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Speaker 1: Welcome to the show. I am Rashwan McDonald, the host

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Speaker 1: of Money Making Conversations Masterclass, where we encourage people to

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Speaker 1: stop reading other people's success stories and start planning their own.

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Speaker 1: Listen up as I interview entrepreneurs from around the country,

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Speaker 1: talk to celebrities and ask them how they are running

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Speaker 1: their companies, and speak with dog profits who are making

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Speaker 1: a difference in their local communities. Now, sit back and

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Speaker 1: listen as we unlock the secrets to their success on

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Speaker 1: Money Making Conversations Masterclass. Hi, I'm Rashan McDonald, our host

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Speaker 1: is weekly Money Making Conversation Masterclass show. The interviews and

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Speaker 1: information that this show provides are for everyone. It's time

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Speaker 1: to stop reading other people's success stories and start living

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Speaker 1: your own. My next guest is the founder afro Unicon,

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Speaker 1: the first black woman owned, fully licensed character brand in

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Speaker 1: major retail with sales over twenty million. How groundmaking brand

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Speaker 1: celebrate diversity and empowers women and children of color, inspiring

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Speaker 1: countless individuals to embrace their uniqueness and potential. Please work

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Speaker 1: with the Money Making Conversations Master Class. April Showers, April,

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Speaker 1: thank you for coming on Money Making Conversations Master Colss.

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Speaker 1: How are you doing.

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Speaker 2: I am living the dream. How about you.

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Speaker 1: You know, when I was reading this intro when he

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Speaker 1: says inspires countless individuals to embrace their uniqueness and potential,

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Speaker 1: extrapolat or expound on that for me, please, Well.

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Speaker 2: After unicorn was created because of who I am, I'm

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Speaker 2: a serial entrepreneur, and I don't know, we'll probably get

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Speaker 2: into the story later about how it's actually a creator.

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Speaker 2: I can say it now because it all ties in when.

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Speaker 1: You talk now the flow of the conversation.

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Speaker 2: Okay, So I am a licensed insurance agent. I was

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Speaker 2: a licensed real estate broker. Single mama to amazing young

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Speaker 2: black boys, one who I just dropped off to LSU

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Speaker 2: a few weeks ago and the other one's in high

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Speaker 2: school now. But back in twenty nineteen, a friend kept

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Speaker 2: telling me I was a unicorn over and over again,

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Speaker 2: and so finally I asked them, why do you keep

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Speaker 2: calling me that? He said, Well, because you're running the businesses,

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Speaker 2: you're raising the boys, you're a unicorn. And I said, Cortias,

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Speaker 2: I am a woman. That is what we do. He's like, no, April,

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Speaker 2: you do it at an extraordinary level. Trust me. I

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Speaker 2: date these women in LA and you are a unicorn,

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Speaker 2: like you do it at an extraordinary level. So I

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Speaker 2: didn't know much about unicorns. I kind of was tom

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Speaker 2: boyish and I was a boy mom. So I had

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Speaker 2: to go look them up and I saw that they

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Speaker 2: were unique, they were mystical, and I said, I'm definitely unique.

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Speaker 2: I'm all things black girl magic. And so I started

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Speaker 2: to use the emoji of the unicorn and my phone

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Speaker 2: over and over again, not with text or have any copy.

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Speaker 2: And then one day I looked at it and I said,

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Speaker 2: doesn't it represent who I am? Like, I don't see

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Speaker 2: myself in this unicorn. So then I went to find

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Speaker 2: one that looked like me, and I couldn't. So at

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Speaker 2: that point I was like, I'm going to create an

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Speaker 2: avatar for me. In creating it, I saw the potential

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Speaker 2: of wow, wait a minute, it's probably a lot of

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Speaker 2: women out there that felt what I was feeling, that

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Speaker 2: was probably dealing with some type of imposterum syndrome or something,

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Speaker 2: didn't know that they were unique or didn't know that

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Speaker 2: they had these qualities to be a unicorn. So I

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Speaker 2: then wanted to create a movement to find other women

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Speaker 2: entrepreneurs or those that wanted to join me on this

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Speaker 2: entrepreneurship journey and give them an avatar to represent who

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Speaker 2: they were. So when we launched after Unicorn on the

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Speaker 2: platform on social media, I really was targeting business owners

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Speaker 2: and I would specify on my page out they will

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Speaker 2: wear my shirt, and I would say, meet Latricia Leatricia

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Speaker 2: owns this business. She works nine to five two, she

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Speaker 2: does this, this, this is what makes her unique, divine

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Speaker 2: in magical. Be sure to follow her business and patriotize

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Speaker 2: her business. And then the movement started.

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Speaker 1: We've already told you got two boys. One you just

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Speaker 1: dropped off l s U. How are you balancing all this?

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Speaker 2: I am managing it.

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Speaker 1: The word balance and manages, not that you manage.

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Speaker 2: Because this is the thing. I don't believe that men

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Speaker 2: get asked that question. No one asked jay Z how

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Speaker 2: does he balance being a father and work?

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Speaker 1: Okay, hmm. I have not insulted you with the word balance.

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Speaker 2: No, no, no, But because to me, balance is even Wait, right,

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Speaker 2: I gotta get fifty here and fifty here to equal

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Speaker 2: one hundred. I gotta be a mom one er of

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Speaker 2: the time. I got to be a business owner one

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Speaker 2: hundred percent of the time. So I can't balance either

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Speaker 2: I have to manage those, so I give whatever I'm

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Speaker 2: in it. I'm given. All my kids are in school

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Speaker 2: right now, so I know I'm full CEO Mold right now.

