Robert Pyles, a successful entrepreneur that owns 12 McDonald’s franchises in Wisconsin, would have never thought that he would be as successful as he is now when he was a child growing up with 9 siblings being raised by a single mother. But now, he is one of the largest African-American employers in Wisconsin and he is using his past experiences as his motivation.

Started from the bottom

Pyles started in the service industry as a part-time employee at a McDonald’s in Wyoming to earn extra income while serving at the Air Force. Since then, he realized that he loved serving customers and that’s what he wanted to do.

He completed a McDonald’s ownership training program within two and a half years. He then took the opportunity to open a McDonald’s location in Milwaukee, as suggested by the former CEO of McDonald’s Corp., Don Thompson.

He opened his first McDonald’s on February 14, 1998. He admitted that it wasn’t easy at first with all the demands of fast service. But stopping isn’t one of his options. “I told myself ‘never let ’em see you sweat.’ I knew I had to hold true to what I believed,” he told Black Enterprise.

Prepared for growth

From one location, he opened another one in the next year and it continued growing over the years to up to 12 locations now. Despite that, Pyles believes that success in business isn’t measured by growth.

“You must be prepared for growth and pay close attention to profitability. You can have less stores and be more profitable,” he said. “My goal wasn’t necessarily to keep adding stores. I wanted to create a training center environment to let people see that an African American operator can operate at a certain level.”

With about 45 employees in each location, he employs around 600 people all in all. Aside from providing jobs to the community, he wanted to ease the burden of his employees in finding affordable housing near work. So he partnered with a friend who has a construction business and started Magnolia Realty, wherein they purchase foreclosed properties near his McDonald’s stores, rebuild it, and sells it to them at a reasonable price.

Inspiring others

From his rough childhood as one of the nine children raised by a single mother, Pyles now lives comfortably with his wife and three children who work with him in the business. And he wants to inspire others to achieve what he has achieved as well.

“I think it’s really important to be both visible and accessible in the community,” he said. “It’s not enough for me alone to be successful. My goal is to help others get approved for McDonald’s ownership. I started with my wife because there’s no inherited ownership in the event that an owner passes away. Now I’m working on getting others approved.”

Mga etiketa:

SOURCE BLACKBUSINESS.COM

Lorraine Chademunhu is a very talented Comedian, Writer and DJ with a profound passion for Life.

This lyricist and poet fell in love with music from a very young age and for her music is freedom .

Feel free to check out her youtube channel at

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC9bCiEn5MlyxXXQwkK3hTrA

34-year old Amari Ruff had a rough start growing up. As a teenager, he had to balance studies and work to help his mother make ends meet while moving between homeless shelters. But now, he owns a multi-million dollar trucking company called Sudu that connects underserved entrepreneurs to giant companies such as Walmart and UPS.

Humble beginnings

At the age of 16, his military father left his mother to raise him and his two siblings. They lived in homeless shelters, and Amari at one point, had to commute over four hours a day to continue attending high school while also working.

He eventually landed a job with a company where he negotiated significant enterprise contracts. He helped the business grow to annual revenues of $4.5 million, but was let go from a higher rank that he was promised. He said he didn’t expect it and it was really a low time in his life, but this inspired him to become a successful entrepreneur.

Starting at the bottom

Amari decided to started a telecommunications company in 2010 with just $300 and a 1990 Ford Ranger. However, before long, he managed to grow it to almost 200 trucks and to 5 U.S. locations. While at it, he also realized that there were bigger opportunities to create a tech company to connect underserved entrepreneurs (minorities, women, and veterans) with larger corporations. He then built his own business to fill the void.

In 2015, he launched Sudu, an online marketplace that leverages technology to connect small and medium-sized trucking companies (which make up 90% or the trucking market) to major corporations that ship goods. He chose the name Sudu, which is a Chinese word that means speed and tempo, because he says he believes it speaks well to the speed and efficiency they provide the industry through their technology which is considered as the “Uber” for truckers.

The recognition finally came

Because of his genius, Amari became in demand to speak at international tech and entrepreneurial conferences. He was invited to address the Nelson Mandela Fellows Panel and the Build Your Own Brand conference and retreat.

