- 8 months ago
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LifestyleTranscript
00:00happy friday everyone i am robin mcbride of mcbride sisters collection wines and i'm here
00:24with my beautiful sister andrea mcbride and today we're going to be doing a little bit of a virtual
00:29wine tasting with our special guests duane wade and gabrielle union and we'll drink some wines from
00:34the mcbride sisters collection as well as wade sellers while we discuss the wine business and
00:39some of the adjustments that we've made due to the current climate as we all know we're operating in
00:45a brave new world that will likely change the way that we do business forever so we thought we'd talk
00:51about how and why we all became vintners but also the things that we're doing to thrive during these
00:56uncertain times so let us welcome our special guests duane wade and gabrielle union who have
01:02both had a lot of experience with entrepreneurial ventures gabrielle union across a number of
01:08industries including entertainment and fashion and duane wade who also has a number of business
01:15ventures but of course selfishly we're most interested in wave sellers wines welcome guys how's it going
01:24good we good over here how you guys so what we good good so good like robin like robin said selfishly
01:32uh we're interested in the wine so can you hold up a bottle what are we gonna can we give people a
01:37little bit of a preview what are we gonna be sipping on in a little bit it's a little early so we're gonna
01:43sip on a little white wine okay everybody follow me they know that i'm very excited about uh our first
01:52white wine uh shenan blanc uh this is something that was introduced to me and my wife uh over this
01:59last year so we're new to it over this last year but we love it so very excited about this one cool cool
02:06well we're excited to hear about it so um let's start with wine first and then we'll get into the
02:12discussion about uh where we're at with the business so if you could share with us uh what does uh wine
02:20mean to you in your lives
02:26i mean it's we encompass uh a lot of our passions are sort of um swirling around wine the love of travel
02:35love of travel the love of food the love of uh conversation yeah connecting connecting with
02:41others uh everything that we love to do it seems like wine is that one common denominator that's
02:48always there for us yeah it's been great and then so how did you take that uh love of wine that seems
02:57like it touch touches so many facets of your life and then decide to transition and into becoming
03:04vintners and and getting into the wine business it actually kind of happened it just happens um when
03:13i first got with with my wife she was the drinker in the family and i wasn't a lot of judgment
03:19judgment we had a lot of judgment on uh but you know as i as i grew um as we traveled the world as
03:26we was in different rooms with different individuals uh it started to become the norm uh wine started
03:33to become a part of just our daily life and i i started taking a liking to it and you know what because
03:40of that we end up traveling to napa valley we end up you know meeting so many people in the wine industry
03:45it just kind of started from just conversations and i really followed her lead um even our first
03:51meeting with the palmeyer family i i thought they was going to sign her up and not even me because she
03:57was more passionate about it um and at that time we actually when i decided to do my partnership with
04:03palmeyer she actually did a partnership at the same time um with a wine called vanilla pudding
04:09was a chardonnay and we both was kind of entering this wine space and it was cool for our family
04:15and then eventually we decided to just make it you know the way the way family wine and really support
04:20this but it really just started from the places we went the people we met um and my wife and my wife
04:26drinking a lot of wine and being open to different people and conversations you know really wanting to
04:33sort of push past our comfort level you know we we tend to kind of stick to you know the people and
04:40the places that were comfortable and you know with um you know having the same kind of conversations
04:45over and over again and the more we started to push ourselves socially um we ended up meeting all kinds
04:50of people from all over the world with interests and it broadened our horizons and kind of opened up the
04:55wine world to us so it sounds like that wine is really really about community building and and bringing people
05:04together and so i know as we've been watching your live on instagram you know we're we know that's
05:11what you all are really passionate about you know is building community bringing people together and so
05:16during these really challenging times uh during covid um you know and this applies obviously to a lot of
05:22people a lot of black owned businesses uh where you're not able to get out and physically touch and meet
05:28people uh how are you guys handling this challenge um and what are are there a few opportunities that you
05:35can share uh with us and with the audience as to how you're trying to work in this new normal uh and so
05:43still run your business yeah i mean i believe we're we're just like everyone else right it's it's the day
05:50to day process and we're figuring it out you know the thing that we we we have is we have we both have
05:57individually we both have very good teams and smarter people smarter people on my team maybe
06:02not smarter than my wife on her team but smarter people that you know are able we are able to sit
