- 5 weeks ago
Black women are boldly shaping the future of food and wine, leading with vision, cultural depth, and an unapologetic commitment to excellence. As restaurateurs, winemakers, and journalists, they are transforming the industry. This panel celebrates those who are setting audacious goals, challenging norms, and using their platforms to elevate culture and community. Whether building acclaimed restaurants, crafting compelling narratives, or launching visionary brands, these women are forging paths that leave a lasting legacy.
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LifestyleTranscript
00:00Okay, the next panel is called Bosses at the Table.
00:04This is a very, very good one.
00:05We'll have some insightful conversation.
00:08I want to bring out, they're changing the game
00:10through cuisine and story.
00:12I want to bring out the panelists, Ingrid Best.
00:15She was just out here.
00:16Come on out, Ingrid.
00:17Give her a round of applause.
00:20Ingrid, Ingrid, Ingrid, woo!
00:24And then we have Adina Bayo.
00:28Adina, oh yes, it's giving sparkle.
00:31It's giving chic, I love it.
00:33And our moderator, Nina Oduro.
00:36Come on out.
00:39Y'all have a great conversation.
00:44All right, how y'all feeling?
00:46Woo!
00:47So I'm really excited about this conversation
00:49because it's all about girl bosses, okay?
00:52And I have a company that focuses solely
00:55on women bosses in the food industry.
00:57So this is just everything I love and more.
01:00And to get started, I want to delve right into the early days,
01:05before you became a boss in the food industry.
01:07So for Adina, you own several restaurants.
01:11And for Ingrid, you are a CEO in the wine space.
01:14And before you even got here, there had to be something that catalyzed your entrepreneurial spirit.
01:22So let's start there.
01:23What was it in your journey, in your pathway, that made you say, I do and I can be an entrepreneur
01:30and not just want an entrepreneur in the food space?
01:33So, Adina, what was that?
01:35Ingrid, you go.
01:36First of all, happy 4th of July for everyone that's here with us today.
01:43We appreciate you spending your day with us.
01:45Ah, what was that moment?
01:48I think for me, you know, spending 20 years in the wine and spirits industry and working
01:53for some of the biggest brands in the world, I found myself always very much so giving my
02:01all to what I was doing.
02:03And at the end of the day, I didn't own any of those brands.
02:07And I realized, I was like, you know what, all these years I've given so much of myself,
02:12I need to trust myself and I need to have the courage to do it for myself.
02:17And it had always been a dream that was in my head and my heart to have my own brand.
02:23But I think it was the realization that, like, here you are, you know, giving your all to this industry
02:29and you don't own any of this.
02:32You don't own any of this.
02:33And so for me, it was really unlocking the courage to bet on myself.
02:39And I can't tell you exactly the moment because, like I said, I've carried the dream in my head
02:44and my heart for many years.
02:47But I can tell you that it definitely was a moment where the courage was louder than the fear.
02:55Yeah.
02:55Oftentimes, you just know when that moment is, right?
02:58No one's going to have to tell you when that moment is.
03:01What about you, Adina?
03:02So, first of all, it's an honor to be in here.
03:07I think for me, it started very, very early.
03:12I was, my grandmother raised me.
03:19She raised me in a little village in Africa.
03:22And one day, we had, our house was literally in the market space.
03:28Like just a bustling market like this in a house and my grandmother was like the epicenter of market.
03:38And there were women from all over the village that would come every Saturday to sell their goods.
03:45So, this one particular Saturday, my grandmother left me at the house.
03:50And this lady had just traveled from her village to our house.
03:54She had her baby on her back and she had her goods on her head.
03:59And she said to me, oh, I need to leave my goods here and come back.
04:08And I remember saying to her, yeah, you can leave it here but we're going to charge you.
04:13And my grandmother never charged.
04:16She always just did things for people and she never charged.
04:19And she said, how much?
04:22That was like $5.
04:23And the lady gave us the $5 and me and my cousin ran off.