He also started winning major awards such as the 2016 NMTA Minority Business of the Year, the 2017 Georgia Trend Magazine Trendsetter, and the 2018 Atlanta Business Chronicle InnoVenture Award. He has even been included in the Venture Atlanta Top 10 Startups to Watch list.

SOURCE – blackbusiness.com

HOW TO COOK EDIKAIKONG BY STEVEN FERNANDEZ

1.Boil the cow tail, oxtail, goat meat, or any meat of your choice in a pressure cooker with little water till it soft, juicy and tender, if you are using cowteal and beef, it is advisable to add the cow tail before the beef.

2. Pour the boiled meat after you add the stock fish in another pot then let the water dry up after 5 to 10 minutes , also  add maggi cubes  , yellow scotch bonnet cut up and Cray fish

3. Add shredded water leafs let it drys up

4. Add ugwu leafs   and after a short while, add some palm oil

HOW TO COOK EDIKA IKONG

1.Boil the cowtail or oxtaik goat meat, or any meat of your choicein a pressure cooker with little water till it soft it advisable to add cow tail first before the meat.

2. Pour the boiled meat after you add the stock fish in another pot then let the water dry up after 5 to 10 minutes , add maggi cube , yellow scotch bonnet cut up and Cray fish

3. Add shredded water leaf let it dry up

4. Add ugwu lead wait and then your palm oil
wait for some time before you put it off

STEVEN FERNANDEZ

A brilliant goal by former Liverpool forward Asisat Oshoala helped earn Nigeria a first win at the 2019 Women’s World Cup – and all but end South Korea’s hopes of reaching the last-16.

Nigeria went ahead when defender Kim Do-yeon volleyed past her own keeper.

Ex-Arsenal player Oshoala held off a defender before rounding the keeper to score Nigeria’s second goal.

South Korea, who face Norway in their third and final group match on Monday, have yet to score or earn a point.

SOURCE BBC

Ibom Air owned by Akwa Ibom Government on Friday conducted its maiden flight from Uyo to Ikeja, Lagos State.

The airline’s Bombardier CRJ-900LR aircraft, which took off from the Obong Victor Attah International Airport in Uyo, landed at the Murtala Muhammed Airport 2, Lagos at 1.15 p.m.

It was welcomed with water canon salutation by officers of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) Fire Services.

Gov. Udom Emmanuel said that the airline was a project designed to enhance the economy and create employment opportunities for Nigerians.

The governor, who was represented by the deputy governor, Moses Ekpo, said the project was a testament to the vision of rapid industrialisation based on three gateways of land, sea and air into the state.

He, however, called on all Akwa Ibom indegenes to support the project regardless of their political affiliations.

“Finally, let me use this opportunity to appeal to some of our people in the opposition; it is not everything about us that should be coloured by, or be seen through the prism of politics.

“We should learn to separate development from politics. Ibom Air is a huge achievement for us all.

“When we board these aircraft to either Lagos or Abuja and back to Uyo, the cabin crew will not ask you whether you are a PDP or APC card-carrying member.

Source   the Nigerian voice

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Jeff Badu, a former gang member from Chicago, is now making millions as an entrepreneur, tax practitioner, and owner of his own accounting firm. After going through a life-changing event, Badu hopes to also make a change in his community by sharing his story to others and helping guide them with his business how-to’s.

Jeff Badu, a former gang member from Chicago, is now making millions as an entrepreneur, tax practitioner, and owner of his own accounting firm. After going through a life-changing event, Badu hopes to also make a change in his community by sharing his story to others and helping guide them with his business how-to’s.

Badu, who was born in Ghana, moved to the United States when he was 8-years old. With his young mind, he thought he would feel protected if he joins a gang. But when he did, he realized that the protection the gangs advertised wasn’t exactly true.

“Between 8 to 16, those were the toughest times of my life because I was surrounded by so much negativity,” Badu said in an interview with WGN TV. “I was literally trapped, I couldn’t walk certain places.”

Badu finally decided to change his path after having a conversation with his aunt when he went back to Ghana for a short family vacation. He remembered his aunt told him about his parents’ struggles just to take him to the U.S., “went through the lottery system for you to come and mess it up.”

Since then, he returned to the U.S. with a new mindset, finished studying at Uplift High School, and earned an undergraduate and graduate degree in accounting from the University of Illinois.

