00:00How did you meet attorney Dean? So I met her through MBBA. I was in one of their very first
00:07cohorts. They helped me with my business plan as far as budgeting, a lot of different things with
00:12our business, and we've been doing a lot of business with them as well. If what would you
00:17recommend to someone who was listening who's just getting started in business, what would you tell
00:22them? The first thing I tell all of my customers is to join these organizations in the city. MBBA,
00:28Black Leaders Detroit, as many organizations as you can as supporting black businesses is very
00:34important to be a part of because when I first started, I was doing things on a wing and a
00:38prayer
00:39and it worked out luckily, but when I got the organization and business plan and everything
00:49else through these organizations, it actually helped me align with my goals and it has helped a lot.
00:55That is excellent. That is excellent. If people want your services, what do they have to do?
01:02So all you have to do is contact us. We are on Grand River between Evergreen and Otter Drive right
01:08next
01:08door to the Huntington Bank. We're at 1-9-600 Grand River, the rear building. We are on social media.
01:15All social media is D-Town Vinyl. We got a hotline and if you see my truck rolling down the
01:21street,
01:21it has a sign on the side as well that D-Town Vinyl made, so you can pull that up.
01:26What's it called? Our store is called D-Town Vinyl.
01:29D-Town Vinyl. Yes, and a lot of people think we're a record store, but actually vinyl is what's used
01:34to
01:35apply to t-shirts. We started with vinyl, which is like a beginner way of doing things. So in the
01:43pandemic,
01:43a lot of people were making t-shirts just to make ends meet, you know, Detroit Hustles. So that's
01:49why we opened the store because there's nowhere else to purchase it within city limits. So that's
01:55kind of how we started and over the years we've evolved to printing. There's new processes like
02:01DTF, EcoSolvent. We print stickers, business cards, flyers, backdrops, retractable banners,
02:07everything you can kind of think of. So we've, I like to, my favorite phrase is actually pivot,
02:14don't panic. Because when things kind of changed and the pandemic ended, people started going back
02:20to work, business slowed down a little bit. We had to make sure we made that pivot into something
02:26different. Everyone likes to do hands-on things now. So we do craft parties. We do our own version
02:32of a paint and sip. We do our own version of gym shoe party. So we, we are also teaching
02:38our skills
02:39as well as not just, um, you know, we're kind of helping people flourish. Jessica, you have that stuff
02:46that people use when they have a cricket, right? Yes, that's the vinyl. That's what I'm talking about.
02:50I want to talk about that because a lot of people have crickets. It's a, it's a machine that you
02:55use
02:55at home where you make stuff. That's what's the vinyl. So that's the beginner version of things. So like I
02:59said,
02:59from the very beginning of hobbyists to full-blown designers, it reaches our customers. So your
03:05everyday customer may have, may have a cricket or a silhouette or a Roland, which actually cuts the
03:10vinyl. You design it in your computer, it cuts it, and then they apply it to t-shirts. Um, they
03:17make
03:17stickers with it. You can apply it to almost anything. A lot of people go to the suburbs, to those
03:23big box
03:23stores, not realizing that we're right in the city. Yep. Right here. You can get your stuff or your
03:28cricket right from, from Jessica. Wow. That is cool. Ass turnaround time. No, no more questions. No more
03:34questions, Your Honor. Motion to adjourn. There you go. We're located in Rosedale Park, right on Grand River.
03:43We're at 1-9-600 Grand River. That's 4-8-2-2-3. We're a little off the street, but
03:50right next door to the
03:51Huntington Bank, right up that driveway. Um, you can reach us on TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, all of
03:57our social handles are D-Town Vinyl. And then our phone number, 313-977-9470. You can call us. It's
04:06all
04:06a black-owned business, woman-owned business. I'm there. Take care of weddings, birthdays.
04:12Everything. Anything you can think of, family reunions, all that. Everything. If you want
04:16your headphones blinked out, we do that. Oh, Angie does. Yeah. Beautiful. We do all of that.
04:21Do that number again the same way. 313-977-9470. All right. D-Town Vinyl. D-Town Vinyl. Thank you.
04:33Um, uh,
04:34attorney, uh, when you meet a business, she brought up organization. Yeah. Uh, Black Business Alliance
04:42helps people organize. Give me the three first steps or. Yeah. I mean, I, I think you, so you
04:48join the Black Business Alliance. We are a community and our, our, our mission is just to wrap our arms
04:53around you as you go on your entrepreneurship journey. And you can find us, um, at www.blackbizalliance.com.
05:00We are at 28 West Adams every day of the week on the eighth floor. Um, and again, we're on
05:06social
05:06as well at Black Biz Alliance on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, all of the things, but yeah,
05:13we're a community and it is Black Business Month. So if you do nothing for the month of August,
05:18I would say support a black business, promote a black business, make a Facebook post about black
05:23businesses that you love, do something to help black businesses. Thank you both for coming in today.
05:28Thank you. Thank you. I appreciate it. Honored to meet you. Your brother felt so bad. Angie kept saying,
05:34but your sister, she can be in the service. And he kept saying, he kept saying, yeah, but I can
05:39build you a house.
05:41I want to serve.
Comments