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00:00Good morning, everyone. I am Charity Dean, President and CEO of the Michigan Black Business Alliance.
00:05Happy to be here on this beautiful Tuesday.
00:07And good morning again.
00:09Good morning.
00:10Every time I see you guys on Facebook, you're doing something great. What's going on now?
00:15Yeah, you know, so last Wednesday we had an amazing opportunity.
00:19We had the city of Detroit come out. We had Visit Detroit because we talked about the NCAA Final Four.
00:24And the Final Four is coming to Detroit next March and April, right?
00:30March Madness, the Final Four will be, I think, that first weekend in April.
00:34So right now we're focused on making sure our members and black businesses get opportunities to get contracts, right?
00:40So we have a couple of things coming up at the Hub where we're helping people respond to the RFP.
00:46The RFP is open right now, so they're looking for companies that do decor and flooring and all of that
00:52for inside the stadium.
00:53So the NCAA will be at Ford Field.
00:57And then outside the stadium is going to be a footprint.
01:00Y'all remember how the draft was, how they sort of, like, blocked off everything and lots of activations.
01:05So we don't have the information for opportunities in the footprint yet, but we're going to be making sure that
01:11our members are getting ready for that.
01:13And then we're going to be doing March Madness opportunities all throughout March, all across the city of Detroit.
01:19So we're trying to make sure that black businesses and businesses get ready, get certified, understand what it's like, and
01:27are able to take advantage of the opportunity.
01:29You had businesses at the Jazz Festival.
01:34Yeah.
01:35The guests we had last week, this could only happen to me, right?
01:41Wait, so she was here and she talked about her...
01:44Cheesecake.
01:45Cheesecake.
01:45Yeah.
01:46She was there.
01:47Then the week before...
01:49Oh, do we have one?
01:50No, no, she was at the stadium.
01:51The week before, we had the kitchen.
01:54Oh, Q.
01:56Q.
01:56The kitchen by cooking with Q, yep, that's right.
01:58Okay, so she's at the...
01:59At the Jazz.
02:01Okay.
02:01So this guy I went to college with, right?
02:04Okay.
02:05Big, big dude around the country and stuff.
02:09Anyway, he gets here, he won't eat any food.
02:11He is a devout, devout vegan.
02:14Oh.
02:15Right?
02:18So I go meet him.
02:19I said, man, you want some breakfast?
02:20He said, no, no, no, no.
02:21He said, I'm going to wait.
02:22He said, there's one vendor.
02:25Really?
02:25There's one vendor at the festival.
02:27I said, really?
02:28Which day were you guys there?
02:30I didn't go.
02:30Oh, okay.
02:31I just met him for breakfast.
02:32Got it, got it, got it.
02:33He was there the whole weekend.
02:35Got it.
02:36So he says, I'll wait until they open.
02:39This one vendor has real vegan and it is really good.
02:44Yeah.
02:45He didn't want anything but a bottle of water and he waited.
02:48I said, you know, I just interviewed him, but it was hard to track.
02:51Yeah.
02:52So it is very important because when she was in here interviewing, her thing was, she went
02:57to an event and there was nothing like that.
03:00For her.
03:01Man.
03:02Yeah.
03:02And this dude, he, when I tell you, he's a devout.
03:05Yeah.
03:05Some of them, they don't play.
03:07They'll just be like, even when I go with you or she'll be like, I just tell the chef
03:10to make me something because they don't see anything for me on the menu.
03:13Yes.
03:13You know?
03:14That's what you said.
03:14And it's a lifestyle.
03:16It's a lifestyle.
03:16Yeah.
03:17So, you know, I was, we think alike, Mason, because I wanted to go back to For the Love
03:22of Cheesecake.
03:23Yes.
03:24And I want everybody out here to understand what this young lady said about Charity's organization
03:31that she now is in, I want to say she said she was in Ford Field.
03:37She is.
03:37She is.
04:07Yeah.
04:07And they are really intentional about making sure they have a local partners inside the
04:12stadium.
04:12They actually care.
04:13And so what we did a couple of years ago, we'll say, okay, well, what's the criteria?
04:17Because again, if I know the rules of the game, I can get my people ready to play the game.
04:20Right?
04:20And so we did a tour with them.
04:23They laid out sort of what the requirements are, and we made sure that our members were
04:27ready.
04:27And this was a couple of years ago.
04:29And Courtney, and For the Love of Cheesecake, she's grown so much in the past few years.
04:35But she is, she is there in Ford Field.
04:38And so if you want cheesecake, you go into Alliance game, you can still support black business
04:42at Alliance game.
04:43And that's the dope thing about it.
04:45You can still go and support Q when you go to the Detroit Lions game, because there are
04:49black businesses, Angie raised her hand on the radio.
04:53You guys are going to tell the people that you are.
04:57Because when I was watching, I was envying the people who can afford to do the new Lions
05:02experience for the opening day.
05:05And the first thing that came to my mind when I'm looking at these new luxury suites and these
05:11experiences that the Lions are offering is they actually have a vegan choice.
05:16So I thought about Q.
05:17And I was like, if it wasn't for you guys, that might not be there, you know?
05:22And I just think that's important on a lot of levels.
05:26But you can tell that you guys were the way that made her feel safe, secure.
05:31Like she had a team, like, what?
05:33We coming?
05:34We got what we need?
05:35You ain't going to say, you don't have that right?
05:37You don't have that right?
05:38No, we got it all right.
05:39And you still, I mean, I think the beautiful thing about the entrepreneurs that are thriving
05:43and at Fourfield is they still got the receipts, right?
05:46They're doing the work day in and day out.
05:48We just get to say, hey, we know this person.
