- 3 weeks ago
Calling all moms and moms-to-be! Join us for an inspiring discussion where mompreneurs share their journeys of balancing entrepreneurship and motherhood. Get actionable tips and strategies for managing time effectively, overcoming challenges, and thriving in both roles while fostering strong family connections.
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00:00Tamika Rochester of Harlem Cycle, looking fab in that orange.
00:06We have LaKeisha Turner of Keisha Elise Cosmetics,
00:12Mommy and Me Clean Beauty, and Soraya Hawkins Band,
00:18Manifest Your Purpose, okay.
00:22Welcome ladies, thank you for being here.
00:25So if you don't mind, just give us an introduction.
00:30Who you are, what's your business, how did you get here?
00:33Well hi everyone, I am Tamika Rochester, owner and founder of Harlem Cycle.
00:38We are Harlem's first and only indoor cycling studio.
00:42We have two physical locations in Harlem.
00:44We have an on-demand wellness platform, we do international retreats,
00:48and we have an instructor training program to get more people of color to be in the fitness professional.
00:53I've been in business now about eight years.
00:56I have a 12-year-old son who will be 13 in 14 days.
01:00He reminds me every day, his birthday is coming up.
01:03And when we started, he was just four years old.
01:10Hi everyone, my name is LaKeisha Turner.
01:13I am the CEO and founder of Keisha Elise Cosmetics, which is a mommy and me clean beauty brand.
01:19We provide vegan and cruelty-free cosmetics for sensitive skin.
01:24I am a mom of three, so my children age from the range of 15 down to four.
01:31And I got started in my journey because I was really looking for something where moms and daughters could actually bond together through their cosmetics.
01:44Now that my daughter is 15, she shares a lot of the same products that I do.
01:48And I really wanted to create that space for moms and daughters to be able to bond together while they shop together in the same place.
01:55Hi, my name is Soraya Hawkins-Banda.
02:00I'm the very proud founder of Manifest Your Purpose, where we unapologetically celebrate the beauty and multidimensionality of black women.
02:09And sprinkle a little black girl magic everywhere we go.
02:11I started this company because I grew tired of not being able to find stationery products that reflected me and all of my beauty.
02:21So I decided to make them for myself.
02:23I have two kids.
02:24I have my oldest daughter, Daya, right here.
02:27Give it up for her.
02:29She just turned nine a few days ago, y'all.
02:31And then I have a two-year-old son who is at home with his dad.
02:35I'm super excited to be here with these amazing women today.
02:39Thank you all so much for being here.
02:40Give it up for him.
02:43So we're going to start with you, Soraya.
02:45And we're going to go this way.
02:47As a mom, what's your superpower now using that magic that you have in your business?
02:56I would say my superpower is knowing when to prioritize.
03:01I feel like a lot of times we use the word balance, but I think that that sets us up to feel imperfect.
03:08I don't like feeling like that.
03:09And so some days I know that I have to prioritize my business, and I don't let myself feel guilty about that.
03:16Other days, like my daughter's birthday is all about her, and I can't feel bad about not being able to get to my business.
03:21So I would say prioritize that for sure.
03:23I would definitely say for me, my superpower would be being able to balance between, you know, home and work.
03:35You know, I've been in business for three years, but I also came out of the education field.
03:39So I have some experience, you know, working with that parent and child relationship and balance.
03:45And so being able to be there for my family as well as, you know, work my business and help it grow are, I would definitely say, is one of my superpowers.
03:55I would say for me, it's more about giving grace, but giving grace to myself as a mother.
04:01You find in business, you give grace to your customers, to your team and everyone else, and you don't give it to yourself.
04:09And as a mom, I've realized, like, there are days that we're going to have cereal for dinner.
04:14We're going to have pancakes for dinner.
04:16And it's okay.
04:17The baby's going to be all right, and you're not failure as a mother because you did this.
04:22And so I just give myself that grace to know that some days you're going to be an excellent mom.