06:07down with and say hey guys listen these are some of the things that we would love to accomplish as a
06:12family uh especially when it comes to uh what's going on in the world and so we've been able to do
06:18that from a foundation standpoint and then we're able to sit down with our team and say hey from a
06:22business standpoint these are the things we would like to accomplish what's the best the best ways to do
06:26that so for me um i was like hey i've always wanted to kind of have this interview series
06:32um and i never had the time to do it so i was like hey what time what better time than now and i'm
06:38passionate about wine it's something that we obviously enjoy so we came up with a concept called
06:43the wine down and from that off of just the wine down um i have zoom uh calls with a lot of uh people in
06:51the wine industry a lot of songs we get on that we get on zoom we talk a lot um you know we've been
06:57doing special promotions with d wade sellers trying to keep uh uh our engagement you know in the wine
07:03industry obviously right now wine is where can people those specials that you guys have where can
07:11people find these d wade sellers where can people take advantage of those specials that you guys have
07:16going on yeah right now the the best way i mean obviously because the safest way because we all
07:23have to stay home uh is is online um our website uh www.dwadesellers.com that's the name of our wine
07:32company d wade sellers um and that's that's where a lot of people have been going to purchase the wine
07:38to experience um you know kind of the i want to say before this a lot of people didn't even know i had a
07:44wine um so only a few and i had just started to get out there started to touch people started to go
07:50places and and pour wine and and now uh my wine down on on ig live or the conversations i'm having
07:57with others offline people are starting to get an opportunity to know about the wine so they're going
08:02on my website uh we have done cool promotions we just finished one right now we did two bottles
08:08of my um of our red blend two bottles of rose and free shipping for a hundred dollars so
08:13we're trying to make sure that we engage our wine community people get opportunity to be
08:17um invested and interested in what we're doing and hopefully enjoy you know the juice in the bottle
08:26figure out to kind of take a step back and look at look at all of your businesses
08:30and see um where you can improve um and and sometimes you know when you're in the rat race
08:36you just keep going going going and there's very little time for reflection and personal
08:40accountability as business people and as global citizens uh can you know are you selling something
08:47that is only for a select few are you selling something that isn't available to everyone um
08:52are you being insensitive are you being tone deaf um you know are there are there better ways of doing
08:58business and then also you know it was something like with wine you know watching a movie like uncorked on
09:03on netflix got us inspired yeah more people who um are in the wine industry and in every level of the
09:11wine industry um how can we create more and make um things that a lot of people seem to think are uh for
09:18certain folks for everybody um and kind of rethink our business plan in that way and and so that's
09:27oh sorry i was just gonna say that's actually one of the questions that i have for you
09:31particularly gabrielle because you have so many business ventures going on at the same time and
09:37like with the shelter in place how do you decide like what are you focusing on and then like you
09:44know what changes have you made for those things that you can focus on because there's only so many
09:48things we can do while everybody's kind of you know stuck at home things safe like you know what has
09:53become your main focus and how has it shifted during this time um there's a lot of people who have a lot
09:59of different ideas about how to build a business right now and how to grow a business right and
10:05sell hard sell you know because people are just trapped and i was like yeah due to a global pandemic
10:12how about we lead with um you know giving back so that's really great our focus is only is our
10:19our work with our foundation and identifying those areas that are falling through the cracks um in a
10:24philanthropic way um and then from there you know thinking about our employees and all of the people
10:31at all the different stages um that that uh allow us to you all you know have all these different
10:35businesses who are suffering terribly and uh that that's been the biggest uh challenge you know um you
10:46want to you want to be able to present all of the things that people are selling um but you have to be
10:53cognizant of the fact that people who are suffering don't have enough money to eat um for housing um
10:59how do you balance that with with selling and and for us it's to um lead with giving back um and you
11:07know as as employees and as um leaders of our family uh it all starts with um what are you doing for
11:14others versus what can they do for you and when it's all said and done hopefully you know people will
11:20remember your heart um so can you so can you tell us maybe like some um what are some of those
11:29foundations that are or yours or ones that you're working with during this time well uh we have the
11:35the wade family foundation and uh our initial efforts were to identify uh five different health
11:41care providers in cities that that mean a lot to us um omaha nebraska milwaukee wisconsin chicago
11:49willinois miami florida and los angeles california and identify some of those health care providers