05:51We can be the connect.
05:52We can be the plug.
05:53But there are black businesses that operate in excellence every single day.
05:56It don't have to be a hookup.
05:57You know what I mean?
05:58They're doing excellent.
05:59They have excellent numbers.
06:00They are running their businesses with excellence.
06:03And so we get to say, well, we're going to connect you.
06:05And we're doing that with, you know, Fourfield.
06:07We're doing it with the NCAA Final Four, the Renaissance Center Project.
06:12We go to those community meetings.
06:13I'll be there tonight, every Tuesday night.
06:16They are talking.
06:17We're talking to the city of Detroit, talking to Bedrock about what the new space is going
06:22to look like.
06:22And please believe Charity Dean is there.
06:24I'm talking about what does this do for black business and how can we make sure that black
06:29businesses will thrive in this new development?
06:32I guess that's what I'm trying to say, because I know what you just said, but it's something
06:37about, like, you know, I'm from Detroit.
06:39Like, you know, when we go outside.
06:41I'm a big girl, Angie.
06:41Right.
06:42I feel like these companies sometimes might have taken us for granted.
06:47They have.
06:47And your organizations say you're not going to do that.
06:49That's exactly right.
06:50That's why we exist.
06:52And I say this all the time.
06:53You guys know, I used to work in the former Mayor Duggan's administration, right?
06:58I was the director of civil rights.
06:59And what I did not see, I saw folks sort of advocating for their own interests, right?
07:05There's this group here, this group here.
07:07But I did not see a black business group advocating.
07:10And I know because if they were, they would have been calling me because I was the director
07:13of civil rights.
07:14So I was doing, like, little black business crawls here, this, there.
07:18We started this organization because there was a need.
07:20This is a black city.
07:22And we have to say that.
07:23And there's nothing wrong with saying black.
07:25Let's also say that.
07:26It's not a bad word.
07:27Right.
07:27Right.
07:28It's how we describe ourselves.
07:29Right.
07:30So we got to say it.
07:31And this, this, we are the largest black city in America.
07:35And so we have to ask ourselves for the, for the folks, the powers that be, folks that have
07:40land and have access and have wealth and have privilege here.
07:44How are you engaging and thinking about the majority in this city?
07:48We're not the minority actually in the city.
07:50We are the majority.
07:51So what is your plan to make sure the majority has access, access to land, things that were
07:56stolen from us as a people, right?
07:58I mean, my great grandmother couldn't buy, she went through hell trying to buy her house
08:03in 1973 in Rosedale Park, second black family to move there in 1973.
08:09So when you talk about a racial wealth gap, the idea that we could not access mortgages
08:15and land in order to be able to have capital, right?
08:18To invest into our businesses.
08:19This stuff was created on purpose.
08:21And so we have to dismantle it on purpose.
08:24Woo.
08:24That's great.
08:25Now, um, I love that.
08:26Go ahead.
08:28We're going to wrap, but this is how I want to do it.
08:30Okay.
08:31There are people out there who have new businesses just starting and there are some established
08:35businesses too.
08:36They hear the conversation today.
08:38They're appreciative of it.
08:40They really want to know how to get to you.
08:43Absolutely.
08:44So first I'll give you our address because we're there every day.
08:47Yesterday we had them.
08:49And you can just walk in.
08:50You can walk in.
08:50So that people understand that.
08:52You can walk in.
08:52And we are downtown, um, at 28 West Adams, suite 800.
08:57Say hi to Mario.
08:58When you walk into the building, he's the security there, but go on to the eighth floor and we're
09:02there.
09:03You can have free internet access, free printing.
09:05We got a massage chair if you stressed out for the day.
09:08And then our staff is there to help you.
09:10So whether you are just starting a business and you have a question or you're an established
09:14business and you want to join, you can come to our office any day, Monday through Friday,
09:18nine to five, we're open.
09:19And then we're online.
09:21So we're on Instagram, LinkedIn, and Facebook and it's Black Biz Alliance.
09:27And then we have a website, which is www.blackbizalliance.com.
09:32But I always tell people, follow us on Instagram or follow us on social.
09:36So, you know, I'm, I'm not just talking stuff, right?
09:38You can see the events.
09:40Is that B-I-Z?
09:41B-I-Z, blackbizalliance.com.
09:43But that's also at Black Biz Alliance on Instagram, on Facebook and on LinkedIn.
09:48Well, you guys have brought us some great guests.
09:51We look forward to more.
09:52Yes.
09:53Yes.
09:53We'll be back next week.
09:54They're very fascinating and they share a great information and they allow the rest of us an opportunity to go
10:02visit them.
10:03Yes.
10:03Or participate and share our money, our wealth, with their wealth.
10:07Yes.
10:08And, and get goods and services.
10:10Thank you, Attorney Charity D.
10:11Thank you so much.
10:13We love you.
10:14Yeah.
10:14I love Tuesdays, y'all.
10:15Perfect.
10:16Girl, you doing it.
10:17I'm telling you.
10:18And I, I know I got to go, but I just want to say this real quick to you because
10:22it really
10:23touched my spirit, the girl with the, for the love of cheesecake, because she's young
10:27and she had an idea and she was willing to put in the work.
10:31Yeah.
10:31And with you guys' assistance, she's in Ford Field now.
10:36Yeah.
10:36That.
10:36That's amazing.
10:37That to me is inspiring to an up and coming entrepreneur.
10:41Put the work in, you can get it.
10:43That's right.
10:43But you guys are ready to assist.
10:45We'll be talking.
10:46All right.
10:46See you all next week.
10:47I love you.
10:48Attorney Charity Dean, Black Biz.
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