04:27Some days you're going to be an excellent businesswoman.
04:30Many times those won't happen on the same day.
04:32And I give myself grace to realize that it's okay.
04:36That's amazing.
04:37Thank you for saying that.
04:38I saw a lot of nods, a lot of this.
04:41What were some of the trenches that you've had to go through in your journey as an entrepreneur?
04:46I know we have so many.
04:48And you add on.
04:50She said, how long do we have?
04:51And you add on the additional life responsibilities, family responsibilities.
04:56But can you share some of those trenches that you've had and how you've overcome them?
05:02Well, when we first started, I still worked in corporate America for the first year.
05:07And so every morning, me and my 4-year-old would wake up at 5.30.
05:11We'd be at the studio at 6 because we had 6.30 a.m. classes.
05:15I would take in the daycare by 7.30.
05:17And I would be downtown in my office by 9.
05:19And then we'd do it again in the afternoon.
05:22I'd be back at my, you know, back at the studio, pick him up from daycare.
05:25And we're there.
05:26So every day, our day started at 5.30 and ended around 9 p.m. every single night.
05:32It was physically exhausting.
05:34I gained 50 pounds in my first year of opening a fitness studio.
05:37And my son, I noticed my son was getting colds more often.
05:43He was getting sick more often.
05:44I was getting sick more often.
05:46And it was just like one of those moments where I was like, I don't know how to get out of this
05:51because we weren't at the position that I could leave my corporate job.
05:55And when I first opened, I was a single mom.
05:56So it was me and him.
05:58And I didn't have the, you know, the streams to just be like, all right, well, we're going to be okay.
06:03I was like, no, we need to be good.
06:04So it was that trench for me was like realizing and, you know, having those long days, making me and my son sick.
06:12And we didn't really have a way out yet because the business just wasn't there yet.
06:18And then we finally, one day I said, we're never going to get out of this if I don't walk away from this company job
06:25and take the risk and realizing, you know what, if this is for us, we'll be okay.
06:29So I pulled myself out of that.
06:32And so far, I've realized it was better for all of us from a health standpoint, from a family standpoint.
06:37We're much closer as a family because of it, from just a mental health standpoint.
06:42And then my son grew up in the business.
06:45Like he knows how to run the business.
06:46Like I could leave him there by himself and he could run the business.
06:49And so being able to provide that for him is what really was like the motivating point for me to just get us out of that situation.
06:56That's amazing.
06:58I heard, I bet on myself.
07:01That's what I heard.
07:02Y'all heard that too?
07:03Yeah.
07:04What about you?
07:05I would definitely say access to funding.
07:08I think we all know that that is a consistent struggle with black-owned businesses and being able to find adequate funding to continue to grow their businesses.
07:19And it took me two years before I actually was able to fund my business on its own and get grants.
07:26And today we've raised $30,000 worth of grants.
07:29So it takes some time.
07:30Give it up for that.
07:30But staying the course is always important because you will see the reward in the end.
07:37What about you, Sarai?
07:39Any trenches and how did you pull yourself out?
07:42I'm going to try to pick one.
07:43I would say mom guilt is probably what I suffer with the most.
07:50My company is three, almost four years old.
07:53And when we were about almost a year in, I found out I was pregnant with my son.
07:59I literally was in the process of developing a new product when I went into labor early with him.
08:04So I remember being in the hospital with my laptop, like, trying to finish stuff.
08:10And I was like, what are you doing, right?
08:13And it's just always a tug and pull because you want to be there and present with your kids.
08:18But I have another kid, which is my company, that was really up and coming.
08:23I was the marketing manager and the shipping person and everything at that time.
08:28So it was just really hard to navigate if I neglect my company for a little bit.
08:34So many things aren't going to get done, but I can't neglect my kids.
08:38So I constantly went through that cycle.
08:40And I feel like what you said, just learning to give myself grace, has really helped me to come up out of that.
08:46But I still struggle with it at times.