04:27And we left her goods there.
04:29We ran off and we was living the best life that day.
04:32And when the lady came back, somebody sold her goods and came back looking for it.
04:41And me and my cousin was coming back and it was like, oh, Adina, grandma's looking for you.
04:47I was like, why?
04:49And when I went up there, my grandmother said, did you take money from this lady?
04:55I said, yes.
04:56And my grandmother said to me, you know what, Adina?
05:01Adina, you are smart, you are kind, and you are very special.
05:09But what you did was wrong.
05:12You're going to make money, you're going to make money the right way.
05:16And my grandmother proceeded to whoop my ass and said to me, if you want to do business,
05:23you got to do it right and you got to take care of the people that are around you.
05:28And that stayed with me.
05:31She said to me, you're going to do business, but you got to do it right.
05:35So from that moment on, I knew business is what I was going to do, but I was going to do it right.
05:40Yeah, absolutely.
05:41And here you are now.
05:43Give her a round of applause.
05:43Give both of them a round of applause.
05:45Because it's not easy once you have that initial thought and feeling and desire to get where you are.
05:53And I've listened to some of the other planos.
05:55And as women, we know that there are challenges along the way.
05:59But I don't always want to frame it around those challenges.
06:02Because I do think being a woman can be an asset in these spaces.
06:06So let's talk a little bit about that.
06:08What is it that you believe, as a leader, as a woman leader, you bring to these leadership tables?
06:15And how does that get you far or further because of that?
06:21Listen, I believe being a woman is a superpower.
06:25All life comes through us.
06:27So if that doesn't make us powerful, I don't know what does.
06:32But I realized early on that women in leadership play such a pivotal role, right?
06:38Because the reality is most industries are very male-dominated.
06:44And so unless young people see women in leadership, it is really difficult for them to aspire to be leaders.
06:53And so I think one of the things that is really important for me as a leader is to make sure
07:00that I'm an example.
07:03It's like what your grandmother said.
07:04If you're going to do it, do it good and do it right.
07:07And so one of the things that I've done for many years is mentorship.
07:13You know, I spend a lot of time offering my time to young women
07:17who have aspirations across a number of different industries, not just wine and spirits.
07:25The other thing is, in building my brand, I tapped five black women to build the brand with me.
07:31I gave them all equity because, listen, their time and their energy and their expertise deserves it.
07:38And so I think it's also making sure that my business model reflects something that I'm proud of
07:44and that people can, I think, duplicate or at least consider duplicating.
07:51But I think being a woman is such a special thing.
07:54I think we often don't realize that our softness and our strength and all these different facets to us are really valuable.
08:04And we make really good leaders, you know, and I don't think we hear that enough.
08:11And so I'm very proud to be a woman that's been in a leadership position for some time now.
08:16Yeah, absolutely.
08:17And I'm hearing all these, like, elements of, like, community-centered and all the things that men can do.
08:22I know we can do, too.
08:24But bringing elements of that mentorship and care and leadership into that space is really important.
08:30What about it, Adina?
08:31What about you?
08:32What do you bring that is an asset?
08:35I think just, and I'm going to say this, and I mean it from a really good place.
08:43Look at history.
08:46Look at black women.
08:48And I'm not just talking about Harriet Tubman, right?
08:55Who in our history risked their own freedom to go get other people back, right?
09:03And I think sometimes we as women, we forget that we are nurturers just from the gate.
09:10I ain't read by no other man that racist freedom to go get some folks from the south.
09:16You?
09:17No.
09:18But women have always been at the center of black culture.
09:24We are, you know, I have a soulful brand, right?
09:28We're a cornbread farm to soul.
09:29It is food in our black community that has been able to raise money, whether it be the fish fry.
09:42You know, how many times a church needed something?
09:45It was women that was leading those fish fries, right?
09:48It was women that started cooking in this country from straps.
09:54You know, they cook at the master house.