11:54for the lgbtq plus communities um and make sure they have needed funds for uh our most marginalized
12:01uh of us um and really start there and then we just you know start answering dms um you know friends
12:08who are delivering um meals to you know folks who can't you know get out to the grocery stores hit them
12:14off in in their gofundmes and sometimes it's you know these larger organizations that are helping to
12:19feed millions and some are smaller organizations that are are more uh grassroots and local um but
12:25we don't generally publicize um everything that we're doing um we try to just shoot that um where it's
12:32most needed um and we're open to uh hearing from uh all different kinds of organizations big and small and
12:40and uh we just we just do it and instead of uh talking about doing it we're just writing the
12:46check and shutting up that's that's awesome well cheers to that yeah cheers for that so uh making sure
12:53that you know we we're owners of uh 800 degrees um you know with our kitchen restaurants and we also
13:01are making sure to provide uh food to hospitals for the health care um as well so you know we we are real
13:08big on um you know making sure that small businesses get to the love and attention um that is needed i
13:15mean we are part of that small business community um so what we can do we're trying to do from the
13:20standpoint of making sure others could be fed at this time and um so you know it's just many different
13:26things that we we're trying to be a part of and we're not just trying to focus on one thing because
13:29there's many needs and i'll be trying to focus on things that are near dear to you know kind of who we
13:34all others can benefit from yeah but mostly really focus on the most marginalized uh communities um
13:42here abroad uh who are are the most impacted by the uh by the virus and who are also tend to be the
13:49most invisible um victim uh we're trying to just efforts um in those in those uh directions
13:56you guys are an inspiration uh it's amazing um and i think you know uh one of the things that as a
14:05community um we can all do is just figure out um you know what that is what that one thing is that you
14:12can do today to help somebody out and you you said it like figuring out you know how you can help um
14:19and then just trying to to do the best that you can um a message you know um because i we have very
14:28we're both part of very large families and not everybody has the same means so sometimes it's
14:32just a retweet of a small business or a local business sometimes it's just um amplifying um
14:40reasonable and appropriate uh healthcare measures you you just do where you can and you get in where you
14:44fit in um but we can't none of us can afford to sit this sit this one out for sure so we do want to
14:54talk about your wine a little bit and and one of the things that has been noted uh during this time
15:01of shelter in place is obviously the increased consumption of wine that has been going on uh while
15:09people have been at home and so we do want to try and uh put a spotlight on the entire black vittner
15:17community um there are a lot of black vittners out there um and and you all are are definitely a
15:24part of that community so tell us a little bit about uh this new chen and blanc uh that you guys
15:30are on the cusp of of bringing to the market and launching yeah i mean in the beginning when we
15:38decided to get into the wine industry you know one thing we knew is that in our community and you
15:46know african-american community especially the perception of wine right the perception of the
15:51world that wine lives in is not a community for us so we want is that perception um and you know not
15:58only us you guys and so many others you know are part of that um of changing it so that's been a big
16:04focus focal point of you know of kind of the way i want the d-way sellers brand to to be perceived it's
16:13not i don't want it to be from a standpoint that you have to know everything about wine to enjoy wine
16:19that's why when i talk about wine i talk about the wines that uh we have you know in the in the d-way
16:24sellers lineup it all has grown with you know my palate and really just understanding you know go at your
16:32own pace your own speed you know when guys are talking about these expensive wines and these
16:36prices that you know these prices that can get outrageous uh we try to focus on you know where
16:43you are and i think that's the one thing that we try to do throughout the entire time so you know as i
16:48mentioned you know we we recently came out with uh our first white wine which is a shenanblanc and i
16:54think the reason for sitting down with the team was just talking about how napa is only known for what
17:01chardonnay and you know sauvignon blanc but we wanted to also show that napa can make some great
17:07wine some great white wine and that and then block as you know um andrea as we talked about this is
17:13one of the best um you know these are one of the best grapes and wines out there so to be able to jump
17:18into the chenoblanc world to be able to jump into the white wine world for us coming out of napa
17:22something that's very important for us as a brand and something that i'm super and our team is super
17:27excited about so if we were uh to crack open a bottle of of d wade cellars chenoblanc and poured
17:36into our glass and give it a little swirl uh what would we what would we smell what would we taste
17:42what would the experience be like uh let me take you on a journey yes please so i feel that
17:55the d wade wine lineup really kind of explains who my wife is and let me tell you why okay right i feel
