, mom in June. All those days means something. So now, strategically, when you guys are sitting down looking at your calendar, how did y'all look at strategy? Like like I said, like you just told me Black History Month. I just talked to Navarre about the Valati's Day. So real, there's two things going on there. You launched it strategically in black kid your mind, but you're taking advantage of the relationship February is also known as a relationship monk. So how do you look at strategizic moving forward? You got Miami on lock. You're about to move to Atlanta. Old stomping grounds or fraternity brothers are gonna come to your aid or alumni alumni from from that whole Spellman more House and Clark Atlanta. It's gonna come to your aid. What's the what's the future of Quickly in the southeast part of the country. Absolutely that that's a That's a wonderful question, and it was actually you lead right into where I wanted to go with the relationships. One of the biggest differentiators for Quickly versus our competitors is that we are a lifestyle brand. What that means is we go the extra mile to truly connect with our customers and our brand partners and our account partners and a very local and organic way. We don't operate like just a corporate business, even though I have a corporate background, you know, that's not who we are. We came from the HBCU World Clark Atlantic University, where our bands were. You know, you go to homecoming to watch the band, not necessarily the football game, right. We come from the background of having that flavor, that coolness, that slag, and that's how we brand the company as well. So to answer your question, and from a strategic standpoint, we're always looking at how can we transcend just the consumer, the normal corporate consumer interaction and truly differentiate ourselves from our competitors. Well, one of the main ways we do that is by having the shoot your Shot campaigns, which resonate with people whether you're in a relationship or single like my mannvar. You know, we we also look at the calendar, like you said, ro Sean, in every quarter, we're looking at what's going on, you know, super what what are things that can connect quickly on a real visceral level with our customers Because that's the thing about the alcohol industry, and that's why we love it. Alcohol brings people together, whether you're celebrating, whether you're commiserating, you know, whatever you're going through, you can have a libation as long as you're doing it responsibly, and we want to be a connector for that in a in a responsible way. I love because from all quickly is not about color. You know, you know you can every month, you know, uh st Patty's Day. Okay, that's on your that's a great liquor drinking monk okay. And so that's what I love about it. When you look at the diversity and the and the potential explosion of this business, especially COVID, A lot a lot of restrictions, the curb side lifestyle, the touchless delivery, contact delivery, that's people are seeking. Now. I know when I get my car washing, I just drive right on the end. I just hit my credit card. I don't let nobody come inside my car no more. And we know that lifestyle. It's not going to change, you know, with the vaccination raid and even after you get vaccinated, they tell you still should wear a mask. So that means that a lot of procedures are gonna be it's it's I'm just I just want to say congratulations, you know, because a lot of good ideas, the other people tend to get them, and you guys are saying at the cups of a great idea, not just a good idea, a great idea. And I'm just letting you know I developed Money Making Conversations because to me, speaking to YouTube or like you're the stars, you always see your people on the big screen. But you know, you make, you pay taxes, you employ people, you keep this company moving and more important as black men, you make us proud and don't stop even hanging out to China with Noval, you know now. But thank you for coming on Money Making Conversations man. But again, I'm very honest. I have like one point six million people I controlled within my Money Making Conversation platform, from newsletters to social media to to like my podcast and my radio syndication. So I extend that free charge. It's not about me trying to get something out of it. It's about me trying to grow your brand and also give you a voice that you can turn to and also a person that and I've created this platform to mentor people and I feel like it's a mentorship that I'm extended to you guys because I'm excited. I want you to grow as big as you can. And if you take one of my ideas and make a million dollars, I'm gonna be the first one to give you the knuckles sandwich you say, man, thank you, because if we're just sitting over here doing nothing congratulation, you know, we we really appreciate. I just wanted to say, you know, first and foremost, thank you so much for taking the time to speak with us. You know, I have seen your your your videos and heard your podcasts and seeing your reach with folks like Steve Harvey and Stephen A. Smith, and it's just amazing to be in a position to speak to such an accomplished and decorated brother like yourself. So thank you so much for this platform. You know, we're at the point in this company where we're trying to grow this thing big. You know, like I said, we're trying to grow a legacy with quick Lick, and even though we've been self funded to this point, now we are actively and aggressively looking for investor partners to invest in this company because we want to take this thing to the next level, not just Atlanta. We want to go. We want to cover the whole Southeast. We want to get out to the West coast at the end of this year. So we have dreams of grandeur and people like yourself, I can't think enough for giving us a platform to get our business out there to the masses. Thank you, Sol wrap up, I mean Michael wrap up. I mean he's a speaker up from start to finish. But no, like I'm beyond all platform to you know with our company, and like Michael said, we're mostly growing Tampa and I said, we're gonna pre see round looking for funding. So uh if you like, then far more reach us. That are you know with his info Iron Iron Flo Bath get quick with dot com that g need to kill you h k l i Q dot com. Alright, well, I want to thank you for coming on the show and give me the opportunity to have fun with you man and talk about to a growing business. And believe me, it's gonna be on fire man. I can't wait to see me some Make sure you send those batters, man, because shoot your shot. You already know you already man. Help be careful now if you want to want to make interviews, please go to Money Making Conversation dot com. I wass Sean McDonald. I'm your host. In this season of giving, Cools has gifts for all your loved ones. For those who like to keep it cozy, find fleeces, sweaters, loungewear, blankets and throws. Or support minority owned or founded brands by giving gifts from Human Nation and Shame Moisture. And in the spirit of giving, Coals Cares is donating eight million dollars to local nonprofits nationwide. Give with all your heart this season with great gifts from Coals or Coals dot com. Still living in manually taking notes, there is a better way to start the new year with auto dot ai automatically get meeting notes. Auto dot ai works for virtual meetings like Zoom, Microsoft Teams and Google Meet. Sign up on the web for free or download in the app stores auto dot ai. That's O, T T E R dot Ai. Every year, compliance regulations change thousands of times, and every year a dp makes thousands of seamless platform updates so businesses can focus on everything else like running their business. Grow stronger with a DP HR talent, time and payroll
Speaker 1: Welcome to Money Making Conversations. It's the show that she has the secrets of success experience firsthand by marketing and Brandon expert Rashan McDonald. I will know he's giving me advice to many occasions. In in case you didn't notice, I'm not broke. You know, he'll be interviewing celebrity CEOs, entrepreneurs and industry decision makers. It's what he likes to do, it's what he likes to share. Now it's time to hear from my man, Rashan McDonald. Money Making conversations. Here we come welcome to when they're making conversation, I'm you a host from Sean McDonald. It's important to understand that everybody's travels a different path to success. That's because your brand is different. The challenges you face in your life are different. So stop reading other people's success stories and really start writing your own. Now. You can be motivated by this success because their stories can offer direction and help you reach your goals through your planning and committed effort. That's why I bring guests on the show to talk about their life. They're planning, they're committed effort, and the challenges that they may face and also the longevity story of trying to be successful over the extend this period. My next guest is one of my favorites. She's always on my show once a year. And Burrell. She has the trademark sparky blonde hair and sparking personality. And Burrels he's hugely popular and fan favorite host The Worst Cooks in America, my daughter's favorite show. You're also seeing Works Cooks in the American celebrity edition, but we'll be talking about Worst Cooks in America everyday. People. Well, she's on the show to talk about that show. Worst Cooks in America airs on Food Network every Sunday at nine pm, so you know where to find meat. She's this year with My Girl Call the Hall, facing off against My Girl and Burrell to see who can transform these these kitchen disasters into cooling error masters. Please work with the money making conversations. And Burrell, well, Hi, it's so nice to be well, you know, it means that we're both are working and that's a good sime during the pandemic. And uh, I'm thankful that I get to work every day. Absolutely, did it affect? Did the effect into your productions in Um. Well, luckily, I will have to say, we did a season of Worse Cooks before everything shut down, and then right around like after Labor Day in September, under September and October, when things were sort of calmed down a little more, we did a couple more seasons. So the season that's airing now, um, and and then one that will air in May. I think so. I mean, I've had some things cancel, you know, like in person stuff and food and wine festivals, but luckily, um, most of the big stuff has been able to carry on thankfully. Well, I'm gonna ask you, like I always telling you, my I'll watch the show. First of all, you're a fantastic host. You you have the right personality that keeps me engaged because you care, you know, because this this could be an interesting show for a host, because they could come across negative because you deal with people who really aren't good at what they do, and you're trying to motivate them to be pull what little talent they may have and put it in let's put it on display in the kitchen. What makes you and you are to show so much? Anne, Well, I have to say, I really do, um, I feel like every season when I start afresh, Um, it's like I start over and I take the journey with these people. And to see where they start and to see where they end up makes it all worthwhile. And to know that these people come into boot camp really pretty disastrously, and then you know, whether they say a little time or a long time, they somehow leave better cooks and they take it home to their families and they cook with their families and it really does change lives. And I take that, um as a responsibility. So I do everything I can to bend over backwards to really teach these people. And these people this season, you know, um, they have more Southern accents on this season than in the history to show. Everybody has an accent on this show. And uh yeah, am I am? I Am I wrong in saying that, No, you are absolutely not. I mean, I mean, I'm from Houston, Texas, and I know a Southern drawer without here, and it's dominating the show. But that's a good thing. I'm not saying nothing negative, but it means the characters of characters that you have to deal with on this show. And but when they couldn't open an didn't know how to use a can open. I really had to take a back seat to that. It does it really get that bad. It really goes down to that base of a level that we have to teach people out of open cans. And I mean, uh, Joey Uh, the guy that couldn't open the can on last night's episode was the sweetest guy, but he really was caned opening challenge. I mean, what you know, it wasn't just him, It was my girl too. She didn't know either that MICHAELA right. I mean, UM, and it just it's one of my favorite things every season. I mean, Carla's reactions are so fantastic, but every co host that I have, UM really does have some form of that reaction uh in some way or another to the recruits. And they look at me and they're like, oh my gosh, how do you do this season after season? And I'm like, to me, I just find it so sort of delightfully endearing. UM. And then I finished it up with an eye roll the part. And that's what I'm saying that this is, UM, you've been a host. It takes a certain personality because they're trying and there's no gamick here that they actually can't cook. And then finally they're thrown into a competition, and that's really their flaws are even magnified in the competition. And so when you're looking at talent, like first, as Joey we just mentioned was on a recent episode he was voted off. He was cutting himself every episode. I think he had a band aid on almost every single finger. And I loved his statement saying that, like, yeah, I've gotten to know all the medics and then he named them all. Um I just here. That was still liful. That was hilarious. But there's prize money involved here, twenty five thou dollars, Yes, a big prize money for whoever wins. And then it's also sort of eternal bragging rights between myself and my co host who is Carla this year? And um, and it's it's between us to see who is the better teacher. So it's like we are really striving to have our our recruits improved here because that's just a little funny competition between the two of us right now. But I'm got just tell you dollars for people who cannot cook, there's a nice hunk of money. You learn how to cook and you walk away with. Now, have Maybe I'm wrong, yere have you guys did a have you brought back any past champions yet and did a best of best of worst cooked championship series? Yet? We have not yet, But I M I think that might be uh something to consider, and I've pitched it to the Food Network before. I think it might be something that they might uh take under advisement, because because I would love because I would love to pick up with these people where we left off. You know, we only get a few short weeks with them, and I feel like we just get to scratch the surface of where they can go on their culinary journey or they may have fallen off. And that's another part of the show too, because that is true. A lot of people, after words, cooks don't really carry on cooking in the kitchen. A lot of them do, but a fair amount of them don't, you know. And so let me just ask you this question, and you come on my show we talked about you know, I'm a big fan of yours and the show which you can see every Sunday night on a nap um Eastern Standard time on the Food Network. Why why do you think people like me enjoy watching the show? Well, I think that there's a few levels that on which people like worst cooks. I mean, uh, people look at other people making mistakes that they're like, oh gosh, um, I feel like maybe I just learned something from watching someone else to make a mistake, or they think, oh jeez, I'm not that bad, so it makes them feel a little better about themselves. But then there's also the educational part where people actually learn something, and I mean at the beginning and the end of the days. To me, it's a very sweet show that there's a lot of layers in it. You know, people come into boot Camp, we start laughing I would say, with them because they know they're bad, so we're not really laughing at them so much. Um, but they are funny and um. And then you see the progress that they make by getting better, and that to me makes me feel like a proud mama every single time. But I think that you know, there's a lot of um, there's a lot of humor in the show, but there's also a lot of learning and a lot of good feelings. This is one of the reasons I like to show is that when you guys are explaining what they have to make, you know, you're explaining from such a common sense, basic level that I've been able to cook some things myself by watching you and the competing chef that's on the show of the show, because that's really cool that, you know, because it's such a Sometimes cooking can be so um so daunting, because it seems like