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Speaker 2: Once I go get my babies out of school. My

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Speaker 2: sister knows all my calls stop at two thirty, so

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Speaker 2: when I can get them home. They're a little older now,

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Speaker 2: so I get them situation, make sure they've eaten, and

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Speaker 2: if I want to put on that sea hat, or

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Speaker 2: if I want to go out on a date, or

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Speaker 2: do whatever I can.

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Speaker 1: So you're out there dancing, you out there dating. You

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Speaker 1: just lid that little bad boy up in there, and

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Speaker 1: now you know the dating scene. You're business woman, you know,

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Speaker 1: you're motivator, you are a licensed you know I will

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Speaker 1: say what you can't do, and I'll be insulting right there,

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Speaker 1: because what you have not done is limit who you

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Speaker 1: could be and what you can achieve.

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Speaker 3: Now.

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Speaker 1: So in twenty and eighteen, friend of yours started calling

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Speaker 1: your unicorn. Okay, twenty twenty, we all know that's an

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Speaker 1: ad little period when you start talking into COVID and

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Speaker 1: it starts changing our whole outlooking perspective. And then after

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Speaker 1: that it's when you started kind of like a galvanizing

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Speaker 1: people in the Unicorn movement.

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Speaker 2: Oh, the movement started all day one. May twenty nineteen

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Speaker 2: is when the brand launched. Right May seventeenth, my son

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Speaker 2: went into the hospital May twentieth. Sorry, my son in

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Speaker 2: the hospital May tenth. I was reluctant to launch the

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Speaker 2: brand while my son was in the hospital, not knowing

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Speaker 2: he will be there for twenty days. With all the

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Speaker 2: encouragement from the people around me, I launched the brand

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Speaker 2: while he was in the hospital. When he got out

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Speaker 2: twenty days, my uncle died of a massive heart attack.

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Speaker 2: I got the call. Seventeen hours later. His eldest brother,

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Speaker 2: my second uncle, died of a of pneumonia. We got

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Speaker 2: a double funeral the following week. Then after that, six

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Speaker 2: months later, broke my grandmother's heart. She got spiraled down,

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Speaker 2: she died, and then a month later we were in

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Speaker 2: a global pandemic. But back all that up, I have

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Speaker 2: this mindset of all gas, no breaks. The marathon continues.

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Speaker 2: I'm from Los Angeles. Nipsey Hustle had just passed away

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Speaker 2: back in March. I had a pre launch a birth

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Speaker 2: birthday of after Unicorn with these women On April twenty eighth,

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Speaker 2: and I told them, look, I'm building something where we're

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Speaker 2: going to support each other and the marathon's going to continue.

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Speaker 2: That was before all this tragedy was getting ready to

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Speaker 2: happen in my life. But I had already poured in

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Speaker 2: these women to say, this is what we're building. We're

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Speaker 2: building this movement. So what they did is that they

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Speaker 2: pushed this movement with me, and so I the movement.

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Speaker 2: I just want to be very clear. The movement started

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Speaker 2: when we launched after Unicorn tifty had us jumped on

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Speaker 2: board in July, Alicia Keys jumped on board, Cherry Shepper

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Speaker 2: on it. And when I say jumped on board, I

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Speaker 2: would go on their comments and I would comment and say,

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Speaker 2: I mean, I'll go on a post and I would

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Speaker 2: comment and say, hey, have you ever seen after Unicorn?

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Speaker 2: Before I created a brand of women of color who

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Speaker 2: hustled follow the movement, and so they would click over

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Speaker 2: on my page. They would see what we were doing,

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Speaker 2: how I was highlighting other women, and they were like, oh,

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Speaker 2: this is something I could rock with. And it's been

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Speaker 2: organic like that from the beginning. We came out the

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Speaker 2: gates with the flags going. It literally was a marathon.

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Speaker 2: It was a whole race happening.

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Speaker 3: Please don't go anywhere. We'll be right back with more

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Speaker 3: money Making Conversations Masterclass. Welcome back to the Money Making

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Speaker 3: Conversations Masterclass hosted by Rashaan McDonald. Money Making Conversations Masterclass

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Speaker 3: continues online at Moneymakingconversations dot com and follow money Making

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Speaker 3: Conversations Masterclass on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

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Speaker 1: I love it. I love the fact that you know

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Speaker 1: is unique. But it was it galvanized people and that

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Speaker 1: galvil because people always ask me about marketing and they

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Speaker 1: always ask them about angle and branding. That you were

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Speaker 1: able to captivate people based on an idea of motivation, uplift.

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Speaker 1: We could do this together, you know, want all be

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Speaker 1: all dad thought process. Where did they come from?

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Speaker 2: I would say it was definitely instilled from me, from

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Speaker 2: my parents, my mom and my dad and my uncles.

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Speaker 2: So it was very heartbreaking when those two uncles passed away.

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Speaker 2: My grandmother, my family, my family. My name is April Showers,

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Speaker 2: so I was purposely named April Showers and I wasn't

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Speaker 2: as a real singer. I mean, I think I'm a

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Speaker 2: great dancer, but it's like this girl was destined to

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Speaker 2: be something that.

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Speaker 1: I think, why you think you're a great dancer. You

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Speaker 1: don't throw that out on my show and say you

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Speaker 1: think you a great because you put the word thank

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Speaker 1: you a great dancer and you put the word great

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Speaker 1: and think together, okay and stop.

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Speaker 2: I'm a great dancer and everybody know it except except

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Speaker 2: my kids.

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Speaker 1: There you go. I was wonder who was judging? You

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Speaker 1: think it's the kids. That's right. I've been there. I've

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Speaker 1: been there. Because that will throw doubt in you. Your

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Speaker 1: kids will you are great. You're a great motivator, You're

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Speaker 1: a great entrepreneur. Now when it comes to your dancing,

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Speaker 1: that's when your kids put that little doubt in your mind. Yeah,

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Speaker 1: which is always good. You need to be humbled by somebody.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, they definitely humble me.