09:56They didn't want it inside the pig.
09:58They give it to us.
09:58Guess what did we do?
10:00Some chitlins, right?
10:02They didn't want the pig feed.
10:03What did we do?
10:04We are creators.
10:07And we are always creating things.
10:11So when I look at my brand, I look at it this way.
10:14This is the food of survival.
10:18It's the food of culture that was started and led by women.
10:22So every day I wake up, I understand I stand on the shoulders of very powerful women.
10:29And I have to pay that forward.
10:32I'm understanding I'm building something that have to outlay me.
10:37I'm not doing this so the next generation of women can come and beg for a seat at the table.
10:42No, I am creating this so you guys already have a seat at the table.
10:46This is what this is about.
10:48Yeah.
10:49Yes, girl.
10:50Preach.
10:52Everything you both said is just on point and resonates with me.
10:56And Ingrid, you mentioned one thing as you were talking about sort of being that asset
11:02in the room with your leadership.
11:04You brought on other people, right?
11:06You're not going alone.
11:07You're going together.
11:08Whenever I talk to leaders, everyone has their personal board of advisors that we talk about.
11:16Who is on yours?
11:17And whether it's a person or type of person or skill, who do you keep around you to make
11:22sure that you're centered, you're driven, and that you have the will to move forward?
11:29Yeah, you know, I'm going to share something very personal.
11:33For so many years, I was so focused on pouring out into everyone else that I had forgotten a bit
11:41about what I needed.
11:43And so when I went on this entrepreneur journey, one of the things that I realized is that,
11:48you know, I had a lot of mentees.
11:51I didn't have as many mentors for this season in my life.
11:56Because I think every season is a different season.
11:59In this season, this is a real different season for me.
12:02And so I have been really, really blessed to have women in my life who are friends,
12:09but also have now very much become advisors and mentors and safe places for me on this
12:17entrepreneur journey.
12:18Because listen, entrepreneurship is hard.
12:22It is not easy.
12:23Forget what you're watching on the gram where everybody's trying to make it look so perfect.
12:28It is the worst sizzle reel you'll ever see.
12:31It's hard.
12:32And so I've been really, really blessed to have some women like Monique Idalette-Moseley,
12:39who is the founder of Rain Ventures, who pours into me in ways that I've never been poured into.
12:45Valisha Butterfield, who's a dear friend who also was having one of her film screens today here at Essence.
12:52And so many other women who I've been really fortunate to get close to, to have a sisterhood with.
12:59And again, I think in every season of your life, what we can't forget is, yes, being a mentor is great, right?
13:06We are setting up this table for the future, but we also need our arsenal of folks that are looking out for us.
13:14So it's a great question, and I do have them in my life, and I'm blessed to have them.
13:19And it's critical.
13:20It's critical.
13:21At every stage in your life, you should have people that you can go to and have those real and honest and vulnerable conversations.
13:29And not just from a personal standpoint, but from a business standpoint.
13:34Who are the people that are going to guide you and give you that roadmap and tell you the things that you need to know?
13:39So I am blessed with them.
13:41I keep them close.
13:42I honor them.
13:44And I really respect their time.
13:46Absolutely.
13:47And it takes time to even invest in those relationships and pour back, right?
13:51For sure.
13:52Reciprocal relationships.
13:53Adina, what about you?
13:54Who's on your personal board of advisors?
13:57I think for me, I look at it a little different.
14:02There is power in proximity.
14:06I believe that the closer that I am to the everyday woman, the more hungry I am going to be.
14:15So for me, I want to stay close to that single mother that is working two jobs to take care of her kids and send them to school.
14:27There is power in that.
14:29I want to stay close to women that are doing.
14:33And don't get me wrong.
14:35I have the group of women that I reach out to when things get hard.
14:42Pinky Coles, one of my friends.
14:44But for me, I found true power in proximity.
14:48Because let me tell you something.
14:51Nobody is coming to save us.