Now, Badu owns an accounting business called Badu Tax Services that caters to 1,500 clients nationwide and in five other countries. He also owns and runs car rental entreprises and real estate investment groups. He was 25-years old when he made his first million.

All the while he was already making a name in the financial industry, his childhood friend Adura Yaboroh was killed after being shot five times in the head while helping someone with a spare car tire at a gas station. It made another strong impact in his life.

Her graceful and eloquent style fails to detract from her vibrant and passionate persona that emanates from any stage she graces.

Her passion for life and her positive nature is evident in her lyrics. Her life experiences, her interactions with others and her strong faith have contributed to her unique musical style; a sound that could be described as a fusion of soul and R’n’B with a jazzy edge. She attributes this to her musical influences that range from the likes of Alicia Keys, Cece Winans and Aretha Franklin. She was the recipient of two prestigious awards in 2015; The Praisetek Gospel Music Awards UK for her contribution towards the gospel music industry and the Gospel Touch Music award for ‘Best Video’ for her song ‘Who am I?’ which she released in 2015.  After the release of two hit Albums (‘Do you remember?’ which is available on amazon and on all online music stores since the summer of 2013 and ‘Who am I?’ which is also available on all online music stores), four sold out singles, three music videos, Emem continues to take the Gospel music industry by storm.

Apart from doing well academically (Emem is a qualified Pharmacist and works as a Pharmacist (Practice Manager) at a multinational merchandise retail company), Emem’s love for music was very notable around the age of 11. She had her first solo performance at the age of 11 although she had previously performed as part of choirs from the age of 7. She studied music at GCSE level and also learned play the keyboard and piano.  She would confidently sing along to any of her favourite artists and put on mini shows for her family and friends at every opportunity, even if such an occasion was a casual family dinner or barbeque. Aged 13, Emem was already a permanent member of a large church choir; the popular Life Church choir, in Bradford, which by coincidence also nurtured and exposed the likes of Gareth Gates musically. She also learned to play the keyboard, a skill which further strengthened her intonation and has now resulted in her very varied vocal range. She had formed a girl group quartet with her sister and two of her friends and the group was lucky to be invited to appear as guests on a television show and have one of their productions featured on a popular television programme on Sky Television. Emem’s soloist skills were very evident around that time, as she was usually chosen to sing the lead parts on some of the songs presented. The girls were unfortunately separated when they were accepted at different universities for further studies. Emem was not fazed by this setback; she has always believed that her destiny would manifest itself if she continued to nurture her gift. At the age of 14, she recorded one of her songs and performed it in front of a live audience at the Alhambra theatre in Bradford. Emem still sings and perform in and around Bradford.

She has entered numerous national competitions in which she has always been a favourite. One of her most notable was when she was picked out from hundreds of people to perform in a live showcase concert; she wowed the crowd with her original rendition of ‘hero’ by Mariah Carey. She has always made effort to maintain links with musicians, producers and DJs, hoping to catapult to success at some stage. One of her songs ‘trying to be myself’ received rave reviews after she was approached by a Choice FM DJ to have it played during one of its shows. Emem was a shortlisted finalist on “Britain’s Next Urban Superstar,” which landed her an audition for Flava Music Channel and interviews with KISS FM. She has also appeared on several radio stations as a guest and her songs receive frequent air-play on Premier Gospel and BBC radio Leeds. Emem dedicates her time to writing and singing songs which inspire, encourage and comfort all people from different walks of life.

The main message she has to share is love and wants some of her songs to express it. She presently has written more than 20 songs and is in need of greater guidance and support from the experienced members of the music industry, to enable her climb to the next level.

Above all, Emem is a very pleasant and focused personality, easily gets along with others, and is almost always certain to achieve her goals through diligence and hard work. Her precision in science coupled with her interest in music, is likely going to produce a unique blend which should spice up youngsters willing and eager to combine their musical talents with academic prowess.

From the soulful piano balladry of “Angel” to the funk-infused “Trying To Be Myself,” Emem’s immensely interesting high-and-low vocal range and her inspiring story combine to form a powerful, rhythmic R&B/Gospel fusion with a jazzy edge accessible to fans across all musical and spiritual persuasions.

“I want my music to uplift, motivate and energize people,” Emem says, like a woman on a mission. “It’s encouraging and inspiring Gospel music anyone can listen to regardless of your beliefs.”