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Speaker 1: Now the whole concept of because this is a video

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Speaker 1: interview but it's gonna be in for audio. I'm seeing

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Speaker 1: all these great different unicorns in the background. You have

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Speaker 1: a unicorn T shirt that you're wearing. Talk about the

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Speaker 1: development of the of these concepts.

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Speaker 2: So one of the first things you said on the

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Speaker 2: intro is I'm the first black woman to have a

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Speaker 2: fully licensed character. Brandon Major retail. It is a mouthful,

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Speaker 2: and most people, ninety nine point nine percent of the

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Speaker 2: world will be like, what the heck does that mean?

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Speaker 2: So I'm basically missus Walt Disney. I am the creator

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Speaker 2: of a character brand like Mickey Mouse, like the Star

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Speaker 2: Wars characters, Elmo, Sesame Street. I am the creator. The

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Speaker 2: products of Afri Unicorn sit on the shelves next to

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Speaker 2: those legacy iconic brands. So the way that I got

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Speaker 2: into is a lot of people think I'm sitting here

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Speaker 2: manufacturing all these products that have this huge warehouse as

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Speaker 2: a licensee. I do not have license or I do

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Speaker 2: not have any inventory. What I have as partners that

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Speaker 2: helped me manufacture these products. So in twenty twenty twenty

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Speaker 2: one August, because of the movement, there was a video

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Speaker 2: that went viral of a little girl wearing an afric

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Speaker 2: Unicorn shirt. Somebody who walked by her and said, I

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Speaker 2: love your hair. With all the confidence in the world,

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Speaker 2: she said, thanks, thank you, It's an afro. Everyone shared

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Speaker 2: it on all platforms, from Tina Knowles, Beyonce's mom, and

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Speaker 2: then Oprah Daily shared it, and then Oprah Daily shared it.

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Speaker 2: The comments were flooded with that's afric Unicorn's baby, that's

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Speaker 2: Africanuncorn's shirt. And then a buyer at Walmart saw it.

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Speaker 2: A buyer Walmart saw the comments, looked up after Unicorn

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Speaker 2: and said, I think this is something we want to

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Speaker 2: bring into our stores as a licensed character. So she

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Speaker 2: reached out to me, sent an email and said, Afri

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Speaker 2: Unicorn ex Walmart collaboration, would you consider bringing in Afro

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Speaker 2: Unicorn into party supplies?

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Speaker 1: Okay, okay, okay, where were you at emotionally now, because

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Speaker 1: I'm assuming that you had trademarked afro Unicorn, right, Okay,

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Speaker 1: so you knew to do dilages on that end and

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Speaker 1: then but when you were putting this on social media,

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Speaker 1: was the marketing or the product aspect of taking this

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Speaker 1: to store branding anywhere in your mind prior to Walmart

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Speaker 1: contacting you?

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Speaker 2: So the thought process in my mind, I talk a

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Speaker 2: lot about visualization and seeing things before they happen, but

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Speaker 2: not always trying to figure out all the details of it.

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Speaker 2: The thought process I had met in April of twenty

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Speaker 2: nineteen was the African and Korna is going to be

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Speaker 2: a household name in the worldwide brand. I used to

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Speaker 2: say it all the time, so I knew that eventually

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Speaker 2: it was going to get out to the world. But

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Speaker 2: like the rest of the world ninety eight ninety nine

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Speaker 2: percent of the world, I didn't know about licensing. I

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Speaker 2: thought that I have to sell Afro Unicorn to like

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Speaker 2: a Hasburrow, or at one point I thought I had

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Speaker 2: to sell it to Diddy. I'm not I mean seriously,

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Speaker 2: I just thought I was going to have to sell

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Speaker 2: it to somebody who knew how to get it into

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Speaker 2: mass retail. I didn't think because I didn't know. You

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Speaker 2: only know what you know, So I didn't know that

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Speaker 2: the little girl from south central Los Angeles could be

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Speaker 2: the person to still sit in the C suite and

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Speaker 2: get it out to be a household name and a

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Speaker 2: worldwide brand. But I always knew it would be I

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Speaker 2: just didn't know how well.

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Speaker 1: This is impressive because of the fact that you know,

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Speaker 1: there's so many clients and so many people in this

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Speaker 1: business want to get in worldmart, and the big fear

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Speaker 1: is being able to handle the requests. Now you're the

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Speaker 1: licensing business. You clearly explained to as Rashall, I'm not

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Speaker 1: making anything. I don't have a warehouse storing product. I

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Speaker 1: licensed my brand through other people walk us through that step.

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Speaker 2: When the buyer at Walmart reached out to me and

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Speaker 2: we set up the first call, she told me that

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Speaker 2: she wanted me to meet with two other licensees. At

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Speaker 2: the time, I just didn't say that that language. She

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Speaker 2: just told me the name of the two companies that

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Speaker 2: I can potentially interview to see if I wanted them

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Speaker 2: to create the party supply line. Because at this point

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Speaker 2: I think now, I think she already knew I'm bringing

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Speaker 2: this in to Walmart, and we just got to figure

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Speaker 2: out who was going to help us bring it in.

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Speaker 1: And the how.