if you open a recipe book and a teaspoon of this, and a couple of this and all this, and you gotta be said, at this certain amount of tempts you can't over over over cook certain things, or you or it becomes a gluten It's so many things you can do wrong. But when I watch you guys do that segments that right now, and they little notes so they can go into kitchen and mess up or deliver what you request. That part of the really right there, I find really informative with me, and I really get a big kick out of it because somethings y'all tell me I would never have done it that way because I would never saw it that way. But by seeing it being broken down to the basic levels, it really helps me as a cook. I agree, And that's why I teach the way I do. I mean, I remember when I was in culinary school learning new things, and I learn so much better by actually watching and doing than just by someone talking to me or reading it in a book. And when someone's uh explaining things to you and they can explain the wise, the why you do things and that kind of stuff, um, it kind of connects the dots and makes so much more sense. And it's also sometimes when you're reading recipes and you don't know what certain cooking terms mean, then that as another layer of difficulty. And that's what I'm saying that that is so nice because if I'm watching and I'm talking to Ambarrel, she's the the fantastic host of uh, you know, the worst cooks in America that you see them food. They they work on Sunday nights at nine pm Eastern. The thing I've really enjoyed that, especially during the pandemic time, you know, because we were all trapped in our home and we still trapped in our homes. I apologize and being able to and so a lot of home cooked meals and people are going to the grocery store shopping and buying things so they can cook at home and feel safe. That has really been a blessing watching your show, and there's just you know, pay per view. I can go and go back into in demand and watch your past show. That's what my daughter does. So it really is it really is fun watching it. Have you seen that play out or you on your social media? People being engaged because of the fact that you're providing them while they're trapped in their homes or or the mundane life because of COVID nineteen. Oh, I'm slutely, very much so. And the nice thing I have to say, you know, we're always looking for silver linings during the pandemic time. And I've been reached out to by so many former recruits that say, oh my gosh, thank you so much for everything I learned. Because I'm cooking all the time now and now I can cook during the pandemic and this has been a lifesaver. So, I mean, I just it warms my heart. It makes me so happy. What makes me happy? And next, it's the new season The Worst Cooks in America. Every Sunday and Nappy I'm on the Food Network. I'm talking to the host and Barrel first Prize. It's twenty five dollars Sunday finale February to the two most improved recruits, but all their newly learned calling theary skills to the test to press an panel of food expert and again I always thank you for coming on my show. I'll have a good time because like I have a good time watching your TV. YEA, well, it's always so nice to talk to you. Thank you for having me. Be safe now and need taps and we'll talk soon. Okay, thank you very much to my friends. Thank you, they thank you to absolutely. If you want to hear more Money Making Conversation interviews, please go to Money Making Conversation dot com. I'm with Sean mcgung. I am your host. It's finally here, the season of celebration, and no matter how you celebrate with family and friends, whether you're preparing for reys magos or Karamu lighting the Manura, are going to midnight mass, Coals has just what you need to make those traditions special. Plus you'll find gifts for all your loved ones. Send warm wishes with Cozy Fleece's sweaters, loungeware, blankets and throws. Support minority owned or founded brands by giving gifts from Human Nation and shame moisture or treat them to everyone's favorite activewear from top brands like Nike, Adidas, and under Armour. And in the spirit of giving, Coals Cares is donating eight million dollars to local nonprofits nationwide committed to the health and well being of our communities. No matter how you celebrate, when you shop at Coals, you're right where you belong. So this season, give with all your heart with great gifts from Coals or coals dot com. Whether your event needed one room or an entire conference center, Hoppin has revolutionized the way people come together. With hoppin, you can host a fully fledged digital meet up, complete with one on one meetings, hands on sessions, and expo booths. And because everything is hosted in a single, easy to use platform, it can be as big or small as you want, remain convenient for anyone who wants to attend, and give you access to data you never would have known otherwise. Visit hoppin dot com to learn more and get started. Still living in and manually taking notes, start the new year with auto dot ai to generate automatic notes for meetings, interviews, or lectures. With auto dot ai, you can search and meeting notes, insert images, play back the audio and share them with your friends or coworkers. You can capture action items, remember meeting details, and keep everyone informed. Auto dot ai works for in person or virtual meetings like Zoom, Microsoft Teams, and Google Meet. Sign up for free at auto dot ai or download the app for free auto dot Ai. That's O T T e r dot Ai. My next guest is truly a dreamer. She's a person I met several years ago on air and I called her the meatball Queen and affects me, you know, I said like that because I've always interviewed her via podcast. It is the first time I've seen her and they called Donna tell her, I'll pay you a meatball queen doesn't fit. It doesn't fit. It's nice to see you in personally. We have a lot of money making conversations to talk about on this show, because in twenty sixteen, you know the debate of the quick service prof of Pizza Ball, which I've been to twice, by the way, and the very first time I interviewed you, I went there and had an amazing time. I took two friends, I got photos and all that stuff. But you're gonna probably expand on that, and you have another Probra Pizza bart Maxi New York City, NYC Times Square Hotel. And so now we're gonna talk about you being a regular co host. I'll CEO TV all the time. And it's amazing what you're doing in your life, your collection at Frank Gate. So it's a business show that we're talking about. We're gonna talk about all the brands of what she offers. Please welcome to money making conversation for the third time, the third time, Donna tell you, I'll pay you so much. Thank you. Well down to tell you. You know, you know you know him from Houston, Texas, and you know I got this Southern accent and I tried my best to spin the rotate those words and those curved those ailes and those a's and and I hope I'm doing a good job with your name. You're pretty good. Don tell you're gonna see stop stop you're just messing over. It's just stop. Let's talk about you. You know you we know we know. First of all, you look fantastic. You know, look, thank you for going to my restaurant. And yes, a few years ago, I launched Proba Pizza Bar in Grand Central Terminal in UM in the Moxie Square Times Square and obviously doing fantastically well until COVID, which right now happens to be the heart of the pandemic in those two locations. So it's very interesting to see how we're adapting. But we're still um fighting the fight and and looking at other locations because even though I think the hospitality industry as a whole has completely changed because of COVID, there's also tremendous opportunities. So you have to be resilient, you have to adapt, and you gotta you gotta fight the fight every day. Well, an interesting thing about let's talk about you know where I went at First, We're gonna talk about a lot of your other enterprises. You have available to pizza bar, which is casual dining, correct, Yes, I want to to be like what you know. Shake Check was the answer to Burger King. I felt like there is a need for artisanal pizza. I have a very unique pizza and with all natural ingredients, and the pizza has a long rise and it's highly digestible, high water content. I am from Naples, my father's birthplace, and I studied in Naples, and I'm really using fresh quality ingredients because you know, you get what you pay for. And a lot of the pizza chains out there, you know, you can get pizza for you know, five dollars, but a lot of times it's not really pizza and it's not really cheese. And and so we really I'm committed to the best ingredients, the best meatballs, of course, because I am the meatball queen. And uh yeah that that that's the goal. And it really was a huge success. Um And to launch in places like Grand Central in Times Square is where you want to launch brands. And I'm gonna tell you, I always be a see whenever I went, always packed. The service was always fantastic because the reason I say that is that because Grandson was a touristy. You know a lot of people come through their fast traffic, and so sometimes you get whatever type service. I'm gonna tell you something, the two times I went there, I never told him I knew you I went. I always like to do that. I don't come in there trying to get anything free and cut me a deal. And because I really want the experience, and I enjoyed it. I took photos and and all that, and I posted it on my social media and I said, well, you know, that was one time I went through they let me go back through their a gee because New York tea is my favorite city, so I always I brought a couple of more friends. I brought one of the first time she was female, and I brought two of my buddies. You know, guys, you know, bring us some rough people into your place. And they all loved the pizza. Cuse hamburgers and pizza and and is my two favorite things. And so your pizza, you are right about the dough. The dough is different, and it and it and it and it was very fresh and it was it was amazing. And so when when you talk about the service, you talk about quality. Now you're talking about I hear you the word dominot. How you word shape check. That means you're trying to take your brain in a national platform, which means that quality control is very important. How do you maintain that? Yes, quality control and consistency is everything. Um. You know, I've been in the restaurant business for twenty years and I came from fine dining. So thank you for the compliment on service, because I do feel that even if you have casual, service is important and more than ever, I think we lack the personal touch. And when you get good service and you get an actual smile from someone, people remember. So that's really important. And Grand Central is very touristic, but it also has a lot of consistent people, so we have a lot of regulars. The bar there is like cheers at night. So, but quality control is everything. It's about systems, a lot of paperwork, protocol, consistency, um. You know, you have to really build can existency. It's all about consistency when you grow. So hopefully as I expand to other cities, if you get my meatballs in Texas, maybe I'll come to Texas will be the same as New York. That's the goal. And I think the most important thing is to not expand too quickly, but not too slowly either. So if you have a good team, you reward them well, set up incentives and and you know, keep things consistent all the time and stay true to your brand. Well, you know, the reality is we are in COVID and it's talks about people. And you like said you landed in great locations because they were heavy traffic, natural heavy traffic. Then you hear COVID hits starts limiting people. Travel starts limiting, especially on transportation, especially on a tourist area. That's where the town Square is really tours because people come down there, and then transportation wise, the Grand Central station was perfect location. How did you pivot in those two locations? I'm sorry, how did you pivot in those two low ocasions with traffic being diminished in those two locations in Times Square as well as Grain Central. Yeah, it's been very difficult. I mean we have to. You know, we're just talking with the landlords about renegotiating rents right now. Delivery is also an option, but to be honest, New York City is a tale of many cities right now. So you know, on the Upper east Side and Lower east Side, the residential areas, the restaurants are doing well, but Midtown right now is a bit of a ghost town. So it's it's very difficult. The idea is just to stay consistent and to work with landlords and do the best we can right now and ride this out. I hope, let's hope. There's only so many things. I'm usually the type of person I think most restaurateurs and entrepreneurs are that we always find a way COVID is something, you know, it's a once in a century pandemic, and the way it's impacted New York, especially in Midtown, has been quite devastating because you have all the people in the offices still not coming to work, they're working remotely, and tourists obviously are not there. So you're starting to get weekenders. Slowly, I'm starting to see the light a little bit. So that's that's been a little. Um, that's been a little difficult. You know, we keep I've been through worse things before, and um, the product is excellent and we're consistent and we're gonna we're gonna keep at it. Well, you know, you still do your TV, and that's that's that's been a huge opportunity. So interestingly enough, during COVID everyone's talked about food and medicine. And I'm married to a world right no heart surgeon and in February now upcoming as heart health months, so everyone was constantly interested in how to cook at home because for the first time people how to cook at home. You couldn't go out to eat, you couldn't get take out. And you know, I'm a working mother too, been though I'm a chef. I'm zooming into wonderful shows like you, and I still have to get dinner on the table. So other beautiful opportunities came about, which is I've become the brand ambassador to Phillips air Fryer and their Home Whole Home Kitchen Appliances Network, where I'm creating recipes for them and for the busy mom who's working or staying at home or doing remote learning. It's been trying, but through that many opportunities have occurred. So this has been a very exciting new partnership that I have with Phillips Hotel. You're telling me that you're the brand a browsador for Phillips for us. Yes, do you know? I'm so man that you I bought one in September from my house and didn't know what did you become the brand ambassador? It just happened. So I'm gonna, well, you know what, I'm gonna have to send you there other products? What do you have an air fryer? Absolutely absolutely, having a fun air friar is the best. And you know, for me, it's very important how you attach yourself to brim. I just started using the Phillips air Friyar at home and it came authentically um, and I became obsessed with the product. And yes, so I'm going to create a whole website of content and they will be giveaways and recipe. You're gonna be part of my next competition. We have a postamator. Maybe I'll send you one if you're a good boy. I'm you know the posta that's a little work, though, I would just tell you, I'm I'm telling you, no work, No put it in the pasta. You kidding me? Because the posta can. I got the little thing you put on in front of the d I got that. I got the kitchen aid to make the work. Oh my god, I'm if that's why, that's why I throw my hands up. I am not doing that. But if you tell me that I could do something with pasta because I love pasta and it's easy, you got it. You got me. That's when in five minutes, I'm telling you, and then I want you to make a recipe for me and posted on social media. You know I do that. That's that's easy. Now. Now now that I know that you part of Phillips, I gotta show people take photos of me and the photo of you. This is MC girl, This is my girl right here, Phillips, because I got the Africa, because I bought a building and I got another a friar here and my new building I bought in Atlanta, and I'm gonna have to send you another one. Then they're the best. They're the best, and so so. Now now, but let's talk about this pasta maker, because like I said, I got all the little adapters from my kitchen aid, I swear to you, don't tell her I do not use it. I used it one time in Chicago when I bought it in that's what I bought. I got wise I saw it, I went to I said, I'm not gonna do this ever again. So well, that's the whole thing about Phillips, and I am attracted to them, and I'm not just the brand ambassador. I'm creating tutorials because you know today everyone when they get whatever equipment you get, it's no use unless you take it out of the box. Yes, and so