18:05that when you look at the bottles that wine come in right our bottles are
18:14definitely unassuming and sleek right it's sleek it's sexy um keep going
18:27my wife is listen let me let me finish i'm thinking of this on the fly so i i feel like you know i think
18:33the one thing about our wines and you know i kind of talked about this on the last live that i had
18:38with comment on a wind down um is not wanting wine too sweet and not wanting wine too bitter
18:45right that's the one thing that when i sat down i was like oh wait i'm not too spitter
18:52my wife is a good combination be careful now
18:55my wife is a good combination of both so when i tell you that things that come to you as a part of
19:02your experience my wine is a part of my experience in my relationship it's um it's very like i said
19:10it's unassuming but also at the same time it's powerful you know from the standpoint of the taste
19:15and the things that you taste once you once you sip this wine so and i think it i think it says gabrielle
19:22union yes yes and can we can we share and speaking of gabrielle union we have something that definitely
19:30uh personifies gabrielle union that we're that we're sipping on which is uh i don't know if you can
19:36see that yeah that's the red blend right yes that is our mcbride sisters
19:42so um so sissy you wanna you wanna uh talk through if people were to crack open a a bottle of mcbride
19:56system black girl magic what would they would be smelling oh take them on a journey i don't have a
20:02wife to compare it to but hold on let's see well i would say this is definitely this isn't
20:08this is a medium bodied wine but it's definitely round and very fruity and fruit forward and kind of
20:17like smooth and captivating and like sexy i would say if a wine can be sexy i don't know luscious
20:29luscious um i mean i don't know like based on that description who would you say this wine is
20:34everybody what would you say who would you say sexy sultry luscious who do your wine remind you of
20:44it reminds me of every powerful black woman that yes you know that we come across you know what i
20:51mean like we have four four adults uh quarantining in our house three of them are black women and it's
20:58it's literally everyone in your family the your favorite actors and musicians and athletes and
21:05those those those home girls that that uh give you that that smile when you needed it uh you know
21:11when you're trying to race through the grocery store we named this correctly then so you're saying we
21:16nailed it so black magic is definitely the name that this wine should have
21:23we flew through that i will say last saturday it went fast we got more for you we're not we're not my
21:29friends we got you so with that we have to we have to wrap it up and so but before we go um we want
21:36to say thank you so much for for joining us and thank you so much for sharing and please shout it again
21:42where people can get d-wade sellers um where they can check out your foundations let everybody know
21:47um yeah well first of all we want to thank you guys we want to we want to cheers you guys
21:55thank you what you guys have built um what you guys have built is inspiring for us as well and hopefully
22:01so many others out there uh we're big fans of you know not only uh the way y'all built it but obviously
22:07you know the way that y'all have continued to sustain your brand and uh and what y'all stand for
22:12standards of excellence yes the mcbride system i mean it's amazing story but some of the top
22:20winemakers in the business some of the highest rated wine that you will ever come across and that's just a
22:26source of pride and inspiration you know for everyone that's that's coming behind um thank you
22:31for setting that yeah so if you guys want to talk about the wade wines go to uh eddie wade sellers
22:38www.dwadesellers.com and uh it's an easy way to go on there and purchase our wine we try to made it we
22:45try to make make it very simple for everyone to go on there and be able to experience our wines and uh
22:50we we're young we're growing we're just trying to get to where the mcbride sisters are that's our goal
22:54yeah let's do it together and for all of you out there please go to mcbridesisters.com to buy
23:00mcbridesisters collection black girl magic and we're launching our wine school next friday so for
23:05all of you who want to learn about wine go to our newsletter go to mcbridesisters.com sign up for
23:10our newsletter and join our wine school yes thank you cheers thanks cheers you guys
23:24you
23:29oh
23:30oh
23:34oh
23:38oh
23:40oh
23:42oh
23:44The idea was we would take the wealth that we had created in our Sundial Shea Moisture
24:05business and we would invest that wealth directly back into black women entrepreneurs within
24:11our communities today we've invested in over 50 black women-owned businesses I'm excited
24:28and proud to announce that for our seventh one here we now have another 10 new investments
24:39and so I'd now like to announce our 10 winners
24:48congratulations Ken we're so impressed with your business we're so moved by the intentionality
24:58and you know the pillar in our communities has been our churches and to have somebody thinking
25:03about how we can make them stronger financially this is very important so we're going to invest
25:08another $5,000
25:14so congratulations
25:18congratulations
25:28thank you
25:37thank you
25:41thank you
25:55thank you
25:57it was so much fun making a popsicle recipe designing a recipe card
26:14and being able to try them ourselves I'm working on a book called be fearless