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Speaker 2: The way that it works is that, like number one,

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Speaker 2: you have to trademark. So because I knew, oh yes,

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Speaker 2: the first thing that I did before I started out

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Speaker 2: for Unicorn was to get it registered, or at least

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Speaker 2: apply to get the trademark registered. Because I knew, based

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Speaker 2: off of previous businesses that I run, that I wanted

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Speaker 2: to build this one to sell. Read a lot of

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Speaker 2: books about it, and I knew that I wanted to

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Speaker 2: build it to sell. So the first thing I did

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Speaker 2: was make sure I got to registered. Second thing I

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Speaker 2: did was make sure I had an accountant. I had

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Speaker 2: no money but I wanted her to count all the

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Speaker 2: pennies and make sure they was all there because I

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Speaker 2: have a fear of going to prison and I didn't

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Speaker 2: want to do that. So I knew. I knew that

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Speaker 2: it was going to be big, and so before it

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Speaker 2: got too big, I need to make sure all the

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Speaker 2: ducks were in order. So I trademarked, I made sure

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Speaker 2: that I had the right accountant, and then I got

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Speaker 2: an attorney on board. But I do have a little

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Speaker 2: tip we could insert right here. I went through legal

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Speaker 2: Zoom originally to get my trademark. The problem is legal

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Speaker 2: Zoom cannot respond. Only an attorney can respond if they

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Speaker 2: come back with some questions. So you should just always

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Speaker 2: start with the attorney. To start with the trademark attorney

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Speaker 2: because they are required to respond to whatever they submitted.

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Speaker 2: So that's what the that I learned through this journey

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Speaker 2: because I had to get a lot of classes, a

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Speaker 2: lot of trademarks along the way.

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Speaker 1: But again, you're doing it the right way because again,

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Speaker 1: you know, you put together a business model, a business plan.

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Speaker 1: You shut I needed legal Bam check that out, re shot,

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Speaker 1: I needed a bookkeeper, slash a county check that out

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Speaker 1: because when it starts happening. You don't want to be scrambling,

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Speaker 1: and so many people start scrambling. But you sit down

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Speaker 1: and and it's so so much of a vision of

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Speaker 1: Walmart just called me, I need to get my act together. No,

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Speaker 1: it was before Walmart.

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Speaker 2: No, because that's where people mess up. Because I have

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Speaker 2: a saying, if you stay ready, you ain't got to

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Speaker 2: get ready. I took it from sugar Free. No, if

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Speaker 2: Walmart would have called me, I would have missed the opportunity.

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Speaker 2: If I didn't already have my stuff trademark, if I

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Speaker 2: didn't already have an accounting in place, if I didn't

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Speaker 2: already have an attorney that I knew, I would have

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Speaker 2: missed opportunity. I would have been trying to scramble and

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Speaker 2: grab and do all of this, and I would have

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Speaker 2: missed opportunity. So no, day one, you brought up something

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Speaker 2: that triggered me, and I forgot before even all of this.

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Speaker 2: While I was waiting for the trademark, I went out

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Speaker 2: on upwork and found someone to help me write a

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Speaker 2: business plan. I gave her the idea of what I had,

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Speaker 2: and then she did all the research to tell me

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Speaker 2: who were my competitors what were my strengths, what was

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Speaker 2: my weaknesses, what were the threats, what were the opportunities?

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Speaker 2: Like laid it all out for me, so I had

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Speaker 2: a clear direction going in mind. You no money made,

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Speaker 2: nothing happening, but I knew in order to build a

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Speaker 2: successful business, I needed all of this on the foundation.

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Speaker 1: I love the fact that when I sit down and

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Speaker 1: talk about it, because I just had a big beating

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Speaker 1: conversation with a bankrupt and you used tod reshine it.

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Speaker 1: If you're come into my office and you don't have

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Speaker 1: a business plan, that's going to be a real short

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Speaker 1: conversation because that means that you have not sat down

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Speaker 1: and got a clear grasp of understanding of what you're

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Speaker 1: trying to do. You just out there operating. No hope this,

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Speaker 1: I hope this happened. I hope when the open these

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Speaker 1: doors is going to happen. A business plan, he says,

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Speaker 1: is the driver's license to start in your business. And

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Speaker 1: that's why I hop it in front of people all

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Speaker 1: the time, because, like you said, it triggered you in

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Speaker 1: your conversation. But that was the number one thing that

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Speaker 1: really gave you the confidence to be able to get

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Speaker 1: the accountant, the confidence to be able to get the

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Speaker 1: attorney because you knew exactly where you were going.

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Speaker 2: Correct, correct, absolutely.

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Speaker 1: Now let's look at that. Now, got the Walmart mentor

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Speaker 1: two potential license sees your license, so you're license licenre

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Speaker 1: and there's a license see right? Yes, okay, cool? They

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Speaker 1: had two of them for you. How did you make

348
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Speaker 1: it a on which one you wanted to go with?

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Speaker 2: I would win both they both sold.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, how did they work?

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Speaker 2: Well, one handle just like the paper goods, so plates napkins,

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Speaker 2: and then the other one could do plates and napkins

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Speaker 2: as well. But then they also did all the accessories.

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Speaker 2: And when we dropped party, this buyer, I love her

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Speaker 2: to death. Her name I can't. I'm not gonna say

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Speaker 2: her name, but I love her. I'm gonna call her BC.

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Speaker 2: She she basically brought me into all these categories. So

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Speaker 2: I was going into party, but I had a bouncy ball,

359
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Speaker 2: I had plush and party. I had a hair bowing party.

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Speaker 2: I have fake nails and party. I have rings and party.

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Speaker 2: So you're thinking toys cosmetics, these are all different category

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Speaker 2: hair accessories that she put in the party section. So

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Speaker 2: once you see it, then you know the opportunity that

364
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Speaker 2: can grow further. So I brought them both on because

365
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Speaker 2: one had, you know, could do the paper that I wanted.

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Speaker 2: This other company because they could do those other accessories.

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Speaker 2: But then it led to so many categories and the

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Speaker 2: first nine and twelve months I had over forty five licensees.