14:54Ain't nobody coming to save us but ourselves.
14:59And the closer and the quicker we get to each other and we form this bomb and understand that together,
15:07we are stronger as women, the easier our life is going to be.
15:13So I stay close to my sisters and I don't care.
15:16I'm talking about the one that is working at McDonald's, the one that's behind the counter.
15:23That's where I find my power.
15:25Because in her struggle, I find my strength.
15:29So for me, it's the everyday women that build me up.
15:33I really love that perspective because we all have everyday women in our lives,
15:37everywhere, in our families, every church, wherever that is, right?
15:42But to frame it in that perspective is so important because they're so central to
15:46growing a business as well and catering to the community.
15:49And with that, I have to take it back to every day you work, you get money, you hire people.
15:58But what about home, right?
16:01Let's get real about home life.
16:04Who is Adina or how are you, I don't even want to use the word balancing.
16:09How are you balancing or not balancing?
16:11What is at home, whether it's your family or yourself or whatever that is.
16:17Tell us a little bit about what that looks like at someone at your level of leadership.
16:22Yeah, I mean, to your point, I'm the everyday woman.
16:29You know, at home, this hair is not slicked down.
16:33I walk around in my fro.
16:35I'm comfortable.
16:36I love art, so I spend a lot of time visiting museums, visiting artists, going to artist studios.
16:45It's my joy.
16:46It's my therapy.
16:48I love to cook, you know, for so many years because my career has kept me at a meeting,
16:55at a restaurant.
16:56I'd much rather be at home cooking a good meal.
16:59One of my favorite things to do on the weekend is to go to the farmer's market.
17:05I love my farmer's market community and rest.
17:10You know, what does my life look like at home?
17:12It looks like resting so that I can have the energy to do what it is that I do on a day-to-day basis.
17:19We put so much into work.
17:21I mean, so much of my day is spent in work that I've really started to master what it looks like
17:31when I'm taking a break.
17:33And so a lot of rest, a lot of enjoying the couch, you know, a lot of not feeling guilty about that.
17:40But art is a big part of my life in general, so I try to spend as much time close to art as possible.
17:47And family when I can, you know.
17:52I haven't been able to spend as much time with my family.
17:54My cousin, Danielle Best, is in the audience, and I'm so happy.
17:59And because I don't get to see my family as much as I'd like to because entrepreneurship requires so much.
18:06But I'm an everyday girl from around the way.
18:09I love that.
18:09And I think a lot of people assume they see us in this capacity.
18:13But no, I'm a grandmother, I'm a mother, I'm a, you know, I'm a daughter, I'm a sister.
18:19And those are the things that are really important to me.
18:22Yeah, I think you're right.
18:24Sometimes people hear the term CEO and they automatically detach it from what everyday may look like.
18:30But it sounds like you have a lot of intention around creating time to do the things that you actually love.
18:35Adina, what does that look like for you?
18:38So, I'm a mother, I'm a wife, and I'm a business owner.
18:45And there is no balance in that.
18:49There just isn't.
18:51And some evil ass men sat in some corner and said, oh, women should have a balanced life.
18:58That was a damn lie.
18:59Because let me tell you something, me being here this weekend means I'm going to miss my daughter
19:05coming home from camp.
19:07And there's a performance that they do at her camp tomorrow that I'm going to miss,
19:11that my husband is going to have to attend to.
19:14But I'm here for my business, right?
19:22And all I got to say to women is this.
19:29Understand and be comfortable with doing your best.
19:32Just understand that today, someone is going to be at a losing end of your day.
19:40And as long as you know, you give it all you had.
19:45And as long as you know that beneath all of this, your intentions are good.
19:52The vision is there for everybody to win.
19:55And they may not all be winning at the same time.
19:58Some days my business lose because my family is winning.
20:02And sometimes my business lose more than my family.
20:06So I have come to the notion that everybody is not going to win all the time.