I'm gonna have video tutorials to make it easy. But I'm telling you, you put flour, water and egg, you jump it in and pasta shoots out in five minutes. It's that easy. And so I'm gonna have a lot of videos, a lot of tutorials. It's very exciting stuff, very exciting just between me. I'm just telling you, I'm announcing something to you because a lot of a lot of people don't know there's done to tell them I am. I'm gonna launch my own Rochan's Kitchen. It's gonna be a local in the Georgia area by two million householders. And I love it. At the top of the show, I always either bake something or cook something at the top of my show. In a launch of April, I want to do if you say it's that easy, If you say it's that easy, I want to do it on you on my show. That's the first recipe I want to do on my show if you say it. Because because I'm telling you is that if he was on the show, I would get I would bring this box and said it right on this death right here and show you. I've only opened his box one time, and when I used it, I put it right back in his box. That's the last time I've ever attempted to make pasta ever. Yes, well, and you know what the good thing about this, you know during COVID. Like I said, my husband Dr Alan Stewart, he's a world renowned heart surgeon, and we have to I love food, so I'm not going to be puritanical here, but we have to be healthy and I love pasta. With this pasta maker, you can make keto pasta. You can make high protein pasta, so you don't even have to feel as guilty. And obviously the air friar too, you're cooking with less fat. So I'm trying to come up with a lot of recipes that still are delicious, but you know, are nicer on your waistline because as you know, I had twins a few years ago and and I was a little bit older, so you know, getting the weight off took a while. And health and health and being an entrepreneur and how you feel is very very important for that equation too. So okay, now let's talk about Now you still have your lifestyle brand in front Gate, I do. I have a lot of products there and I'm also the brand ambassador for Galbani Professional, which is the number one cheese of Italy. And that happened because I did a blind tasting for cheese at my restaurant Pro BA and so I do wonderful work with them and the restaurant industry, and I really promote because they are to me, the best cheese in the industry. And I create a lot of delicious recipes there too. And do you like dessert? I'm so, what's your weakness dessert? Let me take some, don't tell you. Here's the funny thing about it. Front Gates my favorite store. Okay. All my outdoor furniture in my home in Houston and in uh Atlanta is front Gate, and so I'm to figure that's the highest quality. If I turned my camera, you could see my outside to the best customer service, the little the little brandy. Um. Yeah, I can't wait to start working with them again and creating a new collection. Okay, cool, because you gotta tell me, because I do want to buy some more things because I gotta outdoor a fireplas area that I want to I want to upgrade the furniture there. So let me know what. Because I do buy from front Gate. That's why it's so funny. I bought a bought Phillips. Didn't know you was part of that brand. By all my outdoor furniture from front Gate didn't know you had an entertaining collection and at front gates and so in our Garbani professional chief, I love that cheese. So I'm trying to figure out. I'm gonna send you some cheese. I'm trying to figure out. And I'm just gonna let you know this. This is the funny point, because I don't want to like I don't try to blow smoking people. I don't try to act like I do these things. This is my life, you know. And the fact that you're doing all these things and I'm a fan, our purchaser of all these products is a testament that even living the right life, I'm heading in the right direction. We're gonna bump heads somewhere, you know what. Maybe come visit you and Georgia sometime when all this craziness ends and we'll cook together. That's you in my office. When I bought the building, it has a full kitchen in it, it has an oven, It had my staff. Like, for instance, I have some people coming in from another office. We're gonna cook some red beans and rice and as a corn bread background in your cheese, I'm an bake some chicken. I'm gonna have to cheesese cakes. So you asked the question. I gotta answer because everybody knows I'm a dessert nut. I have eighty recipes I have on the app. So what desserts were you talking about this? I'll pay you. What dessert are you trying? What kind of desserts are you trying to get into my You a chocolate person or like, tell me, okay, my wife loves chocolate. She loves chocolate, so so okay, So for Valentine's Day, I'm gonna send you my recipe. It literally takes seven minutes for the molden chocolate lava cake and the air fryer. It comes out perfectly in the Philip's air fry. I just made it. I'm gonna post it on my social media site, Donna Teller are Pie. You gotta follow me on Instagram and I'm telling you you're gonna have chocolate lava cake and it is so good. So it's all about getting good quality chocolate and in seven minutes you can have chocolate lava cake. You're making me. You're making me happy man. Happy man. Happy man is meaning that all these things I've walked away because it's been so difficult. Now you're telling me we shall come back to the dog side. Come back over here, come back overa, come over here to the d A. D A got something for you. We got some easy pasta. We've got some easy chocolate to search for you to make. I'm a post it on my social media tell the world. Indeed, you know, I think, uh, I knew. It's so good to finally see you because I knew when I spoke to you that you were a food person, that you love food. It's just the way you speak about you know. I had interviewed a lot. You can tell that the hosts that are into food and that are not into food. I think people that are into food have an extra passion for life, which is the key to success with anything. It shows. It's authentic, just like your show. You love what you do. And I thank you for being a guest again today because you just are, you know, infectious the way you interview. So I really thank you and I and I'm so glad that you went to Proba and you loved the food. And I am a meat poke leon. I'm very proud of it, very proud of it. I want meat ball madness two years in a row, and now I'm coming up with some meat all air fryer recipes to cut on the fat so we can save room for a little dessert so that we can stay hard healthy. So it's good. It's good. Life is you know what. It's been a trying year, but it's true, which does not kill you makes you stronger. And I think I've come out of COVID stronger with exciting new opportunities that would have never come up before with Phillips and my continuing relationship with Galbani, and there are some pizza restaurants in the future expanding. I'm just I'm just waiting a little bit right now until this all calms down with the vaccines here. So hopefully my husband seems to think that by the fall things should normalize again. Well I hope so. Well, I want to stay. First of all, you're amazing and for me for and to call you the meatball Queen, and you're beautiful that you know, it really a struggle. I'm just going to the struggle. But you you wanted twice, you deserve that title. Secondly, I'm I'll tell you pr people to contact me. I'm gonna send you a photo of my kitchen so you can see because what I want you to understand, d A, is that I'm the real deal. When I come to food, I will I get up at four o'clock. I probably get him off for his six must have come in. They have muffins, wig known, they have some corn bread. I've done taco salads for them. I've done barbecue settings for them. I enjoy That's the part that relaxes me. I don't smoke, I don't drink, and that this is negative. I just enjoyed life. And that's part of the you know, God gave me the gift and I can do with things and I can share. And so I'm just telling you is that I'm gonna send you my address, and uh, let you know you better. I'm gonna send you lots of Phillips stuff, and we're gonna start cooking together. And hopefully you'll see all the exciting things that I'm doing with Phillips this year. We really are are. It's it's an exciting relationship that we started. And you know what's interesting. The number one Google search that occurred with food when COVID happened was not what recipe, but how to cook? So I'm hoping and I think you're the same way that there is a return to cooking because it's a way to show joy and love. You know, I'm first generation from Italian immigrants that sound My mother, God rest her soul, showed her love to me every day. And I don't know if you know this really quick. I used to be a lawyer for half to half a minute, but I left to follow my passion for food because I love to feed people and I love to bring people together, and I think at the end, that's what it's all about. And when you follow your passion, success follows. Well. You know, I remember that I've read that we talked about it for the first time when you left your career as a lawyer, I think the age of twenty seven, I believe. Yeah, I remember, and I always because that's important, because it was important for me because a lot of people don't follow their dreams because they fear they areknown. And I see the journey that you've been part of, and I'm really the reason I like my show is that, you know, I've watched my relationships grow and I consider you one of those great relationships. And to see that you were a couple of unknown people you came on mar show, respected what I was trying to do, and I promoted your brand. And to see now that you've being such a strong entrepreneur. And the funny part about it is that I'm already purchasing. I participating at front Gate, and I bought the Phillips already and got Banni. And you're gonna You're gonna send me a recipe or some device on how I can be five many uh pasta, which is crazy, and this recipe on how to do chocolate in seven minutes. I'm gonna tell you you have no have no fear Rashard McDonald. The thing I want to do first is please tell your PR person to email me. I won't let you see that Rashan is very serious about this kitchen. I will send you a photo of my kitchen in my office, in my office, and you go, He's the truth, Because when you talk to me, I want you to know you're talking to the truth, not a hype man, not a man trying to make Dinna, trying to make a fie get inside. I'm the real deal. I love dessert, I love food. I like it's more. People come on my show. Who has ship? Did any talk show in the country. I have everybody on my show. I have and on my show. I rock on my show. I have Samuel s on my show. I was talking to show so this earlier on my show. Area Cheff comes on my show because they know I love food. I have a passion to support the branches. You guys career. I know y'all got victimized by COVID and eighteen. I'm gonna help drag y'all out of that and let y'all know that your boy is there with you. More importantly, I'm a fan. You look fantastic, meatball queen, and don't stop. Thank you so much, Tri Sean, thank you. Yeah. So I Mikey, people are listening in and there's gonna you send me that photo today, I'm gonna send to you all these beautiful products from Phillips and we're gonna get cooking. I say, thank you, I appreciate you. We will be right back with more money making conversations with your host Roshan McDonald. Sticky notes, email alerts a string around your finger. They're just not big enough. So here's a big reminder from the California Lottery tomorrow's making millions. Jack parties three vermillion play now. Please play responsibly. Must be eighteen years older to purchase player by Adoption of teams from foster care is a topic not enough people know about, and we're here to change that. I'm April Dinuity, host of the new podcast Navigating Adoption, presented by adopt us Kids. Each episode brings you compelling, real life adoption stories told by the families that lived them, with commentary from experts. Visit adopt us Kids dot org slash podcast or subscribe to Navigating Adoption presented by adopt Us Kids, brought to you by the U. S Department of Health, that Human Services Administration for Children and Families, and the Act Council. Look to your children's eyes to see the true magic of a forest. It's a storybook world for them. You look and see a tree. They see the wrinkled face of a wizard with arms outstretched to the sky. They see treasure and pebbles, They see a windy path that could lead to adventure, and they see you. They're fearless. Guide through this fascinating world. Find a forest near you and start exploring at Disco for the Forest dot orgon brought to you by the United States Forest Service and the Council. Hi and ra Sean McDonald host the Money Making Conversations. The Cafe Marca Swagg Award is a celebration of black men who are making a difference in our community by empowering others to reach their life goals from civic leaders, businessmen, activists, celebrities and everyday days. The Cafe Marca Swagger Award win this week is James Lopez. He is the president of Willpacker Production. As a producer, his films like Girls, Trip, Night School, Think Like a Man, The Perfect Guy, and many more have grossed more than eight hundred million dollars at the box office today. Box office numbers are great if you have a piece of ownership. When you got brothers like Tyler who owned the films, and that's what we got to strive as people to work towards. There's the ownership. The Cafe Marca Swagg Award represents men that have strength, their vision as assert and they are genuine and their spirit. Welcome back to Money Making Conversations with your host Son McDonald. It is important to understand that everybody travels a different path to success. That's because your brand is different the challenges you're facing, your life will be different. So stop reading other people's success stories and really start writing your own. Now. You can be motivated by their success because their stories can offer direction and also give you an opportunity to see how they were successful at what they did. But it's about what you're trying to do with your life, how you plan it out, and what commit commitments that you make to your efforts. That's why I bring guests on my show. Just like my next guest, who is Tommy Duncan. He started his first healthcare company at twenty six years of age, then he sold it. Then he started Trusted Health Plan and Medicaid managed care company that ensued fifty thousand people between DC and Detroit. Then he sold that in January of the Blue Cross Blue Shield. A week later, he started jet Doc. Jet Doctor is a telehealth platform provided an immediate virtual urgent care visits plus access to the prescriptions and pharmacist across the country for the twenty dollars per visit or ten dollars per month. Please working the money making conversations. He's ever selling and he's ever moving. My man, Tommy Duncan, Hey, Tommy, Tommy first of all at a young age, let's let's talk about your dude, your college background. Is that college in your past history? Or you a guy who just has a strong entrepreneur spirit. No, we don't want to FAMU Okay, fam mute, HPC. You know I knew that, but I want you to have a little bit more energy be having man because you know you say, fam mute, you got the bunch of basing all the way, okay, because you kind of got underrated if HBCU second place to Howard, right, but fam is the truth. We're gonna tell you something. You made me a lot of successful attorneys, right, doctors right, Howard right in these other HBCUs, which I'm a big supporter of, leve them right. But when you find entrepreneurs that's successful in business fan news where they come from, well I can't argue with that. You know, I think that when you look at what has happened this year with their COVID and eighteen somehow people have discovered I say people, the general market, the general public, the the donors have found HBCUs. Why do you think it's popped out like this? Why do you think they recognition for HBCUs being a critically acclaimed academic institution for African Americans or people of color. You know, I'll be over with you man. You know, in my travels and business, um, a lot of people go to majority schools and define success. But in my experience, some of the most successful people with HBCUs, Right, that's just I'm talking about those that are high up in corporate America that I come in contact with, or those of entrepreneurs, they went to HBCU. And I talk a lot about FAM because that's where I went with Howard Moore, house Held, and I mean, you name them. A lot of successful people come out of HBCUs, and I think a lot of it is because I just think there's a competitiveness amongst our people that in the HBCU environment just creates very successful, driven, gritty