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Speaker 1: Well, okay, not to do you know you've been calling,

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Speaker 1: you know, go on. You jumped on that. Your brand

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Speaker 1: became Afro Unicorn. Social media influences, celebrity influences took note

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Speaker 1: of what you were trying to do. Now it's time

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Speaker 1: that you're hide in an accountant, you hide their lawyer.

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Speaker 1: The lawyer's handling all your contracts with the licensees. Nine,

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Speaker 1: the money starts to come in. How do you track

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Speaker 1: the money?

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Speaker 2: How do I attrack the money?

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00:21:48,359 --> 00:21:50,920
Speaker 1: Well, track the money with your account and how does

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Speaker 1: that work?

380
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Speaker 2: She does every month she closes out the book, she

381
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Speaker 2: reconciles everything. She does a profit and law and every

382
00:22:01,359 --> 00:22:04,280
Speaker 2: single month I get a we do a review. I

383
00:22:04,400 --> 00:22:10,400
Speaker 2: ended up hiring an agency to collect the royalty payments. Yeah,

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Speaker 2: so they collected and which was good because I get

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Speaker 2: a percentage of the royalty means a percentage of sales, right,

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Speaker 2: but then I also pay the agency, but I get

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Speaker 2: to less in my liability because the agency's collecting the money,

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Speaker 2: so they're getting their money off the top, so then

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Speaker 2: I get like less of that. Whatever that percentage is,

390
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Speaker 2: whether it's ten to twenty percent, I'm getting less of that.

391
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Speaker 2: So now I'm not that the tax liability is not

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00:22:41,600 --> 00:22:43,359
Speaker 2: as great as it would have been at one hundred

393
00:22:43,440 --> 00:22:46,159
Speaker 2: and then me paying them so. And it also just

394
00:22:46,240 --> 00:22:50,320
Speaker 2: helps to keep track of everything that is happening. And

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Speaker 2: they keep an accounting record too of each licensee, how

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Speaker 2: much the pos were, what's my percentage? And how much

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Speaker 2: is due to me?

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Speaker 1: Wow, let's talk about you as an individual. You know,

399
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Speaker 1: I will tell you I'm impressed. I'm impressed with your story.

400
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Speaker 1: It's not a lucky story. It's a planning store. And

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Speaker 1: that's why I like about it, because you know, you

402
00:23:14,480 --> 00:23:16,399
Speaker 1: you sit around somebody to tell you an idea and

403
00:23:16,400 --> 00:23:19,400
Speaker 1: then you go along the way. But everything was a

404
00:23:19,440 --> 00:23:22,840
Speaker 1: business plan out there was a thought procesland out. Now

405
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Speaker 1: in your bio, they said age of nineteen you knew

406
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Speaker 1: you wanted to be an entrepreneur.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, age of nineteen is when I actually went into

408
00:23:31,880 --> 00:23:33,560
Speaker 2: gear with it. But I knew I was going to

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Speaker 2: be a business owner at fourteen years old, the age.

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Speaker 1: Of how how just how how just asking? You know,

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Speaker 1: I thought I was gonna be a basketball player. I

412
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Speaker 1: thought I was gonna be a football player. You know,

413
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Speaker 1: an entrepreneur, young African American girl. Where they were your

414
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Speaker 1: parents entrepreneurs, where you where you had mentors, you saw

415
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Speaker 1: they were entrepreneurs. What sparked that trigger point in your

416
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Speaker 1: head to say entrepreneurship, business owner, small business owner at

417
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Speaker 1: fourteen and you eventually purshoot it at ninety.

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Speaker 2: It was subconsciously. Both of my parents worked for the state.

419
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Speaker 2: They had they government jobs. I just discovered this in

420
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Speaker 2: the last year that my father, though used to hustle

421
00:24:14,080 --> 00:24:16,800
Speaker 2: aze a mechanic on the side. So every Saturday morning

422
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Speaker 2: cars were filled up down our long driveway.

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Speaker 1: Yoh, he was shade treated mechanic.

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Speaker 2: Yes, I didn't realize that. So doing multiple interviews, I

425
00:24:27,280 --> 00:24:30,120
Speaker 2: was like, no, my parents weren't entrepreneurs, this and that.

426
00:24:30,720 --> 00:24:33,359
Speaker 2: But I thought about it, I'm like, no, Daddy used

427
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Speaker 2: to have those cars lined up every single Saturday. So

428
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Speaker 2: the entrepreneurial spirit was there. I guess it's also because

429
00:24:40,800 --> 00:24:43,600
Speaker 2: my dad was also that guy throughout my life, like

430
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Speaker 2: you sure you don't want to get a government job.

431
00:24:45,880 --> 00:24:48,480
Speaker 2: You gotta got your pinshit, you gotta have this. So

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Speaker 2: I kind of didn't even look at him as being

433
00:24:51,119 --> 00:24:54,400
Speaker 2: that guy because he was always trying to make sure

434
00:24:54,400 --> 00:24:57,800
Speaker 2: I had some type of security. But when I think

435
00:24:57,800 --> 00:25:01,120
Speaker 2: about it, I think it was there. The also one

436
00:25:01,160 --> 00:25:05,439
Speaker 2: thing my mother did, and hopefully my foundation will mirror this,

437
00:25:06,440 --> 00:25:09,240
Speaker 2: my mother made sure that I experienced life out of

438
00:25:09,280 --> 00:25:14,720
Speaker 2: south central Los Angeles. Lifestyle matters for you to be

439
00:25:14,760 --> 00:25:20,520
Speaker 2: able to visualize and to see there's other opportunities out there.

