Kebe Konte, Founder of Red Bay Coffee (Source: @keba88 instagram)
Founder(s): Kebe Konte
Founded: 2014
Overview:
One of the headliners for Forbes’ 100 black-owned businesses to support list was Red Bay Coffee’s founder, Kebe Konte. As an accomplished food entrepreneur and artist already, Konte stumbled into the coffee business and instantly made an impact. Konte founded Red Bay six years ago and expanded it to include five Bay Area cafes. The unexpected damage of the pandemic brought expansion to a halt, forcing Konte to make drastic cuts and decisions for the future. Despite this, eCommerce sales surged during this time period (350% to be exact). As more and more people were transitioning to a “work-from-home” lifestyle, they still needed their coffee fix.
His brand’s message is rooted in racial inclusivity for a particular reason. While the coffee industry is a billion-dollar monster, the South-American countries where these products are imported from rarely see the benefits of that economy. Konte’s plans of international expansion will hope to rectify some of these economic issues by placing retail operation facilities outside the U.S. Red Bay wants to empower and support local growers' future entry into specialty coffee.
Dr. Anastasia L. Gentles, Zawadi Bryant & Connie Cazares, Founders of Nighlight Pediatric (Source: NightlightPediatric.com)
Founder(s): Dr. Anastasia L. Gentles, Zawadi Bryant, and Connie Cazares
Founded: 2007
Overview: Dr. Anastasia Gentles worked many nights at Texas Children’s Hospital’s emergency room watching many parents struggle to afford hospital costs for their children. Affordable health care has remained a prominent issue in the U.S. for as long as I can remember. Insurance costs continue to rise and with no apparent decline in the near future, taking care of your children can empty out your pockets. With the joint efforts of Dr. Gentles, Zawadi Bryant, and Connie Cazares, these three women created an urgent pediatric healthcare facility where children can receive care at a fraction of the cost. For children with non-severe fevers, infection, or other illnesses that cannot wait for more than a day, this type of business is a godsend. Blessed with experienced pediatric doctors and nurses, NightLight is the place to bring little ones who need help when their pediatrician’s office is closed.
Zawadi Bryant has taken over as CEO to focus on the business side of Nightlight Pediatric. Her resume cites her as working with big name corporations like BP and Hewlett-Packard with an MBA to match. The future of Nightlight is headed for expansion outside of the Texas area. Today, NightLight Pediatric has eight pediatric urgent-care locations, with 130 employees (80% of whom are people of color) and revenue of $11 million last year.
RML Automotives Logo (Source: RMLauto.com)
Founder(s): Robert L. Johnson, Mack McLarty, Steve Landers
Founded: 2007
Overview:
RML Automotive is headquartered in Little Rock, Arkansas and consists of 35 automotive franchises and three Harley-Davidson motorcycle dealerships in eight states. RLJ-McLarty-Landers was ranked 19th on the Automotive News annual list of “Top 125 Dealerships in the U.S.” and is the largest African American owned automotive franchise in the country. RML is a $1.8 billion-dollar operation that consists of 25 automotive dealerships across the South Central, Southeast and Midwest regions of the country. The company doubled its investment in Northwest Arkansas last year with the purchase of three dealerships from Everett Automotive Group. RML’s six dealerships in Northwest Arkansas now employ about 600 people.
Robert E. Hall Jr, President & CEO of Bridgewater Interiors (Source: Bridgewater-interiors.com)
Founder(s): Ron Hall Sr.
Founded: 1998
Overview:
Bridgewater Interiors is a Detroit-based firm in the business of supplying automotive parts. It was founded in 1998 by Ronald E. Hall Sr. . He passed away in June 2016, and the firm is now led by his son, Ronald E. Hall Jr., who joined the company in 2007. 2018 revenue for Bridewater is priced at $1.96 billion. Bridgewater is a supplier of seating and overhead systems to automotive OEM customers. The company operates four production facilities, three in Michigan and one in Alabama. Bridgewater Interiors is a certified Minority Business Enterprise (MBE) and was established in 1998 as a joint venture between Detroit-based Epsilon Technologies, LLC, and Adient US, LLC (formerly Johnson Controls, Inc.).
President and CEO Ronald E. Hall, Sr. was identified to lead the organization after a long and successful career in corporate management, entrepreneurship, and economic development, including a distinguished tenure heading the Michigan Minority Supplier Development Council.
Bridgewater quickly established relevance in the automotive supplier space, as its initial five-year GM contract was the largest contract ever awarded to a racial minority-owned business by an automaker.
Troy Taylor, Founder of Coca-Cola Beverages Florida LLC (Source: Cocacolaflorida.com)
Founder(s): Troy Taylor
Founded: 2015
Overview:
Coca-Cola Beverages Florida is a family-owned, independent Coca-Cola bottler. One of many Coca-Cola franchises, its chairman and chief executive officer is Troy D. Taylor. Taylor previously served as an advisor to The Coca-Cola Company and a consultant to one of its largest independent bottlers in the world. When he gained his opening into franchisement, Taylor pursued the Florida territory—“one of the gems in the Coke North American system and the Coke system from a bottling standpoint worldwide because of growth, sunshine, and a multicultural population, which drives consumerism. Also, the fact that the state attracted 100 million tourists annually would provide a “big footprint to sell our beverages.”
Based in Tampa, Florida, it began operations in 2015 and was the first addition to the Coca-Cola system in nearly 60 years. It sells, manufactures, and distributes over 600 products of The Coca-Cola Company and other partner companies across 47 Florida counties and as of 2018 employed 4,800 people.