entrepreneurs and business people. And I think it also helps when you look at the fact that Kama Harris, you know uh has been Vice President elect, is from HBCU Hollywood. I come from Houston, Texas, so I'm surrounded by HBCU schools, you know, pre View and m Texas, Southern Gramlar and Southern you know, going down the line, Dillard go down go up to Jackson State is twelve HBCUs in the state of Alabama, which has the most hbc used in North Carolina. I think that's the second most at ten, but they're they're based in the southeast part of the tree. What what invited you to come to an HBCU. What what attracted you? I should say, to go to an HBCU. So I went to a majority of white high school, and I kept trying to persuade my mother to let me go to the schools in the city, which where all my friends went and my girlfriend's, but my mother won't let me do it. So FAMU In, which is a year before I graduated high school, had one the Prince Review top ten business schools in the country, and the president at the time was coming to the Midwestern cities Detroit, Chicago and really marketing Family as a place for us for students to go to college. I found out about it, went to visit for homecoming. You know how that goes. You know I went for homecoming once and don't want to go back home. How was it homecoming? Now home home coming and a black school is come it okay? Come on high bus? Tell us tell us about tell us about a familyes his first, of all, family has always been known for marching band. Family has always been known for a successful football program. Okay, and now to my understanding, they're going to the Squack. They transferring their football program to the Squack, which is even more incredible because you've got Dion Sanders down there in the Swacks with Jackson State. So I look at the Squack has becoming like a sec version of HPC for the HBCU, a powerhouse where the top athletes are gonna come and it's gonna put them on the map. So that's why that's what Family is about to get into. But from but where I hear you talk from Jump ro Sean, it's about the academics. It's about that's what attracted to YouTube. I went to Homecoming. But but the top business school in the eighty seven be recognized that it's really what really caught your eye, caught the eye of your mom. That's right. It was the School of Business and Industry, which has been acclaimed as being one of the best business schools UH in the country. Agnostic to hbc U or otherwise deemed mildly created the program, and it just so happens that the year she retired as year I graduated two thousand and three. Right, um. A lot of success of people came out of that program and still do. It's a school of business and industry. The program was so strong that every week we would have a CEO from a fort five of the company come and spend a full day with and I think that experience and there is this program called professional development, which is all around the soft skills of leadership and confidence in entrepreneurship because you can be an entrepreneur in corporate America, right right. You don't have to own your business be an entrepreneur, but all of those tenants and in skill sets we learned through that program and and I think more than anything, it gave us confidence to be leaders and to speak our mind and to uh and have confidency to growing something. You know the time you said something, cause I always tell us to people always tell this about being entrepreneurs, I said, I said, A forty our week jaw really is the best training to be an entrepreneur because you can't accomplish the responsibilities of a forty all week job, arriving at work on time, meeting your deadlines, being able to be accountable for the responsibility to given to you and also walk working outside of that for the our window, then you won't be an entrepreneur. That's basically what you're saying when you said, hey, you could be an entrepreneur working a ford our weak jaw, because the same responsibilities are built there if you wanted to come an entrepreneur, and I am I defining that correctly. That's exactly right, exactly right. You know, it's funny. I saw the OUs versary young I was actually had fami. I started like a little Friday sailor shop and at one point I was in the UH in the mall and I got into the airport. So I was twenty two years old. I had a little sandwich shop and the airport. Um. So that's not easy, Tommy, that's not easy. Now, No, it's not easy. It's not easy at all. But I did that. And if I said, this entrepreneurial kind of spirit if you want to call it that, and my parents were entrepreneurs, so I had that in my in my blood. But one of the best de cities I made as I started another a small healthcare company that I sold, one that you referenced earlier starting seven. But the company I sold to decided to buy my company for stock options and theirs, and so essentially became a job offer with equity associated. And that was my training ground. And when I went to work for them, was a corporate corporate company end up on the New York Stock Exchange UM called a Creative Health out of Chicago. I learned how to operate at the highest level of wills said in corporate America at that moment in time. And it was from that training that I took that to my most latest company that I just sold to go across from shield on how to operate at the highest motels you know what meant, how to be analytical, how to in the in the world of big data, how to identify the data message that actually move the needle, and then how to create operational rigor around it to make sure we continue to improve our numbers across the board. And so when I sold my last company of trusted in our industry, the average medicaid maniacare company did one percent profit. Mind I was doing temperacent profit marnd smoking for but I was smoking because of the skills I learned work from corporate America. So as you talk about the soft skills are showing up at word, you know, coming to early, staying laid and all that kind of stuff critically important, but then learning how to operate at the highest level, because when you operate high you have higher performance and you should have higher profitability. And that's how you create founder. And that's really what you're saying right now. You know, It's just the thing that I'm talking to you, Tommy, is like, first of all, where did this start? Because, like you said, it's in your DNA because you're both of your parents with entrepreneur But when did it? When did that DNA get into your system? You know what I'm saying, When you went, Wow, I can be I can be a self made man. I can go out there and do what they do. Is this It's important because they were like mentors to you. They were parents, but they also were like mentors to you as well. Correct. Yeah, I think, um, I think you aspired to what you're exposed to. And in my household and my parents friends, there was a lot of entrepreneurship, So I always expected to own my own business. A matter of fact, when I was in I'm like the average entrepreneur. Right when I was in middle school, I had a psychic hot line. This is remember back when when you were actually a magazine and you have all little ads in the back of the magazine, right like remember Cleo called me. Now I had one. I was in eighth grade, you know, and so I had that. I went to family. I had ice cream truck because to my surprise, you go to Florida and there weren't many ice cream trucks, right, So I had an ice cream truck, and so I thought that kind of thing sold on, Hold on, hold on the topic the ice cream trull. You know that that's the truck to come in the neighborhood, you know, stops traffic with kids. Now, yes, And I talked about how you by you you came about getting the ice cream truck, and what would the whole concept been making money? Because like, since all my profit margin with you, because I understand that's what happened. So I come to Florida and at many ice ice cream trucks, which when you're from Detroit and it snows nine months out the year, you can't understand how place that's always hot doesn't have ice cream trucks. So but I was a freshman in college, so I converted I had a truck. I converted that to an ice cream truck, and I would play masterpiece ice cream. Man. It's a little more little, a little more adult ice cream truck than the average one kids, right, right, right, But then I learned you gotta have you know that hot I used to keep the cold and myself was melting and become a disaster of a business. Right, So how did we get to healthcare? So we were ice cream the little little little a little sandwich shop in the airports, the airport, the healthcare. What shifted you to that? That that uh, that angle of business because my parents were in healthcare and all those other businesses are felt reasonable, right, so there were disasters. But I grew up in healthcare and I just had conference. I don't know, you know, I came home to help us. So I graduated from Family two thousand three with my NBA, and I thought I was gonna come home and take my family's business to the next level. And instead I came home and literally everything was on fire. Once in a year, everything went in the bankruptcy. So you know, the business went out of business, the home I grew up and with the foreclosure, you know, everything is repossessed. It was like a disaster of of a story. Um, which I think it's hard for most black entrepreneurs and people is we're always starting over. And I think we're starting over because there's a lack of true business guidance and mentorship. Because even my parents who that success of business through the nineties lost everything by the early two thousand's. And but because I grew up in entrepreneurship, you know, and everything went under, I thought I had a confect like gonna start my own company and kind of you know, rebuild the family. Uh business. It didn't go exactly like that, but it ended up getting there through its own path. Win. Now did you did your parents participate and uh and structuring and other business and on the board of your business? How are they How are they tied to enny of your business dealers today? You know it's interesting, man. So my mother and stepfather were together through the nineties, and uh, he was always an entrepreneur who got my mother an entrepreneurship. She was a master in public health, so she just want to give people access to healthcare, but didn't really have a business experience, so that relationship married them too together because he didn't finish high school, you know, or certainly didn't go to college, but he had the entrepreneurial get up and go. My mother's um education and academically as a person was a good marriage. Um. But when they so what happened in two thousand and four, so you have to got out of school and everything completely went into the ground. I was in the kitchen of the house and winter foreclosure, and I was hugging my mother and stepfather, and I said, I'm gonna pull us through this, and my stepfather kind of went his own direction. You know, I think he got real hot in the kitchen. He decided to uh to leave, kind of advocated the throne, if you will. Uh. So, my mother and I when I started mind and she helped me out, and then this business is sold in DC, she was around to help me do it. So she's always been my secret weather, right right. You know it's really because we're all talked about support, because somebody has to support you, and that somebody has to be there because you know, you can't be the smartest person in the room. We know that, but you also have to have somebody that's smarter than you that you can trust and also have been there, done that type of personality, and somebody that you know can you know, I guess you can respond to this time may because being a leader. The worst part about being a leader you can't show weakness. And then you have to pick and choose who you show weakness too, because your weakness to the to the wrong people, then they can take it as a sign of failure or a sign of doubts or lack of confidence. So what was that for you as a leader? A guy who's building companies selling companies in a very white world. Health health care is white. Let's teach real about it, but it also impacts the minority community strongly. And we're gonna get to the jet docum minute, but talk about the support system of being a leader and being able to you know, build your brand, but also being able to have a place to relax and take a deep breath, a place to pause. Yeah, you know, I agree with what you're saying. I think. Uh, when you're on entrepreneurial side of business, you quickly learned the most important thing you have to do is to make payroll. Yes, and so there's always the pressures of making payroll. They come around seem like, uh, you know, too quickly. But you can never show that you're sweating to make payroll because it's you lose that confidence in your people. Then it's like the Titanic. You know, you're not gonna have folks fully committed because they were looking for something that's more stable. Yes, um, but that aside, I think you have to fake until you make it, you know. I think you just gotta keep pushing and keep showing face, keep having that that faith that comes from from within to keep going and had a confidence that you're gonna make it of what you just get up every day and go forward. When you see like this, man I'm in I'm in my third health care company, my tenth business. I've had a thousand and I've had two successful companies in healthcare. One I created, you know, sold it. The company I sold to in publican me a million three when I was thirty years old. Then I started this one from scratch out of nothing, and I just sold it for nine figures UM six and a half years later. And I'm in another company, jet Dot, which is telehealth. Do you see a doctor in his cell phone, twenty bucks for urgent care business virtually and um, you know you have access to pharmacies all across the country eight five off your medications. Every CBS Walk brings war market, you name it. And I'm struggling right now. It's my third one and I thought it's gonna be easy. But I'm back at it, back in the Nicks Weaton every day questioning why am I touring this. I don't have to do it. I got a team depending on me. So you know, I think I did have it in you. And if you really have, then then you'll be doing it. If you really don't, then lady, don't give up the sticks. Right. But you know the thing about it, when one thinks about telehealth, you know, which is it's being able to talk to a doctor. Because we didn't think about that prior to COVID ninteen. COVID ninteen has brought that to Okay, this is the way to go see your doctor now. I know at the end of the year, I had that option. Do you want to talk to your doctor via zoo or do you want to come in? That's all I want to come in. You know, I would not have said that in May. Now now December, I said, I want to come in. I'm a lot more comfortable with the environment. How to take care of yourself going out in public in this new COVID world that we live in. Now, tell her health is jet doctor explained, Everybody is a telehealth platform provided an immediate virtual urgent care visits, plus access to up the prescriptions and pharmacists across the country. Like you said, Walgreen's TVs for either twenty dollars pervision or ten dollars pervision. Now in the minority community, that twenty and that team my man's is priceless, like they said, you know, how did that come about? And who or what celebrities involved? And are you using celebrities or brands to get your product recognition out there? Yeah, So this time last year I was at the closing stages of selling Trusted. But a year before that, I wrote a book on health care policy and three things that could be done to change the trajectory of the cross health care system for this country going forward. And I met with the number one regulator for healthcare in this country and sharing with him my book and the three policies, and he told me that it would take an active legislation to implement the most important because it was enacted into the Afordable Care Act, So that would be impossible or highly improbable. And so but through the research, writing a book, and the fact that as a company we were doing two million dollars in revenue, I paid over one million claims um that the biggest cause of the rising cost of health care and the the bad statistics of the quality of health care is because of lack of convenient access to healthcare. Correct. And that's up and down the range of economic situation. So somebody who's lower income will medicaid all the way up to having concierge medicine for commercial insurance. People wait too late to get diagnosed and to do something about their issue because it's inconvenient to go. You're going to emerge the room. No one wants goes to emerge room. You gotta to get a doctor. Woman takes to three weeks um. The