440
00:25:20,680 --> 00:25:22,840
Speaker 2: So I don't care if we were going out to eat,

441
00:25:23,280 --> 00:25:27,040
Speaker 2: going to the movies, we were being Beverly Hills, Palisades,

442
00:25:27,119 --> 00:25:30,480
Speaker 2: Rolling Hills. My mom kept me in Culver City. She

443
00:25:30,720 --> 00:25:35,959
Speaker 2: always kept me out of the inter city. So at

444
00:25:36,040 --> 00:25:39,400
Speaker 2: a young age, I realized that the way to make

445
00:25:39,680 --> 00:25:42,040
Speaker 2: that kind of money, to afford that type of house,

446
00:25:42,119 --> 00:25:45,199
Speaker 2: or to live in that type of neighborhood was to

447
00:25:45,240 --> 00:25:46,200
Speaker 2: be your own boss.

448
00:25:46,600 --> 00:25:51,840
Speaker 1: Wow April shouts Wow fro Unicorn April beautiful name by

449
00:25:51,840 --> 00:25:58,000
Speaker 1: the way, as over twenty five product categories, including books, bedding, haircare,

450
00:25:58,440 --> 00:26:03,040
Speaker 1: poise supplies, and forty five five licensed partners world wide.

451
00:26:03,760 --> 00:26:06,600
Speaker 1: Does that scare you?

452
00:26:06,720 --> 00:26:07,760
Speaker 2: It motivates me.

453
00:26:09,800 --> 00:26:12,840
Speaker 1: Now because all you want to do was just get domestic.

454
00:26:13,600 --> 00:26:15,680
Speaker 2: No, I say, if you're grumba, be a household named

455
00:26:15,680 --> 00:26:17,440
Speaker 2: the worldwide brand from day one.

456
00:26:17,960 --> 00:26:20,800
Speaker 1: You just too much for me, April. You know, you know,

457
00:26:21,920 --> 00:26:24,280
Speaker 1: let me ask you this now, because you're a special.

458
00:26:24,320 --> 00:26:26,480
Speaker 1: Now I could see why your friend called you a unicorn.

459
00:26:26,600 --> 00:26:28,919
Speaker 1: You know, because people like you that come into my

460
00:26:29,040 --> 00:26:31,360
Speaker 1: life and I and some people might say, well, show

461
00:26:31,400 --> 00:26:33,960
Speaker 1: you're a visionary. But I don't see that because I'm

462
00:26:34,040 --> 00:26:36,760
Speaker 1: just grinding you know what I'm saying. But you're unique

463
00:26:36,760 --> 00:26:40,280
Speaker 1: because you've done things because I've had businesses. I didn't

464
00:26:40,280 --> 00:26:42,879
Speaker 1: have to lawyer up front, I didn't have to account upfront.

465
00:26:43,040 --> 00:26:44,720
Speaker 1: I was just happy to be in business. So I

466
00:26:44,840 --> 00:26:48,520
Speaker 1: made the mistakes that you sought not to make the mistakes.

467
00:26:48,720 --> 00:26:53,920
Speaker 1: I understand trademarking the fact that worldwide that you can

468
00:26:53,960 --> 00:26:57,600
Speaker 1: go to London, England, or go to Canada, or you

469
00:26:57,600 --> 00:26:59,880
Speaker 1: can go to Australia, or you can go to Brazil,

470
00:27:00,119 --> 00:27:02,760
Speaker 1: you go to Mexico and you could probably see your products.

471
00:27:02,760 --> 00:27:07,640
Speaker 2: Correct, it's coming. We have the capabilities to get it there.

472
00:27:07,680 --> 00:27:11,119
Speaker 2: But it's coming. So we're in Canada right now, but

473
00:27:11,400 --> 00:27:13,320
Speaker 2: we were working to get I want to get into

474
00:27:13,320 --> 00:27:14,600
Speaker 2: the continent of Africa first.

475
00:27:15,359 --> 00:27:19,720
Speaker 1: Wow, and that's impressive. So what's next for Afro Unicorn April.

476
00:27:20,880 --> 00:27:25,000
Speaker 2: Next is content. So we just dropped the Miss April

477
00:27:25,119 --> 00:27:27,560
Speaker 2: l We dropped the trailer for the Miss April's Crown

478
00:27:27,720 --> 00:27:28,840
Speaker 2: and Bookstore.

479
00:27:30,400 --> 00:27:35,800
Speaker 1: We are that, as you said, Miss April Crown.

480
00:27:36,520 --> 00:27:39,280
Speaker 2: Crown okay and bookstore.

481
00:27:39,760 --> 00:27:40,800
Speaker 1: Okay, explain that to me.

482
00:27:41,680 --> 00:27:45,159
Speaker 2: So it's the show is based off of the character

483
00:27:45,160 --> 00:27:49,399
Speaker 2: of Miss April, who has this Crown shop and affirmation

484
00:27:49,520 --> 00:27:53,160
Speaker 2: shop with a magical mirror, an affirming mirror and her

485
00:27:53,160 --> 00:27:56,800
Speaker 2: best the Magical who is a Unicorn puppet and Magical

486
00:27:57,000 --> 00:28:01,280
Speaker 2: has a glow where Magical can see into the future

487
00:28:01,800 --> 00:28:05,840
Speaker 2: of how your story ends. In this community, I have

488
00:28:06,040 --> 00:28:09,879
Speaker 2: four young entrepreneurs, young little girls between the ages of

489
00:28:10,840 --> 00:28:14,840
Speaker 2: seven and ten who own their own businesses. One has

490
00:28:14,840 --> 00:28:18,760
Speaker 2: a bakery, there's a beauty salon, a furniture shop, and

491
00:28:18,800 --> 00:28:23,400
Speaker 2: a fashion store. Problems come up in business, so when

492
00:28:23,400 --> 00:28:26,480
Speaker 2: they're dealing with their customers and things come up, they

493
00:28:26,520 --> 00:28:30,879
Speaker 2: come to Miss April to get affirmed. Well. First to

494
00:28:30,920 --> 00:28:33,159
Speaker 2: tell Miss April the problem. Then Miss April tells them,

495
00:28:33,240 --> 00:28:35,639
Speaker 2: we have to get into the right mindset. Let's go

496
00:28:35,680 --> 00:28:39,000
Speaker 2: to the affirmation era. The affirmation mirror then affirms to

497
00:28:39,040 --> 00:28:41,520
Speaker 2: them what they need to know for the day. They're like, okay,

498
00:28:41,600 --> 00:28:43,560
Speaker 2: I get the affirmation, but I don't see how this

499
00:28:43,600 --> 00:28:46,000
Speaker 2: is gonna work out because I got this, this, this, this, this.