26:18it's going to give some advice that I've learned over 10 years of being an entrepreneur
26:25with our collaborator you can share docs so we can work together and make sure everything's up to date
26:31I hope the book is going to make a measurable impact on safety bees but also encourage social
26:36entrepreneurship at the same time
26:37legacy is um
26:43something that I never thought about having and then once you get it um it's harder to keep it I believe
26:50than it is to get it
26:52wow
26:52um
26:53so
26:54oh I do have a word but man I'm thinking about it
26:58um protection because you have to protect your legacy once you create one
27:03how are you protecting your legacy now um a lot of different ways it's not just like
27:07you know I mean really protect it you know the people that work for you
27:11the people that you hire the people that speak for you um the people that just represent you
27:18after you get to a certain point you have to let them know that they're representing
27:23your legacy not just you you know so they can't go out here and do you know whatever they want
27:28that we was probably doing prior because now people look at us
27:33a certain way and they they want us to you know they hold us accountable to certain things and
27:38now you as a person that works for me a person that's involved with me you have to carry yourself
27:44as such or you're not representing my legacy
27:50we as women pour so much out to everyone else it is like absolutely essential that we make time for
27:57ourselves i've also learned to calendar the things that matter so i'm really
28:02setting more boundaries so that i have more peace because for me that allows tranquility in the
28:07household
28:18Music
28:46Music
28:47tries to tear us apart and pits us against each other, but when we work together, we do some
28:54pretty amazing things. So empowering to see other black women really chart their own
29:02territory. And a lot of times people will walk it or they'll talk the talk, but Shane
29:07Wynne Share is actually walking that talk. I am phenomenal. I am dope. And the reality is that they look just like us, and they're investing in us.
29:27Many of you have lost loved ones or people in your community to COVID-19. We salute and support all of the first responders,
29:34healthcare professionals, and essential workers. Black people especially have been hit really hard
29:40in this time. Hopefully we can provide you with some information that can help us get through this
29:46troubled time and lead us on to better horizons. Outside of health, another major way this virus
29:52has affected us is our wallet. That's right, in our pockets. With the global economy coming to a screeching
29:56halt, we're now living in unprecedented times and people are hurting. Businesses are hurting. People
30:01have lost their jobs and small businesses are hurting. Now as you all may know, the government
30:06enacted a three trillion dollar stimulus plan to help out the economy. And of this three trillion
30:13dollars, 600 billion of it is for small and medium businesses. African Americans are the fastest
30:19growing entrepreneurs. The question is, how do you access those funds? Well, we are here to help you
30:26with that. If you're a black business owner, and you have fewer than 500 employees. I don't care if you're in a
30:31barber shop, a nail salon, a dentist's office, a car wash, a juice bar. If you own a business like that, this money is
30:39earmarked for you. The time to act has never been more important. And the clock is ticking. Because once that money is
30:45swept up, it's gone, and it's never coming back. So what do you do? Well, first off, it's important to know that when you do
30:52apply for the stimulus loan, there is no collateral or personal guarantees necessary. The loan gets wiped.
30:59You heard him right. The loan gets wiped out, but only if you keep all your workers employed. You also need to know you
31:06can only use that money to keep your lights on, pay your employees, etc. So keep the paperwork, please. Keep that
31:13paperwork. It's important. And that paperwork better said before February 15, 2020. Because y'all know. Now here's the good part. We have the
31:22plug to get your application completed at no cost to you. Use Upserve if you're a restaurant owner. Use QuickBase
31:28for all of the businesses. Log on to QuickBase.com to determine your eligibility, assemble your
31:35documentation, and find the right lender for you. Now is the time to be the change and do your part,
31:41okay? So what are you waiting for? Click the link below and follow the steps listed to get your money.
31:46Don't hesitate. Act now. Go to the website and apply. QuickBase.com. In this crisis, we've already
31:53lost too much. We can't afford losing your business too. Our communities need you now more than ever.
32:00This is not a slam dunk. This pandemic has really affected all of us. But there's a three-pointer
32:05at the buzzer. You can make this shot, but you have to do it together. And we're here to help.
32:35Bye.
33:05So the New Voices Fund was created to ensure economic opportunities and
33:16inclusion for women of color. We have so many women out in the world building
33:22businesses trying to create a better life for themselves and for their
33:27children and their families and their communities with very little support. Of
33:32every dollar that's invested in entrepreneurs black women receive
33:38something like .003 cents. It starts to show with some scale what can happen when
33:47you give these women the opportunities that they deserve and so that's that's
33:53the mission of the New Voices Fund that's why I was founded.
34:06.
34:14.
34:19.
34:25.
34:26.
34:26.
34:28.