health consystem is just a pain in the backside. But to telehealth creates creates a lot more convenient access for me. So I decided, Okay, I'm gonna make it super convenient. But then to get people to do it, have to make it affordable, so I'm gonna do it as cheap as possible. So the average tell health visit now is eighty bucks to visit. Ours is twenty bucks a visit. If you want to do a monthly you can pay ten bucks a month for your entire family in your household have access to telehealth. Those are doctor visits twenty seven and the pharmacy benefits included where you get a five shop to cost of medication. That's less ten bucks a month. So my vision is make it create admits access because it makes it easier through using your cell phone you see doctor one twos, and then to make it super affordable by making it, you know, lesson ten bucks a month or twenty bucks a visit. And when I started to do this, it's a pre COVID, right, And at that moment in time, the projection was at two thousand twenty would have eight hundred thousand telehealth visits and less than four percent of people knew what it was us. A month later, COVID hit in March, and now it's the highest thing in healthcare technology. And instead of eight hundred thousand, tell Health business in two thousand twenty and there have been over one billion in two thousand twenty, so the space has gotten from when I started it was a white space needing no one's doing it. I can kind of just you know, paint on the canvas to being super competitive and me having to figure out and this incredibly competitive market, now how do I stand out? How do I get eyeballs and attention to something? And the celebrity um factor came to play. We launched in Florida and on the celebrity side, particularly from our community. Rick Ross stands out of someone who's from Miami represents Florida in a major way, so reached out to his camp. He researched me to figure out who was behind it um Research Telehealth, and decided he actually want to be a part of it as a real partner. And so he and I became partners about six weeks ago and he's been a wonderful partner ever since. So Rick Ross is involved. We also last week brought aboard Dr Jackie from Mary to Medicine, which is a show on Bravo Positions. So she's now on the team at Jet Doctor and we're just putting together momentum to get the word out now here's a great thing the doctor visits that you're saying there twenty dollars and ten dollars or that's tied to the pharmacist. There's twenty bucks um per visit or if you pay ten bucks a month or on limiting. Okay, cool now, because I'm just I recently went to Emory and I have Humana, and my doctor visit was like forty dollars and and so I'm just letting everybody know an example of and believe me, I don't play ten dollars per month for humanity. Okay, that's gonna be real about that, Okay. And so so so I'm playing at forty dollars on top of what I paid Humana, all right, So with the rate that I'm paying, I should be getting it for free and so and so you're saying ten dollars promot for ts perfessive. That right? My closest statement to you and jet Doc and Tommy. How can ru Sean mccow my platform money making conversations? I have named two thousand subscribers to my fan club list, I got all the roughly a million social media followers. You know, how could I? How would you come to me. I'm not trying to be a partner in your brand. I developed this platform to be able to take entrepreneurs like you and make you you're the stars, and but also get your platform. You say, hey man, can you post this phone me? Can you post this from me? Because I want to be an asset to you, because that's why I believe that Black entrepreneurship is the key to this country going to the next level. And we also need to understand that we have value. Sometimes we are under value because they want to show the negative time side of being an African American mail or email and so that's why promote HBC used the way I've promote with HBCUs. So how can with jet document a strong teller help is a very competitive field. It wasn't competitive COVID hit Now everybody wants to use it. So now how do you slice that line? How can money making Conversation help you? Well, what I want to do is we'll offer we'll create a promo code for money Making Conversations UM where everyone who puts in your promo code, they'll get their first vision for free. Okay, wait, okay, this we didn't even about that. I would just be honest you I'm not I'm not trying to look for a discount because you're trying to build a brain. I'm just saying, you know, I appreciate that rushing about. I'm also saying I want people to try it right, you know. And and the thing for me is, uh, just been open with you. My last exit we did well, yes, And so I'm not in a rush to make money. I am self financing it, which you know get uncomfortable with times. But I'm not in the rush. What I wanna do is get our people in the healthcare faster. And the way to do it is make it super convenient and super affordable. So I just when people try and and I don't care what it costs, you know. Um, I like people just trying to get used to it because, like my eyes, she passed away last year. Last year is a real situation. I got, man, give you a thousand of these, but this one you're you know, you have empathy for it. So very sophisticated woman in attorney for forty years. Um uh, you know ran every day five miles a day. You just catch a running around upon the park in Detroit. Super successful, stylish fashion East, the best conversations, you know, wine kind of store, just an amazing woman. And so she felt a pain in her back and she thought from running, so she ignoredered for a few weeks. Then after a few weeks she decided maybe she just needed a massage, you know, So she got a massage, and then a few weeks later it still didn't go away. So she finally caught her doctor, and then her doctor said, maybe just taking the rest, don't run, or do you know all your your robots take off. A couple of weeks, she did that, and the pain was still there. So she finally decided to go to the emergency room and come to find out, after imaging was done, she was like a stage four and then she died five months later, and it was it was blessed to live five months. So what things have been different if she had went to doctor the first time? Probably now when she went to the doctor instead of just doing them assize, if she could just do a quick tell health visit, just to talk to a doctor, probably and the doctor may have referred her to go see go to emergency room, gonna go get some imaging done, and it would have been more convenient to then you know you gotta go wait two weeks, get in front of a doctor, going a way to room, parked the car, you know, all the inconvenience of it versus just making easy and so well, I wanna tell you this, Tommy. I'm a cancer survivor, Thyrod cancer survivor, and I survived it by going to a doctor and uh and getting the blood test. And so I know what what you're saying is truth, you know. And it was funny because my the doctor I do my annual visit with, he missed it. And in December, my dentists missed it because Thyrod's up here and so and so my blood the person I went to through my blood example, she said, can I just touch around your your your throat area? And she said, could I do a biopsy? And that's why if I did. If she didn't do that, I would have went another year. And so no telling what that year. That's what you're saying right there. That year, I might not be on the phone right I might not be doing this interview right now because cancer would have I've been ravaging my system for an additional ten months and I may have, like you said, uh, my neck is sore, maybe from lifting weights or maybe I've just slept with a crook in my neck. That's why it's important to get these uh, these these opportunities. That's why I wanted to get you on the show to talk about jet Doc. I know that black people have cell phones, and black people need to understand the value of cell phones is not just making phone calls, taking pictures and texting, is financial literacy comes out of their phone. And now healthcare can come out of the phone by the form of the jet dot and we need to understand that. And so my, my, my, My commitment to you and jet Doc is that I want to help promote it on my social media. I want to feature you on my Motivational Mondays, talk about what you're doing as a brand and your commitment to lower healthcare and Twitter dollars per visit ten dollars per month through jet doc and it's all about you, my man, your HBCU grad. I'm proud to bring on this show and talk to and your commitment to just change your lives. Like I said, this is self financially self sponsor financially by you. But we don't turn that around, so it could all be good entrepreneurship, healthcare industry, jet doc. Thank you for coming on the show. Tom, thank you brother, thanks for having me, and look forward to being on your show again sometimes oh you well, you believe me right. One thing about me, man, I wanted to bring on the show. I know it's a family show we're putting together, but it's just the first of the year, and one time, I know, think about the first of the year, people tend to listen about their health. They tend to listen about their money because they're putting those resolutions. So I want to use this as an inspiration to say jet doc. Jet doc is a form of a resolution for your health care as a reason, form of resolution for your health care that you should use and sign up for a register. That's my mentality because I'm a marketer and so so ah, they're listening different in January, then they listen to June. Okay, you know what I'm saying. You could ask any lifetime fits that, right, And so so I know that they're having you on the show, getting this air and then we're getting together, putting some stuff on my social media, putting some stuff in my newsletter. H having you back on the show a couple of times a year, different periods, just to let everybody know the progress of jet Doc is still out there. Let's let's build it and let that little that little crowd a few let's start, let's start put creating a scene, a jet Doc scene for you man, and let's keep winning. Brother. Now I want again, I want to take you. Thank you for I know you busy uh down in Florida, Fort Lauderdale. Thank you for coming on the show and finding a place to sit down so we can talk. Hey, I made it happy. It took me a minute, but that ship I'd just stick with it. Thank you. I appreciate you, Tommic, thank you for coming on my name. Thank you. And we're live here outside the Perez family home, just waiting for the and there they go, almost on time. This morning. Mom is coming out the front door strong with a double arm kid carry. Looks like dad has the bags. Daughter is bringing up the rear. Oh but the diaper bag wasn't closed. Diapers and toys are everywhere. Oh but mom has just nailed the perfect car seat buckle for the toddler. And now the eldest daughter, who looks to be about nine or ten has secured herself and the booster seat. Dad zips the bad clothes and are off, but looks like Mom doesn't realize her coffee cup is still on the roof of the car, and there it goes. Oh, that's a shame that mug was a fan favorite. Don't sweat the small stuff, just nail the big stuff, like making sure your kids are buckled correctly in the right seat for their agent's eyes. Learn more n h t s a dot gov slash the Right Seat. Visits dot gov slash the Right Seat, brought to you by NITZA and the AD Council. What grows in the forest trees? Sure no. What else grows in the forest Our imagination, our sense of wonder, and our family bonds grow too, because when we disconnect from this and connect with this, we reconnect with each other. The forest is closer than you think. Find a forest near you and start exploring. I Discover the Forest dot org, brought to you by the United States Forest Service and the AD Council. Look to your children's eyes to see the true match of a forest. It's a storybook world for them. You look and see a tree, they see the rink of face of a wizard with arms outstretched to the sky. They see treasure and pebbles, They see a windy path that could lead to adventure, and they see you. They're fearless. Guide. Is this fascinating world? Find a forest near you and start exploring and discover the forest dot org brought to you by the United States Forest Service and the Council. My next guest is Dante Simpson. He's the co filder and CEO of Eats bat tv, a premium e sports gaming contest agency, content agency and studio seamlessly integrating audience into cultural conversations. Each bat TV is a collaboration made up the world's most recognizable production studios led by Ridley Scott Creative Group and pr G. He He also oversees the rapid growth and the expansion of the organization as well as provide consult consultation to the company's global perspective. His work experience global gaming interests, branding entities, high profile in florences are that's me both on content, technical production and campaign matters. Please work for the money making conversation. Mr East Bad Tv himself, Dote Sampson, Hey Dante, thank you so much. For having me. Wow, that sounded like a lot. Maybe sound a little special there something when you do when you get to Ridley Scott, you kind of slow down right there. You know you gotta slow down we get to Ridley Scott. I'm just gonna let you know that. Now, slow down on Ridley Scott because people need to know your relationships from a production standpoint and also from a creative creative standpoint before we get to really Scott. Tell everybody what East or East Bat is. Sure, um East bat is. Come by with two different businesses. We have a licensed side of business. I want you to think of Getty Images. We license out photos. So if you watch somebody, if you watch Lebron do an amazing dunk, for example for the Lakers, and somebody captures that photo and you see it in Sports Illustrated or on ESPN, that's something that for example Getty or Associated Crestment, right, you do that exact same thing in the video game industry. So we are the only of our type that concentrates on licensed content. On the license side of business, I have the pleasure of heading up TV UM so TV does more than just that transactional business. We are actually the home of the creative. UM, so premium content. I give you an example of what that means and I'll just kind of toss out something for you really quick. Uh. We we recently did the free Fire advertisement UM internationally with Cristiano Ronaldo. Uh. You know, we did the Cyberpunk ad campaign with Keanu Reeves. Some of these things that we consider to be premium assets. UM. We are that space, so not only commercial but content as well, uh, as well as social. So we were partnered with the largest social platform, which is Movers and Shakers. So we tap into multiple verticals, um for the casual gamer as well as for the hardcore gamer, and that is e spat TV. And now now are you talking about the the Kiano Reads commercial that I'm seeing regular running regular on TV right now? That would be it. Absolutely, that's for Cyberpunk seventies seven. Uh. So we we received the call, uh they wanted to tap into our creatives for that campaign, and we were so happy to step in and assist with that. So, yes, I'm every time that commercial comes on. It catches my attention every time every time it comes on. That's why I knew where it is every time it comes on. It captures my attention. It's a great commercial. Thank you so much, thank you. And we always say, and I mean this, this can apply to any culture that you're attached to. The key to successful content, the key to successful commercials is actually tapping into folks who not only research the industries but actually live in them. Um and and that's that's who we are. We we are we're gamers. We we we played the game and we tell the story of So I'm glad to hear that. Thank you so much for well, you know, it's really interesting Dante when you don't want to stay on Kiano read because he's almost like had a career, especially with Matrix, you know, where he's almost played like he's been a video game. You know, he's almost been a person that there's always his career has been transitioning and building time, not a series he has now where he's a he's an assassin that's kind of like bending time and bending reality. And also he's constantly fighting like a video game, you know. So that's why that's what I'm saying is that he was a perfect charge because his brand, I think I have to say it's video game related from a standpoint of his career because if you watch any of his actions, always action packed. And so every time that commercial comes on, I go, I'm thinking it's you know, I'm listening, and it holds me through the entire cycle of the commercial. And even though I know after that I realize that's that