500
00:28:46,440 --> 00:28:49,360
Speaker 2: The Magical comes with her globe and Magical's like, well,

501
00:28:49,560 --> 00:28:52,040
Speaker 2: I see it working out perfectly for you. Clearly you

502
00:28:52,080 --> 00:28:54,480
Speaker 2: see this working out. And they're like, what, that's me

503
00:28:55,000 --> 00:28:58,719
Speaker 2: and that's how it's gonna work out. And they're like, okay, well,

504
00:28:58,800 --> 00:29:00,920
Speaker 2: let me go back to my shop and let me

505
00:29:01,120 --> 00:29:03,520
Speaker 2: just keep on my journey knowing that I know the

506
00:29:03,600 --> 00:29:06,360
Speaker 2: end is going to work out. So in the end

507
00:29:06,440 --> 00:29:08,520
Speaker 2: it works out. They come back to the shop, they

508
00:29:08,560 --> 00:29:11,800
Speaker 2: tell me a Magical, Magical, Miss April, it worked out.

509
00:29:12,040 --> 00:29:14,160
Speaker 2: We know it would, and we crown them.

510
00:29:14,640 --> 00:29:18,320
Speaker 1: That's beautiful, beautiful, beautiful. Now that's in the works now,

511
00:29:18,800 --> 00:29:19,440
Speaker 1: production work.

512
00:29:20,120 --> 00:29:23,120
Speaker 2: It's in pre production. Now. We just dropped the trailer,

513
00:29:23,120 --> 00:29:23,959
Speaker 2: but it's in pre production.

514
00:29:24,400 --> 00:29:27,560
Speaker 1: We'll production that we see that show. Where will we

515
00:29:27,600 --> 00:29:28,200
Speaker 1: see that show?

516
00:29:28,440 --> 00:29:30,920
Speaker 2: So right now is going to be available on YouTube,

517
00:29:30,920 --> 00:29:33,120
Speaker 2: but so funny. We dropped the trailer and people are

518
00:29:33,160 --> 00:29:35,800
Speaker 2: already messaging me saying, why are you taking this to YouTube?

519
00:29:35,840 --> 00:29:38,120
Speaker 2: Why is there anyone buying it? I'm like, well, let's talk,

520
00:29:38,680 --> 00:29:40,360
Speaker 2: let's have a conversation.

521
00:29:40,400 --> 00:29:43,760
Speaker 1: Right right. Well, you know, oblation because of independent programming,

522
00:29:44,120 --> 00:29:46,600
Speaker 1: YouTube streaming and all that, you can't you don't have

523
00:29:46,640 --> 00:29:49,400
Speaker 1: to wait on anybody. And you've already shown what your

524
00:29:49,480 --> 00:29:52,440
Speaker 1: brand that you just put it out there. You have

525
00:29:52,520 --> 00:29:55,360
Speaker 1: control of it. You put it out there and let

526
00:29:55,360 --> 00:29:59,800
Speaker 1: the general public set the markers of excitement. That's what happened.

527
00:30:00,360 --> 00:30:02,800
Speaker 1: You put it out there. You just be in April,

528
00:30:02,840 --> 00:30:04,920
Speaker 1: which I love about you just be in April. Now

529
00:30:05,080 --> 00:30:08,360
Speaker 1: that that is a motivating quality that I think that

530
00:30:08,920 --> 00:30:13,560
Speaker 1: naturally comes across with your personality. Natural comes across when

531
00:30:13,560 --> 00:30:16,480
Speaker 1: the ideas come to you, when people come to you

532
00:30:16,520 --> 00:30:19,600
Speaker 1: for advice, What are some of the things or is

533
00:30:19,640 --> 00:30:21,920
Speaker 1: it a couple of things or is the motivating tools

534
00:30:21,960 --> 00:30:24,640
Speaker 1: you immediately give them? April.

535
00:30:26,040 --> 00:30:29,720
Speaker 2: I subscribe to a book called The Secret, The Game

536
00:30:29,760 --> 00:30:32,880
Speaker 2: of Life and How to Play It? The Who not How?

537
00:30:34,200 --> 00:30:40,720
Speaker 2: I believe in asking for what you want and then

538
00:30:41,040 --> 00:30:45,040
Speaker 2: believing that you're going to receive it. But have a

539
00:30:45,160 --> 00:30:50,960
Speaker 2: clear focus on what the end result looks like, and

540
00:30:51,000 --> 00:30:54,440
Speaker 2: then you don't worry about how it's going to happen.

541
00:30:54,720 --> 00:30:59,640
Speaker 2: You just laser being on how the end is going

542
00:30:59,680 --> 00:31:01,520
Speaker 2: to be. I was just made aware, which I gotta

543
00:31:01,520 --> 00:31:03,760
Speaker 2: read this story of mister Walt Disney, since I brought

544
00:31:03,840 --> 00:31:12,120
Speaker 2: him up before. He his company was going down several times,

545
00:31:13,360 --> 00:31:15,720
Speaker 2: but he already knew how big it was going to be.