08:48And I hear that from moms, and I think that's very natural.
08:52You love all that you do.
08:53You're a passionate person.
08:54Community sounds like it's also very important.
08:59And I know we don't do any of what we do alone, but we do a lot by ourselves.
09:05Can you share, any one of you or all of you, how community has played a part in your success and your journey?
09:12And what advice would you give to other entrepreneurs and mompreneurs specifically
09:17in using that community that they have?
09:21Well, I want to give a shout-out to a good friend of mine, Nikki.
09:23She's here in the front row.
09:25Hey, Nikki.
09:26Nikki owns Get Fit with Nick.
09:28And we just developed this amazing program.
09:30It's called Wellness Redefined by Finding Your Fit Over 40.
09:34It's geared towards women over 40, all from a total wellness standpoint.
09:40And I shout-out Nikki because this is one of those moments where I said,
09:44I want this to be great, and I can't do it by myself.
09:47And so recognizing that you can go so much further when you partner and reach back to your community
09:53and connect with them, and it doesn't take away from your brand, because we're both in fitness.
09:59And so many people will be like, isn't she a competitor?
10:02And I'm like, absolutely not.
10:03She's part of my fitness community.
10:05And so reaching out with someone in your community to help take it to the finish line,
10:09because there are moments where I'm like, we got a school project tomorrow.
10:12I can't do it.
10:14Nikki will pick up the ball for me, and this program is going to continue on.
10:18We've created a movement because I reached back to my fitness community and my friend
10:23to help us elevate it to the next level.
10:25So I say, as a mom, it's like looking for ways that you can elevate your brand
10:29through partnerships and collaboration.
10:31And many times it's within your community.
10:33That's where you'll find that support.
10:36Have you found that to be the same?
10:38Yes, absolutely.
10:39So community is extremely important to me.
10:42It's a part of our mission, and me being in education and kind of seeing the disparities
10:48of our community and working inside the classroom and being able to be in contact
10:54with many single moms who needed support and didn't have it, we actually created
10:59an educational scholarship fund for single moms, where we basically kind of bridged the
11:03gap for child care and any educational expenses for school so that they can actually finish school.
11:09It was one of my biggest struggles when I was a single mom, but I'm no longer a single mom.
11:13I just got married yesterday.
11:14My husband's in there, and she was beautiful.
11:17I saw her photo.
11:19So, you know, community is very, very important.
11:24You have to be able to connect with the people that are supporting you, and I think it's one
11:29thing to talk a good game, but actually be about it and really pour back into your community.
11:34So it's very important to me.
11:36I would say community is everything with Manifest Your Purpose in two ways.
11:43So, one, I want to shout out my team.
11:45You see the girls in the pink shirts and the Manifest Your Purpose shirts.
11:49Most of these women are my friends that knew, like, we come to Essence.
11:53We're vending two rows over, y'all.
11:55And I had to be vulnerable and ask for help, and they just come.
12:00Every year, the group gets a little bigger.
12:02They work.
12:04They help me in every single way.
12:05I would not be able to do what I do without them.
12:08And so that's so important.
12:10And then I'll say our digital community.
12:13Luckily, we've shipped orders to women organizations all around the world.
12:17I've been traveling before, and people walk up to me in the airport and be like, Manifest Your Purpose?
12:21And I'm like, okay, sis, but that's what we try to develop.
12:26Any black woman that wants to feel more prideful, that wants to celebrate herself, you're automatically a part of our community.
12:32And I feel like that's a staple for our company.
12:35That's so awesome.
12:36Y'all are always paying it forward and bringing people along with you.
12:39So I love that.
12:41Share with us if there were any lessons that you learned that you want to kind of also pay it forward to others and say,
12:48This is something I wish somebody would have told me, so let me go ahead and tell you.
12:53What's something that you could share?
12:56I wish when I first started my business, someone told me it's okay not to be perfect.
13:01It's okay to make mistakes.