commercial, it's still entertaining enough to capture me to the end. So congratulations on that man. Thank thank you so much. And he's really built. I mean, we remember him when he started with Speed Sandra Buck and you know, you kind of follow his career through his Matrix and you know, just the cult following that I had with John Wicks and all of these episode series of of that. You know that that was a cult film as well. Like you said, his career has really transitioned to being the voice of you know, the culture, subculture from that perspective, and like you said, it's it's an ongoing video game. And absolutely, you know, let say, you know all three John Wicks, I've seen all three of them. I don't know how at his age, especially in the third one he's fighting that much because he's actually doing all of the fight scenes, okay, and so and plus he just came out he was also in that last year he was offering that, Uh, in the Toss Story movie, we had a really really engaging character. So you're getting a guy that you know, well, you know, we we we create these relationships. But I don't think of anybody. You know, It's a lot of great people out there. Kevin Hart's out there. You know, you have a Rod Johnson's out there. But he is perfect for what you're doing because he isn't an action figure in that world of incredible you know, action engagement. He is actually to me, he's one of these guys way you can actually take his movie series and make it into a video game. He's that guy. But guy so eachs fat TV is hit a home run with him. Now let's go over to another guy that captured my attention in the intro, Ridley Scot talk to us about that. Yes, absolutely, Um, Ridley is amazing. Um. A lot of folks may know historically who really is, starting in nineteen seventy seven with his film Aliens Um and going straight through films that we love like American Gangster Withnzel Washington and you know, the Martian and and and different things. You know, even going back now to the eighties with Alma Louise and things that he's done. You know, folks can really have a passion to And one of the things that caught my attention is we were building this collective. Was not only the work that he's done that's on the silver screen, that's that really, in my opinion, has him on the mount rushmore of directors in Hotwood. But it's actually the stuff that we don't know. And I'm gonna you know, ask your audience. You know, if you guys are at a computer, you're put up on your phone, please go to Ridley Scott dot com and familiarize with yourself with some of the stuff that he's done. As I spoke to speak to folks from my culture, you know, people of of color like myself, I say, listen, did you know that he was behind Beyonce and you know a lot of the work with black is King. Did you know that he's worked with Berner Boyd? Did you know that he's worked with Childish Gambino? And people are like, oh, absolutely not. I never would imagine. And then they go and they start to see, you know, the work that he's done, you know, supporting Aba dvern A and different people who come from a culture that is like mine that you would not necessarily associate Ridley with. So one of the things that I know that we just came, you know, from talking about Keanu Reeves, I would apply that to Ridley as well. And that's somebody who may have started their their career in a specific place, but it's so multi talented that they are transitional in other spaces that quite frankly, many people aren't aware of UM. And that's something that really caught my attention with him and I I always tell you know, their team. To me, they're the convergence of content, fandom and creativity and and they do all of the above. And when you take a look at what they've done in the live performance space with Taylor Swift, and I could go on and on naming a listers that they've worked with UM that we would never really associate or imagine Ridley Scott from the UK that's done these you know, blockbuster films. UM has actually been a part of that's been supporting our culture for quite some time. So he was just such a natural fit UM as somebody that understood the world with offices around the world, UM and truly speaking to different cultures as a parallel, so nicely with gaming um and obviously gaming being one of the one of what I considered the three universal languages. So you know, you know, like I said, his his career. You know, Glad Aider Who just one of those. It was one of those movies. I'm telling I can if Gladia comes on, I'm watching the end. I don't care, I don't turn down, I don't care where I'm at. I'm gonna watch the end of Glad is that type of work and Aliens to which I consider that that that the as far as sci fi movies for female leads taking the dominant role, Aliens too incredible. So he's always had a history of putting women out front and allowing them to lead and be a dominant figure. You know, so many projects he's done with Denzel Washington, you know, A Man on Fire another movie, So I gotta watch the end of that movie. And so so with with that type of work, are you were you I'm not gonna use this, We'll be honest. Were you intimidated by the process of being in business with somebody like that? How did you take it from h I got it, But then you set back and go, wow, Okay, I gotta step my game up. I gotta make sure all my teas across my eyes. And how did you take that whole positioning with your brand? I'll tell you the beauty of it. And this is what I say to folks all the time. Look to become very strong or a leader or an expert in your space. And if you align properly with the right space, the so may normally intimidate others actually become very supportive, almost as a fan or support of what you do and deep you as an expert in spaces that they may not. And although you may be pitching them to be a part of what you're doing, subconsciously they're actually pitching you to select them to be a part of what you're doing. So there was an interesting dance that went on in the relationship where it was undoubtedly he has a brand to um. You know that that is to be respected, but from his perspective is to be protected. Um. But at the same time he understands the future of where content is going. I say the folks all the time, we may have grown up on Blockbuster, but our kids won't or our grandkids won't. You know, we may have grown up on you know, uh, driving theaters, but you know that went away, um in in a substantial way, although there are some left, and it still went away in a substantial way. Being able to understand the future and aligned with the future was something that he was savvy enough to identify and recognize, and it actually did not make it such a dawning conversation. They really were more so impressed with our knowledge of the space and our ability to identify and stay ahead of the curve. Okay, you know the beauty of having brands come to you name recognition brand. You know, we're talking household names in the industry. It also talent like Travis Scott, you know out of Houston, Texas, explained the relationship with Fortnite and how that plays a major role in your brand each bad TV. Yeah. Absolutely, um. I always feel like we're living through a pandemic. We're living through a time that hopefully, UM as a society, we won't have to live through again. But they always say during these challenging times, opportunities are born and those who find success actually are able to pivot and aligned with those opportunities. So one of the brands that I say, we're actually you know, we we've always heard, you know, stay ready, so you don't have to get ready. One of the brands that that I say, you know, during this time just so happened to be Ready and it was so great how they aligned. Was Uber. If if you were in California, if you were in New York or any any other major cities around the country during the height of the pandemic, you may have noticed that there were no cars on the road. Um, you know, so Uber as a business, I'm sure it took a tremendous hit, but simultaneously you had Uber eats, and and Uber Eats was actually keeping a lot of restaurants in the restaurant industry in business. They had a subset business that was actually able to skyrocket during a pivotal time when their core business may not have been able to. Now with that being sped, you asked me about Travis. We haven't seen tours in twenty money. Um, you know, we'll see what holds for us. But you know, Travis was smart enough to identify, Hey, you know, there is an opportunity for me to perform to my audience and their home their captive. As a captive audience. Let's identify a way to perform to that audience. Fortnite was the great way. There was another group that's done this tremendously and we'll give a shout out the Swiss Beats and UH in Timberland. They've done it amazingly with Versus, especially the selection of talent that they've had in utilizing iTunes and and and and Instagram. We were able to do this with Fortnite. We were able to work that production. We were able to actually be a part of the creation of that content that those who tuned in were able to see. So, you know a lot of parents heard about it because their their kids were addicted to that, you know, to that ten minutes of content that was created. But we were able to optimize UM and we call it an MTM. We were able to optimize them moment that matters and translate that and transition it into another MTM, which is metrics that matter. Million people tuned into that. The news came out a couple of weeks ago at the time of this recording, UM that Travis made twenty million dollars, you know, off of that performance and the purchases within that performance. So if it created a blueprint for folks to identify to to to appreciate the need um and the opportunity within the gaming community. And since then we've seen little Nozekx do the same thing with Roadblocks. Um he got thirty three million views. Uh, so we're starting to see a transition. When Live Nation is is not doing tours, when a e G is not doing tours, that all of a sudden, we've got a new player in the game, and that's the gaming community itself and their platforms because of the audiences that they hold. This is a platform that started with boxing, you know, to pay per view, the old school pay per view, and then you elevated the game. Now we're getting into the entertainers from a from a musical standpoint, understanding how they can do this. And we're not talking about driving the theater numbers you know that was really popular. We're talking about twenty seven and thirty three million. How does one make their money on that? They make it through subscriptions, do they may make it for a purview rate? How was he able to make his money? The money took place in the purchases. So a lot of folks don't understand that within the game, you can purchase what's called skins. So I'll give you an example of a skin purchase. He was selling cactus Jack merch in a virtual space. So if you had a gun and you wanted your gun to be hoo ho ho. Hold, they're not even taking this home. They're not even taking it home. They're not even taking at home. So you're buying a shirt within the virtual space, and it's living on your avatar within the virtual space. Absolutely, and that was the beauty of the relationship and of the relationships between artists and the gaming industry because now there's an opportunity that steps outside of the three sixty relationship with the labels. And you know, that's a whole different conversation that will say for another day of how the labels are monetizing off of folks more than they're monetizing off of themselves. Well, now you've got an opportunity to monetize off of yourself. And that's what this proved. So you you know, again, we we we do the math, right, we do the math around here. Um, if if if Travis would have would have sold out of stadium at forty thou people, and if he would have done a tour of a hundred stops at forty people, he would have only been in front of four million people million in four days. And he's very tired, by the way, he's very tired, and there's light and there's lodging, and he never left, you know, they never left the convenience of homes. So you know, when you're able to look at it from that perspective and what that means to the artist and kind of the bandwidth that it opens for them to do other things. And we've seen what that led to. I mean, who took advantage of that rashon We we ended up seeing that McDonald's took advantage of that during this time. And next thing you knew he had you know, he had a product on the menu on the McDonald's menu that opened up because he was hot during this time. He was relevant during this time and why not capitalized during this time? Wow. So with that being said, we were talking about the urban perspective, cultural perspective. You know, you know uh nas and uh nas X and uh and uh Travis Scott their cultural phenomenons, you know, they carry us Shorty Mark, Now you have a based in Atlanta, Jordy called Community X and the sports league that's UH geared towards HBCUs and also people of color. How did that relationship come about? I want and and and and I don't know the details of that entire relationship, but I'd like to talk about the top line of that relationship. First, I want to send my greatest support out to Chris p and I. I always like to any time I'm having a conversation about gaming and the sports mentioned some names along the way, So as we continue to talk, I'll mention some names because I think it's really important for the people of color that have stepped into this space where there's there's only very few, UM, you know, just to kind of acknowledge them as as I have an opportunity to talk about what we're doing. But I think that it's it's beautiful what Community X is doing UM with the HBCUs, and most importantly UM that they were able to tag in a brand like Twitch to support what they're doing UH, creating tournament opportunities, creating spot scholarship opportunities for students, creating financial beneficial opportunities for students, and also not just stopping there, but working with HBC used to build out their e sports program. So I often say, you know, and I use Little Cross as an example. One of the greatest college with lacrosse players is Jim Brown. And people don't know that. He obviously went on and became one of the greatest running backs in NFL history, but he was one of the greatest lacrosse players at the University of Syracuse. And oddly enough, you know, we don't have a lot of folks who play lacrosse, and a lot of that is because of just the economics of playing it. That goes along with hockey and that goes along with other sports. Just the economics. There is an economic factor around gaming. You've got to have high speed modems or else you're gonna be slow and delayed in in the game. You've got to have the equipment and so on and so forth. There are, you know, obstacles that exist. And to know that Twitch is willing to step in support our you know, you know, you know, kids of the future, young men and women of the future, is just a beautiful thing. And that's truly a commitment that I appreciate. So I always give a shout out to Community X and what they're doing. UM and what they're building. This is a long term. This isn't a one year deal, So this is a long term relationship that they formed here, and I definitely applaud what they're doing. Well. Your background is music, fashion, sports, How does that shape itself into what you're doing TV. Absolutely, I think that i've I've I've tapped into UM those elements of and I always I always use the word culture right UM and and I think i've I've learned from each one of them the identification of people, process and performance UM. And I think that those things are are what's tapped in. I mean, I was a part of the Tom Ford era of Gucci. That's a legendary era. UM. I was a part of, you know, the moment that Sony b MG overtook Universal as the number one UM music house in business like, those were legendary moments. And as a business development guy and and and and and a leader with both organizations, it was great to be a part of building something UM. And that is the part of this moment that's so intriguing, is that we're building things that don't exist. And I always say to folks, look for the white space of opportunity at ease something that doesn't exist or something that you believe that you can do better, but don't only identify it, and don't only make a plan, but truly make those goals and outperform your own goals. And if you're able to do that, then there is an endless opportunity for you in those spaces. And this was just a natural progression for me from music from fashion. You might start to see and not start to see this has already happening. Gucci has tied in with gaming, Louis Batton is tied in with gaming, Butlinciaga has tied in with gaming. You're seeing fashion come in from a