20:13And that I am just going to be able to do the best I can today and ask for mercy and be patient with myself.
20:22Absolutely.
20:23That's all.
20:24Absolutely.
20:25So I have one last question for you.
20:27And yes, you said at the end of the day, you're here for this business.
20:32And so let's talk about this business, right?
20:35What is it that you are looking to see for your business in the future, right?
20:42What is it?
20:43What is this big vision that we should all be invested in supporting you in this business?
20:48And for Ingrid, this is a globally, you're looking to make a globally known wine company.
20:55And for Dina, it's a, you know, global restaurant empire, you know?
20:59And those are audacious.
21:01But you can't be audacious without all of us knowing about it and supporting it.
21:04So what is it that you're seeing for your businesses for the future?
21:07Yeah, well, listen, I'm so blessed to do what I love.
21:13So first of all, I think for me, when I think about my future, I'm thinking about today.
21:18And right this second, I love what I do.
21:22And for me, that is true wealth.
21:26That is abundance when you're able to do what you love.
21:30You know, we're just shy of two years old.
21:33I best wines will be two years old in October.
21:36And we've done so much that we're so proud of.
21:39So I think, again, today celebrating what we've been able to do.
21:43But listen, I've said it from the beginning.
21:46The brand is a global brand.
21:47We're available in the U.S. and South Africa and Ghana.
21:52And we're working on expanding to more markets, which we're doing and we're excited about.
21:57The brand does have national distribution, which we're really, really excited about.
22:03And ultimately, I've said it from the beginning.
22:05I'm building the brand to have a historical acquisition.
22:09I know what that looks like.
22:10I've worked for big companies.
22:12I've worked for big joint ventures.
22:14I know the sauce.
22:16And so for me, what does five, ten years from now look like?
22:21It looks like people being able to say, I sat in that audience at Essence.
22:25I remember this woman speaking.
22:27And wow, she did exactly what she said she was going to do.
22:32And that is to have the brand acquired.
22:34Absolutely.
22:34We're with you.
22:36Ingrid.
22:37Adina.
22:38So I think for me, we have a restaurant called Cornbread Farm to Soul.
22:44Take your phone out.
22:44Follow us on Instagram everywhere, Cornbread Soul.
22:48And obviously, the intention is to build something that outlived me.
22:54I want something that generations from now, people are talking about, like we talk about
22:59Madam C.J. Walker, right?
23:01I want to build something that outlived me.
23:04And let me tell you something, as a black woman doing business in America,
23:10just the mere fact that we wake up, we are a threat, right?
23:16Just the fact that we are up, you're breathing oxygen, you are a threat.
23:21Just imagine what we have built with no support.
23:24Look at the statistics.
23:26Black women get less than 1% of all of the financing in this country, right?
23:32But yet, we are the fastest group that start businesses, right?
23:38Just imagine if we had the resources to do what we really wanted to do.
23:45Imagine what a threat we would be, right?
23:48It's no mistake that less than 1% of the funding come to us.
23:52But nevertheless, we get up, we wake up, and we do this.
23:57And we do this for our community.
23:59We don't do it for them.
24:01We don't do it because we have money.
24:02We do it because we do it.
24:05We love our community.
24:07And this is exactly why I started Cornbread.
24:10I started Cornbread because I knew, if I know, if I don't do it, somebody else is going to start
24:18a national soulful brand that's going to be like Chipotle owned by white men, right?
24:24It's a Mexican brand, but it was founded by, I think, two white guys?
24:29No.
24:29I was like, no.
24:31Soulful is going to be founded, and it's going to be taken nationally, and it's going to be done by a black woman.
24:39So that is what this is about for me.
24:42It's about owning spaces.
24:44It's not just about taking up spaces.
24:46It's about owning the spaces that we occupy.
24:50Absolutely.
24:50I couldn't have said it better because y'all are doing it, and we're with you.
24:55So thank you guys so, so, so much, and have a good day, y'all.
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