13:03It's okay to show that you are not, don't have it all together.
13:08Because that's what makes you human, and that's what makes people connect with you.
13:13I remember my first, there was one Sunday, it was just me and my son.
13:17I was teaching class.
13:18He's five years old.
13:19He's in the front lobby checking people in because he know how to work the desk.
13:23And I was teaching class, and he knocked on the door, and he was like, my head hurts.
13:27And I was like, mommy got 15 more minutes, son.
13:29Like, hold it together.
13:30And then after class, like, class ended, and he threw up.
13:35And I felt horrible.
13:37Because I was like, my baby was sick, and I was just like, wait, you know?
13:42And I was like, in that moment, if I had just said, y'all, my baby's sick, class is going to end a little bit early,
13:48everybody would have been like, okay, we'll see you tomorrow.
13:50No big deal.
13:51But I was like, I have to show them that I got it together and that I'm a perfect businesswoman and that we are good.
13:59And to this day, it haunts me that that happened and my son wasn't feeling well.
14:04And I was like, well, you just give me 15 minutes.
14:07And, you know, to this day, I think all of my clients would have been like, it's perfectly fine.
14:13And so that was a moment for me to give myself grace and say, you know what?
14:16We're not perfect right now.
14:18I don't have a front desk manager, and my five-year-old needs me.
14:20And I'll see y'all tomorrow.
14:23So that is the biggest lesson is just showing up as who you are and showing those imperfections that make you human and make you relatable.
14:32And that's what is really what develops that community that we all need.
14:36Yeah, from a place of authenticity, it sounds.
14:38I love that.
14:40I would definitely say entrepreneurship is lonely sometimes.
14:46And I wish that was something that someone would have told me when I first got started.
14:52Everyone is not going to believe in the vision that you have, right?
14:56So you're going to have to be able to stay the course even when it gets hard.
15:01And being able to pour back into yourself, giving yourself that self-care and that self-love is the thing that's going to be able to keep you going in those hard times, whatever that may be.
15:13You know, because the reality is, as a business owner, your personal and your business, they flow into each other.
15:20So sometimes things are hard on the personal front.
15:23Your business may be great, but your personal life may not be.
15:26So you have to be able to not only balance, but take the time to really think about what your vision is and what you want and stay the course.
15:37I would say that the biggest lesson I wish I had learned earlier was that you have to fail in order to succeed, right?
15:52Can you say that again?
15:54You have to fail multiple times in order to succeed, right?
16:00So I remember starting out, there were just so many things I didn't know.
16:05I just had a passion to make stationary for black girls and black women.
16:11And I can't even get into all of the mistakes I made, but I needed to do that and I needed to learn those hard lessons so I would never make those same mistakes again.
16:21And how I feel like paying that forward is, I tell everybody I know, anybody that owns a business knows, I will have a whole conversation with you about how to avoid the mistakes that I made.
16:31And guess what? When you talk to somebody else, they'll tell you about their mistakes and that helps us all to move forward.
16:38So don't be afraid to fail.
16:41The only thing that you have to fear is quitting because then you might as well wash it all away.
16:45So, yeah.
16:46Nothing beats a failure but a try.
16:48I got that from that woman right there.
16:53So we have a few minutes left.
16:55Give us some amazing good news.
16:58What are some things going on with your business right now that you can share with us?
17:02What's coming up next?
17:05What's the wins that you've had that you're even, you know, shocked about?
17:09Give us the good stuff.
17:10I will also check out our Redefining Wellness by Finding Your Fit Over 40 events.
17:16First, for my ladies over 40, we have some amazing events coming up.
17:20We have a pool party even coming up.
17:22So check that out as part of Harlem Cycle.
17:24You follow us on Instagram at Harlem Cycle and you'll see all the details.
17:28Get your phones out.
17:29Yes, get your phones out.
17:31Follow at Harlem Cycle.
17:34Yes.
17:34Yes.
17:35We'll be heading back to Costa Rica next year.