merchandise perspective and they're tapping in. You're seeing music come in and they're tapping in. So these opportunities are less And I just feel like my background, the convergence of everything that I've done, um is actually taking place right now in the gaming space. Well right, well, right now. It's incredible. And uh you articulate the whole subject matter strongly. Uh so, what what so with that being saying the future of what you're trying to do with the goals, you know, because of the fact that my mind is flying you know when you when we're throughout those numbers and we're about to come out of COVID and one there's a there's all parts. What's the new model? What is the new model? You know, who knows Taylor Swift might be knocking on your door because of the fact that this seems so natural to what what these artists who have who understand their brands. These are brand centric people and that's what that that's what you're talking about. People who have are following and understand them and engage with their opportunities to be like that. Do you seek out the talent or the talent seeks you out? I think it's a combination of both. So I think that we do have our eye on certain folks. But the future of what we're doing right now, and I always like to use basketball is the example. Think of the different eras of the NBA. So think of the colorful basketball era is what I call it, that the dr J era, So think of the dr J era, and then there was the rivalry era. I'd like to say that that's magic first bird um and then you throw in the pistons in there as well, and then you have what's the current era, and that's the Michael Jordan Era. The reason that I call it the Michael Jordan era is because he was the first to become his own ecosystem, his own conglomerate. He was his own brand, and that brand transcended North America and became a global brand. That's where we are today with the sports. Part of that is how do you not how do you continue to engage the hardcore gamer but also engaged with the casual gamer um. And that's what our role is going to be in the community. So think of if you are an HBO fan and you watch Hard Knocks UM with you know, the New Our Giants or with the Atlanta Falcons on HBO and how they storytelling. You see what Brian Gumble does on HBO with Real Sport. So you watch Inside the NFL on Showtime. These are shows that actually are just shoulder programming that tell this story to create a higher engagement. Um, Floyd Mayweather did it great with seven series. I love this series. I love those cities outstanding, those I love those many I really missed. Those are really compelling, man, those are really good storytelling. Yes, absolutely, and that's that's the future of this How do you get the casual fan to become a fan of a specific team, a specific organization, a title, or a gamer. And that's what we're doing here, is we're actually, you know, telling the story for the casual while also telling the untold stories for the hardcore gamer. And that's the future of what we're going to be bringing here, Dante. Keep me on your roller decks man, some of aising information, um beautiful stuff that uh that you know you're a hair turner and understand that that's a positive thing to say about somebody who walks in the room and it goes that's a head turner because they want to talk to you, they want to communicate, they want to get inside a visionary. That's where you are, your visionary. Like you said, you know, I always tell people wouldn't luck being at the right place at the right time when those the Guccia thing happened with Tom Ford, that sony me and my thing happened. Now this is happening, all right. I think that's what you do, sir, that's what you do. You're a game changer. Don't change. Okay, Well, thank you, thank you so much. We will be right back with more money making Conversations with your host ras Sean McDonald Hi and ras Sean McDonald the host of Money Making Conversations. The Cafe Marka Swag Award is a celebration of black men who are making a difference in our community by empowering others to reach their life goals from civic leaders, businessmen, activists, celebrities and everyday days. The Cafe Marca Swag Award winner this week is Jeff Clangan. Jeff is an award winning producer and innovator and entertainment A long time business partner of Kevin Hart. He is the president of Pole Black Films, Laugh Out Loud and Heartbeat Digital. Despite Jeff's business schedule, he continues to pay it forward with his summer internship mentor program that he does every year. Okay, I've been doing this for probably the last five years. So I take five students every summer and I put them through kind of like a boot camp and social media. So they they're working on account they have to read books, they got to read articles, they got to do a predication every week, so they they it's actually like a bootcast why they're working and they're getting paid during it. The Cafe Mocha Swag Award represents men who have strength, whose wisdom is assertive, and who are genuine in their spirit. Welcome back to money Making Conversations with your host, Ra Sean McDonald. When I bring guests on my shows about their effort their dreams, some of them start right away, some of them will set back this dream. For these two gentlemen on my call today starting and win the year, my next two guests on the Vore Grievous and Mikale Piles there two HBCU Grass and Fraternity Brothers cafside Fraternity Ink. You know I'm an make a man, but you know I got love for Nat and Level who found it Quickly while attending Clark Atlanta University in Atlanta, Georgia in two ten. The company is a digital platform for wine, beer and spirit delivery that operates out of Miami, Florida, and while and while expanding, they will be in Georgia in early one. Quickly is the first black owned online alcohol marketplace and seeks to make arderent alcohol easy and convenient, while being committed to growing the culture of drinking responsibily. That's always important. Please working with money Making Conversations, the all grievous and Michale Piles Piles that's your name, right, you did, you did, thank you so much so well, you know, grievous. You know I had to work on that name. You know, that was a whole name. So HPCU guys, Atlanta, Georgia and okay, you guys were concerned about liquor delivery, it's talk to me, I thought, well, actually quickly was succeptualized. In eleven it was right. Michael I graduated from Clark Many University, was at a social gathering and everything on fine and well, and the party started to die down because it was no more liquor available. And at the time Michael and myself nobody wanted to make the liquor delivery. And we just thought, what if we had a website that we can go on and have alcohol delivery on every we can call what Theoctor circuit delivered alcohol to us. Again, this is in two thousand eleven, before its times, before uh East Door Dash Atlas. There's a lot of the gality back in two thousand eleven. So thus the party, you know, died down and there was no solution. Fast forward is when it became legal. Party companies like ourselves partner with alcohol store for all sorts of make deliveries, and that's kind of what we started to running. I live out here in Miami. We operate and headquarter in Mighty Beach. We started off as just an acpohol delivery and a team, but as we started to grow, as they started to change and start the partnering with rods Here's company. So now we're a full transparent Alllines is a market place for beer winning spirits. Now you know he did it? All that information up either talking man? Now now somebody coming and talk no cago come out of the back. Whoa man, y'all down? That was all those beautiful women, pau y'all pick the right sitting to kick off this business. Tell micall, tell everybody starting in Miami down there, because when I say beautiful women, you guys both know I am not lying. Listen, listen. You know. The good thing is my eyes are working, so you I can tell you sir, you are not wide whatever. However, just as a cavey, I I am married, you know, so you know I look but don't touch um. Starting in starting the business in Miami was really not only just a blessing for us, but a no brainer business wise. Miami is a multicultural, uh megaplex when it comes to demographics and age groups and people from all different cultures and walks of life. So starting a business in a melting pot like Miami proved to be very, very successful from us, not just from a sales and revenue standpoint, but from a standpoint of business analysis. A large part of what Quickly does is trying to make the world of adult beverages more convenient and accessible for our customers. So being able to work with Hispanic customers and black and brown customers and white customers as well, you know, all coming together in Miami has been a great success for us to get the business up and running and see how our products interacts with people from all different walks of life, and also international as well, because that's the beauty of starting in Miami. You know, you have that Brazilian brace, that Cuban base. You know, it's, like like you said, a melting pot, but also domestically as well as internationally. It's a great spot to go there. Now, you said in the var you were already down there. Yeah, I didn't. Living in my five years now and so to launch it down there. The whole concept of I want to step back for me because I want to go back to twenty level and the HBCU experience, the black fraternity experience, because you know, I remember making Silti fire problem member as your problem members of calf for side and the thing about in you know, HBCUs somehow started getting donations and people corp right corporations start recognizing the need to connect whether diversity. How did that affect you? And I let you start in the vau and definitely, Michael, I wanted to hear your reaction to this as well on hbc US and how it seemed to And it was before we had a vice president elect in Kamala Harris from hard University, so this was this was momentum before her. So talk about in the vault. Yeah, I mean that's the whole beauty of going to HBC For me, it's the relationships that you know now established going to clark Land University and just you know, being a part of cap Alpaca. You know, I met other fraternity brothers across you know, the US, and for us, you know, just being able to expand, expand, you know, our and company, you know as a whole. You know, from hbc US establishment, it's just meant the lock for us. Yeah, you know, um just just to its sound on that as well. Coming from an HBCU background, it really fuels our fire when it comes to starting this business, growing this business, being entrepreneurs and having a platform to really inspire and motivate other folks that look like us, that have similar backgrounds as us. I'm sure you know Sean that you know, the black and brown community in business, especially in the tech world, in the entrepreneurial world, we're majorly underrepresented. And so coming from PARKT Landing University, you know, an HBCU that was founded on the principles of you know, the Christian Church and the ideals of young black men and young Black women having all of the same opportunities as as the as their majority counterparts. You know, it's very important for us to reach back to the ABC community, to the Greek community, to our communities that we grew up in and show them that we can make a way in tech in business, and we've been able to do that. You know, we're extremely proud of the fact that we built quick Lit from the ground up with out any outside or private funding. We're completely self funded up until this point. You know, we have women on our chief executive board. You know we have black people on our chief executive board from an h B c U s and we're just very proud of that because we don't see enough people in the market that look like us, and we want to change that. Well, we will change that. Now nothing of are he's spent time over in China. Now I'm trying to figure out how he go over to Beijing. He was an h B c U beig not and I am it now now you you you're something else. All talk about that experience because I always tell people I remember when I left my job and uh ibm to tell jokes, you know, gonna be the next day Murphy. But it was a lot of unknown to that and because you don't know when you walk going next year, you don't know what. I know, a black man going to China. Why now, I'm very adventurous. I love, you know, trying something new, going to where else I've never been. And uh me, China was was open. Was an open experience for me over my eyes because a lot of things we say, for granted, you know, working uh in the bathroom, eating is things that they don't have. You know, these kids, their kids when I say, fourteen thirteen years old working sixteen hour ships NonStop and scared to speak to people, and you come here in America where you know, we're they're crying about eight hour ships or seven hour ships. Uh. And it's a lot of things just say for granted. So that really shifted my parodigm and just changed my way of looking at life. And UH really allowed me to take a lot of things that we take for granted here in the US and to run with it because you know, not to not to make that same you know, mistake that I may or I have had that same type of energy or I just wanted to carry an energy over from China to UH to America, because like I said, there's a lot of things that we take for granted that we could be you know, using to our full advantage here. When when you say that take for granted, you know, because you know, we take air condition for granted, We take a toilet supposed to be a bathroom supposed to be in your house. You know, you know, what what are some of the things. So if you said there's top three things that we take it that we take for granted the United States that we should appreciate more precise democracy. Uh, like I said, one, like you said, just the bathroom. The way we use the bathroom is totally different, uh you know the comfort And I just said, it's totally different from the China experience of how you use the bathroom. So I use the bathroom here in America. That was just a totally eye opener because, like I said, I'm sanitary. You know, our work life schedule, you know, we have work like balanced sort to say here in America where you know, work eight hour shifts, work four hours a weekend. We think, you know, that's you know, good balance. Whereas in China they're working sixty eight hours shifts like it's the norm, and you know they're not even you know, it's coming up for their breaks like thirty minutes. And I go to some of these you know, some of these places I was going to China. You know, these their customers were here to speak outside of you know, outside of their work because this is what they were stricting, you know, what they had to do. So that kind of just opened my eyes. Is just like man those things that we take for granted to work hours, how we eat, Uh, you know, a shower, Like I said, they're taking showers outside, some of them in certain certain places. Uh. And then also like I said, it's it's crazy because in China is a communist place, so you know, just driving cars, they only can have you know, driving cards six days out of the week. Uh. The seventh day they can't drive because of the population. So it's just a lot of regulations that they have to follow and the bide by that. Here in America week you know obviously got to free. The free didn't do whatever we want. Wow. Now Mr Pas corporate man talking sir. So that's what I love talking to about because you guys, and that's why I feel you guys are going to be successful because I always tell people, you know, when you've got people with so many different unique ideas and you're willing to compromise and combine those ideas. Because I look at the international flavor, I don't getting the vall. He's the international flavor. You know, it's he's both of you guys went to the HBU school and then you come from a corporate perspective. You know that corporate breakdown. Explain how that's being an asset to you and building out the biggers in the quickly. Absolutely absolutely so. You know, I was very fortunate to be able to cut my teeth in the corporate world working for large fortune fifty and fortunate one corporations such as Target at their corporate headquarters. Uh. It allowed me as a young man because I started working in the corporate world right out of college two years old. Um, I got got into it and had a lot of responsibility as a young man in a very big pond. And what it what it taught me was a few things. In order to make a company work and thrive, You need collaboration, You need teamwork, You need a diverse set of individuals with different backgrounds, just like you said, you know, Navarre bring something totally different to quick Lick than I do. And