17:38So if your ladies are into wellness, adventure wellness, where we have days where we're out
17:43doing these fun excursions and we come back and have a moment of just mindfulness.
17:48And also we do Zumba and dance class and African dance and all the fun cardio classes that we
17:53all love.
17:55So check that out.
17:56That's coming up next year.
17:57Payment plans are available.
17:59And just check out all of our amazing classes.
18:01We have so many great community events that come up in the summertime.
18:04Like outdoor bike rides, community hikes, all these different things.
18:09And if you're not in New York City, we do have an on-demand wellness platform where we
18:13have recipes for some of our top chefs within Harlem.
18:17We have me and my son working out, so family workout sections.
18:22We have some mat-based classes.
18:23So if you're not into cycling, we got dance classes.
18:26We have sculpt.
18:27We have all the different things.
18:28So check those all out.
18:30And I'm excited about all of those things because it's really what keeps me up at night
18:34on figuring out how I can make it even more fun.
18:38Awesome.
18:39Um, I, um, I would say that recently, uh, we found, well, I found out that we were the
18:46recipients for the NAACP and L'Oreal Inclusive Beauty Grant for $10,000.
18:52So we actually plan to take that money and, uh, start our educational scholarship fund in
18:58January of next year.
19:00So we'll actually be able to start the process and get that going.
19:04So I'm super excited about that.
19:05Congratulations.
19:08Um, well, as of about a month ago, Manifest Your Purpose has the number one card deck on Amazon.
19:16All of y'all just got one as a little sample.
19:20You can visit us in booth number 5011 if you want to buy a deck, honey.
19:23They are Tabx Brown approved, okay?
19:26Um, but I'll say another win is we just expanded our relationship with our biggest corporate
19:32partner, which is Goldman Sachs.
19:34We designed a lot of custom items for them.
19:37Some for an accelerator program that Keisha and I both did and others for other DEI initiatives.
19:43So that makes me really proud because that was a really big goal for us is to expand our
19:47B2B partnerships this year.
19:48So, yeah.
19:50Congratulations.
19:52Mompreneurs.
19:53Okay.
19:54They are in business doing business, standing on business.
19:58I have to say that.
19:59I love that.
20:01Okay.
20:01So please make sure you're following, you're supporting.
20:04And are there any entrepreneurs out here in the audience right now?
20:08Yeah.
20:09Y'all are here.
20:10Did y'all feel inspired?
20:11I know I did.
20:13So we have 16 seconds.
20:15Any last, any last words of encouragement?
20:18Yeah, please.
20:19Follow us at underscore Manifest Your Purpose on Instagram.
20:23And I would just say what you need to do every day is wake, pray, and slay.
20:28That's it.
20:29I love it.
20:30Yes.
20:32And if you guys would like to follow us, it's KE Cosmetics.
20:36So it's KE underscore cosmetics.
20:38So you can find us on Instagram.
20:41That's our, you know, biggest following.
20:43And then we also have Facebook and TikTok as well.
20:46But Instagram is probably where you want to be at because that's where we do all our announcements.
20:50And then follow us at Harlem Cycle.
20:53We're at Harlem Cycle.
20:55And my last words is, y'all, chase those dreams.
20:58You are not crazy.
20:59Go big.
21:00Yes.
21:01Go big and do all of it.
21:02And follow at B-E-A-S Bayou Skin Care.
21:08Period.
21:08Period.
21:09Eczema Hair Care, Probiotic and Herbal.
21:12Thank y'all so much.
21:13And oh yeah, DM us Slay My Scout.
21:16We have a discount code special for Essence right now.
21:18Slay My Scout.
21:20So make sure you DM Beas Bayou Skin Care.
21:22Can we give it up for them one more time?
21:24They were amazing.
21:26Thank y'all so much.
21:27All right, don't go too far.
21:29We have more programming.
21:30We have Yandy Smith coming up.
21:31So don't go far.
21:32All right, thanks guys.
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