that goes for all of the people on our executive board and just on our team in general. And another thing that getting my start in the corporate world showed me was just to have polish and professionalism. You know, for us as African American men, really trying to revolutionize an industry that thousand severe years old, like alcohol, we have to work that much harder and be that much more tight and polished and refined in order for people to take us seriously and in order to grow this business and make the connections we need to take this business to the next level. And so getting that experience allowed me to work with people from all different backgrounds, people not just from HBC used like myself, but also the Harvards of the world and the Yales, and that sort of experience was invaluable. And then the last thing that working in corporate showed me Rushan was that working in the corporate world was great as a young man, but in order to truly establish generational wealth, which is me and of ours goal in life, to have a legacy to leave to our family and our kids in our community, you need to branch out on your own and take ownership of something. So corporate gave me the background and the polish, but it also gave me the motivation to say, you know what, if I want to get I've been saying it the way and I deserve to be compensated. If I want to build generational wealth, I can't do that working under someone. I gotta get out and bet on myself and grow a business like we did with Quickly. I want to follow up what you just said, Um, COVID eighteen, COVID ninteen hit we saw, you know, the ability to do curve side delivery, online delivery. Have you know Amazon gonna be announcing where they're gonna they're gonna drone in deliveries two people homes probably in late What impact? They said, time is everything. Being able to pivot is everything. The COVID situation with the launch of your delivery of quick Lick, talk about the advantages of that timing to the positive impact on your business. Uh yeah, so really it was divine time. And say say true, I mean we you know, because exceptionalized quickly in two thousand and eleven, it became mount in twenty eight when the pandemic happened, you know hit us all, you know by a story. We had to take a step back. We actually shut down operations for two days and kind of get an understanding of what was going on with COVID where we had to put hand make sure all our delivery drivers have mass and gloves of the time. But after we got a better understanding of the pandemical was going on, and really you know, hit like a light snitch. It became a necessity for all delivery. Especially with everything going on, Customers no longer wanted to, you know, make get up of the house and go to the liquor story to get to the bottom. So now having quickly got an option where you know, they can select the best beer wine expirits with just a click from their website or from their phone. We made that option and really, you know, ran what we had to make some you know maneuvers within our business model. For that's the most part they worked in our favor. That was just divine time and the bus teople putting their head down. And now that when we looked up, you know, it was just the perfect time and for the pandemic that happened for quickly. Now with that being said, okay, when I go to a website that sales lookally, it says click right here. If you're a team click you know identified. So my number one thought is, okay, who do you don't buy in your liquor? That the request in these deliveries? How do you protect yourself? Mr Piles, Yes, sir, so um, that's a great question. And in this business, you know, age verification We call it age gating, meaning you know, if you're not of age to drink, you can't you can't be on our website, you can't get our product. We don't even want to talk to you over the phone. You know, quickly has a huge corporate responsibility to make sure that we are being gatekeepers, um, to make sure that folks of drinking age, not miners of drinking age, have access to our products. So what we do is we have lots of different age gating sets in the process in order to order from us. So as soon as you go to our website or as soon as you go to our app, it's gonna ask you before you can even see the website, are you over twenty one years old? That's the first step. And then and you can you know, once you verify you are, you can go ahead and browse our inventory, see what you like to order, and before you check out, you have to verify again. And then before our delivery drivers give you the bottles, they're gonna check your I D. So we have at least three steps in our age verification process at all times. That's awesome. Now, so I'm about to talk about coming to Atlanta. I gotta go to the single guy here. I'm sorry, sir, you you showed me the ring. So I know this February campaign and got nothing to do with you. That's all the all right there, that's all I thought. That's for a fact it would look to because Atlanta. You know, you guys are coming to uh Atlanta February with a campaign called shoot your Shot. I I it sounds like a lot of fun the campaign and getting eyeballs and getting engagement is always the key to make it happen. Talk about the shoot your Shot campaign. Yeah, So, like I said, we're excited to be extend to uh Atlanta. You know, Mikell and I both went to Clarkland University, so Atlanta's home for us. And we thought of a dope marketing campaign called shoot your Shots. Amount of Time's day. Now it's shoot your shot. It's not just to shoot your shot. You know, you got the girl or the girlfriend and the girls you've been to Mari and there's all shoot your shot at businesses and you know, companies and industries that you probably want to you know, you know, pay way for it getting or get into uh So it's more, it's much more than just shoot your shot for amount of Time's Day. But yeah, it's a campaign that we've running group. We send our emails marketing the last to get the customers engaged. Uh and like I said, we'd love to shoot our shot, you know, in the Atlanta basket and see what transports from me. Oh, it's awesome about there. I'm just gonna let you what they sent me the ball. It's at the top of Februar word Quickly would want to shoot your shot campaign? What you encourage supporters to send their favorite beverage to their crush and all their crush, not business, not cousin their crush and on our Valenttie's Day. Quickly has been operating in South Florida for over a year and we're launch of fishing in Atlanta and February. You know, I'm having fun with you guys, and like I said, I'm just bringing that up and just having more fun. But when I see a good campaign and we know that and then the month of February, especially valortis that you can't find a restaurant. They alsold if you don't have a restaurant on the day of you trying to take your girl out, you gonna stay home with your girl. And now we're being able to realize that putting that campaign out. What can I do for you? I love to be able to put you on my social media or you're putting banners? What marketing techniques are you using not only in nationally because you know, but also in the local Atlanta market that I can help you out with. Oh, that's that's really really great. We would really appreciate that. You know, one thing that we really utilize in order to connect with customers and spread our message far and wide is our social media. So we would encourage you as well as all of your followers of your platform to follow click on Instagram at quick Lick Underscore. We can also be found on Facebook at get Quicklick and look on our website www dot get quicklick dot com. That's www dot get quick lip dot com. We're gonna be doing a very strong media push on our social media platforms, especially Instagram. We're gonna have some creative stories, some fresh content, some interactive content where people can see, you know, recipes and how to engage with our campaigns like shoot your shot and so if you can follow us, you know, repost something that we're doing on our online platform, that would be a huge, huge boom. But you're gonna start to see a lot of great content coming out of the end of this month as we get into February, which is not only the launch of Quicklick in Atlanta, which we're extremely proud and excited for, but also Black History Month. It was it was actually a strategic for us to pick in February because once again, you know, we always want to illuminate the fact that we are a black owned company, you know, operating as a bluetstrap self funded organization and this day and time, and so we want to pay homage to the people like Dr Martin Luther King and to all of the great ancestors. You know that that led the way for us to be able to have a business and a platform like this. What is it important? You know? We know, one man, if you don't understand what each month means, you have you know, you have a Father's Day, got Mother's Day coming up, got Easter to every one of those days in a marketing has to be a tool you used to you know, gain leverage for your brand. You know, you know, Mother's Day, Father's Day, Black music, mom in June. All those days means something. So now, strategically, when you guys are sitting down looking at your calendar, how did y'all look at strategy? Like like I said, like you just told me Black History Month. I just talked to Navarre about the Valati's Day. So real, there's two things going on there. You launched it strategically in black kid your mind, but you're taking advantage of the relationship February is also known as a relationship monk. So how do you look at strategizic moving forward? You got Miami on lock. You're about to move to Atlanta. Old stomping grounds or fraternity brothers are gonna come to your aid or alumni alumni from from that whole Spellman more House and Clark Atlanta. It's gonna come to your aid. What's the what's the future of Quickly in the southeast part of the country. Absolutely that that's a That's a wonderful question, and it was actually you lead right into where I wanted to go with the relationships. One of the biggest differentiators for Quickly versus our competitors is that we are a lifestyle brand. What that means is we go the extra mile to truly connect with our customers and our brand partners and our account partners and a very local and organic way. We don't operate like just a corporate business, even though I have a corporate background, you know, that's not who we are. We came from the HBCU World Clark Atlantic University, where our bands were. You know, you go to homecoming to watch the band, not necessarily the football game, right. We come from the background of having that flavor, that coolness, that slag, and that's how we brand the company as well. So to answer your question, and from a strategic standpoint, we're always looking at how can we transcend just the consumer, the normal corporate consumer interaction and truly differentiate ourselves from our competitors. Well, one of the main ways we do that is by having the shoot your Shot campaigns, which resonate with people whether you're in a relationship or single like my mannvar. You know, we we also look at the calendar, like you said, ro Sean, in every quarter, we're looking at what's going on, you know, super what what are things that can connect quickly on a real visceral level with our customers Because that's the thing about the alcohol industry, and that's why we love it. Alcohol brings people together, whether you're celebrating, whether you're commiserating, you know, whatever you're going through, you can have a libation as long as you're doing it responsibly, and we want to be a connector for that in a in a responsible way. I love because from all quickly is not about color. You know, you know you can every month, you know, uh st Patty's Day. Okay, that's on your that's a great liquor drinking monk okay. And so that's what I love about it. When you look at the diversity and the and the potential explosion of this business, especially COVID, A lot a lot of restrictions, the curb side lifestyle, the touchless delivery, contact delivery, that's people are seeking. Now. I know when I get my car washing, I just drive right on the end. I just hit my credit card. I don't let nobody come inside my car no more. And we know that lifestyle. It's not going to change, you know, with the vaccination raid and even after you get vaccinated, they tell you still should wear a mask. So that means that a lot of procedures are gonna be it's it's I'm just I just want to say congratulations, you know, because a lot of good ideas, the other people tend to get them, and you guys are saying at the cups of a great idea, not just a good idea, a great idea. And I'm just letting you know I developed Money Making Conversations because to me, speaking to YouTube or like you're the stars, you always see your people on the big screen. But you know, you make, you pay taxes, you employ people, you keep this company moving and more important as black men, you make us proud and don't stop even hanging out to China with Noval, you know now. But thank you for coming on Money Making Conversations man. But again, I'm very honest. I have like one point six million people I controlled within my Money Making Conversation platform, from newsletters to social media to to like my podcast and my radio syndication. So I extend that free charge. It's not about me trying to get something out of it. It's about me trying to grow your brand and also give you a voice that you can turn to and also a person that and I've created this platform to mentor people and I feel like it's a mentorship that I'm extended to you guys because I'm excited. I want you to grow as big as you can. And if you take one of my ideas and make a million dollars, I'm gonna be the first one to give you the knuckles sandwich you say, man, thank you, because if we're just sitting over here doing nothing congratulation, you know, we we really appreciate. I just wanted to say, you know, first and foremost, thank you so much for taking the time to speak with us. You know, I have seen your your your videos and heard your podcasts and seeing your reach with folks like Steve Harvey and Stephen A. Smith, and it's just amazing to be in a position to speak to such an accomplished and decorated brother like yourself. So thank you so much for this platform. You know, we're at the point in this company where we're trying to grow this thing big. You know, like I said, we're trying to grow a legacy with quick Lick, and even though we've been self funded to this point, now we are actively and aggressively looking for investor partners to invest in this company because we want to take this thing to the next level, not just Atlanta. We want to go. We want to cover the whole Southeast. We want to get out to the West coast at the end of this year. So we have dreams of grandeur and people like yourself, I can't think enough for giving us a platform to get our business out there to the masses. Thank you, Sol wrap up, I mean Michael wrap up. I mean he's a speaker up from start to finish. But no, like I'm beyond all platform to you know with our company, and like Michael said, we're mostly growing Tampa and I said, we're gonna pre see round looking for funding. So uh if you like, then far more reach us. That are you know with his info Iron Iron Flo Bath get quick with dot com that g need to kill you h k l i Q dot com. Alright, well, I want to thank you for coming on the show and give me the opportunity to have fun with you man and talk about to a growing business. And believe me, it's gonna be on fire man. I can't wait to see me some Make sure you send those batters, man, because shoot your shot. You already know you already man. Help be careful now if you want to want to make interviews, please go to Money Making Conversation dot com. I wass Sean McDonald. I'm your host. In this season of giving, Cools has gifts for all your loved ones. For those who like to keep it cozy, find fleeces, sweaters, loungewear, blankets and throws. Or support minority owned or founded brands by giving gifts from Human Nation and Shame Moisture. And in the spirit of giving, Coals Cares is donating eight million dollars to local nonprofits nationwide. Give with all your heart this season with great gifts from Coals or Coals dot com. Still living in manually taking notes, there is a better way to start the new year with auto dot ai automatically get meeting notes. Auto dot ai works for virtual meetings like Zoom, Microsoft Teams and Google Meet. Sign up on the web for free or download in the app stores auto dot ai. That's O, T T E R dot Ai. Every year, compliance regulations change thousands of times, and every year a dp makes thousands of seamless platform updates so businesses can focus on everything else like running their business. Grow stronger with a DP HR talent, time and payroll