546
00:31:16,720 --> 00:31:19,000
Speaker 2: So the other part was just semantics. It's like, Okay,

547
00:31:19,040 --> 00:31:20,760
Speaker 2: we's got it. I mean, it's gonna connect the dots

548
00:31:20,760 --> 00:31:22,920
Speaker 2: and it's gonna figure it out. But I already know

549
00:31:23,000 --> 00:31:25,040
Speaker 2: that Walt Disney is gonna be the largest brand in

550
00:31:25,080 --> 00:31:30,120
Speaker 2: the world. He never once doubted to say. I don't

551
00:31:30,120 --> 00:31:33,680
Speaker 2: think this is gonna work out. I'm back in the red.

552
00:31:34,160 --> 00:31:39,240
Speaker 2: I just need to pull out real entrepreneurs like me,

553
00:31:39,440 --> 00:31:42,120
Speaker 2: real moguls like me, people who are going to change

554
00:31:42,160 --> 00:31:47,320
Speaker 2: the game, change the universe, leave a legacy. They don't quit.

555
00:31:47,560 --> 00:31:51,920
Speaker 2: So I tell my fellow entrepreneurs, you gotta show up

556
00:31:51,920 --> 00:31:54,400
Speaker 2: every day. You gotta be consistent, and you have to

557
00:31:54,480 --> 00:31:59,280
Speaker 2: be willing not to quit, because I'm afraid of quitting before.

558
00:32:00,160 --> 00:32:04,440
Speaker 2: It terrifies me to know that I was just about

559
00:32:04,480 --> 00:32:08,720
Speaker 2: to turn the corner before Walmart called me to know

560
00:32:08,880 --> 00:32:11,640
Speaker 2: I was just about to turn the corner before I

561
00:32:11,680 --> 00:32:14,720
Speaker 2: got this call. I just got to keep turning these

562
00:32:14,760 --> 00:32:17,080
Speaker 2: corners to see what's behind them.

563
00:32:17,440 --> 00:32:19,640
Speaker 1: I love it. I love it Afro you the Corner

564
00:32:19,760 --> 00:32:23,200
Speaker 1: brand designed to represent the uniqueness of women and children

565
00:32:23,240 --> 00:32:28,120
Speaker 1: of color that's truly diverse and inclusive fashion April Showers.

566
00:32:28,680 --> 00:32:32,440
Speaker 1: You know, I always do these shows, and the blessing

567
00:32:32,520 --> 00:32:36,040
Speaker 1: is I always learn something from them. I've learned motivation

568
00:32:36,120 --> 00:32:40,360
Speaker 1: from you. I've learned keep the faith. I've learned that

569
00:32:41,640 --> 00:32:44,840
Speaker 1: don't be intimidated when you look around that corner, because

570
00:32:44,880 --> 00:32:47,560
Speaker 1: all you see is opportunity, April, That's all you see,

571
00:32:47,720 --> 00:32:49,360
Speaker 1: and you want to look around that corner. A lot

572
00:32:49,360 --> 00:32:54,960
Speaker 1: of people fear. You've also told me that when tragedy

573
00:32:55,960 --> 00:33:00,800
Speaker 1: or dark moments happened, don't stop understand and the importance

574
00:33:00,920 --> 00:33:04,440
Speaker 1: of respecting that moment, dealing with that moment, but don't

575
00:33:04,520 --> 00:33:09,160
Speaker 1: let that sidetrack you from the mission. And that's why

576
00:33:09,280 --> 00:33:12,360
Speaker 1: we're on this call today, is that you have exemplified

577
00:33:12,480 --> 00:33:15,960
Speaker 1: every quality that I like to talk about on Money

578
00:33:15,960 --> 00:33:19,320
Speaker 1: Making Conversation Masterclass. And I always tell people to leave

579
00:33:19,360 --> 00:33:21,960
Speaker 1: with your gifts. You're not only leaving with your gifts,

580
00:33:22,120 --> 00:33:24,600
Speaker 1: you promote them, and you're not only promoting them, but

581
00:33:24,600 --> 00:33:29,080
Speaker 1: you're sharing them and you are managing your life. You're

582
00:33:29,080 --> 00:33:32,320
Speaker 1: a great dancer. You're out there on a social scene.

583
00:33:32,600 --> 00:33:36,120
Speaker 1: You drop your ball off at LSU Go Tigers and

584
00:33:36,160 --> 00:33:38,120
Speaker 1: guess what I got one mode You're gonna get right

585
00:33:38,720 --> 00:33:42,120
Speaker 1: And my friend afro Unicorn. Now when I walk in

586
00:33:42,200 --> 00:33:46,640
Speaker 1: this door, I know you are the first black licenseee

587
00:33:47,120 --> 00:33:49,800
Speaker 1: in a major retail market. Congratulations.

588
00:33:50,080 --> 00:33:52,560
Speaker 2: Thank you for having me. Can I tell them where

589
00:33:52,600 --> 00:33:53,000
Speaker 2: to find me?

590
00:33:53,400 --> 00:33:53,880
Speaker 1: Just ma'am?

591
00:33:53,960 --> 00:33:56,760
Speaker 2: Do you think you can find me at got April

592
00:33:56,800 --> 00:34:01,320
Speaker 2: Showers on social media? I am April Showers is my

593
00:34:01,360 --> 00:34:06,800
Speaker 2: website at Afrinicorn Undersquare Official and afrinacorn dot com. Thank

594
00:34:06,840 --> 00:34:08,000
Speaker 2: you so much for having me.

595
00:34:08,800 --> 00:34:12,520
Speaker 1: This has been another edition of Moneymaking Conversation Masterclass hosted

596
00:34:12,560 --> 00:34:15,400
Speaker 1: by me Rushaun McDonald. Thank you to our guests on

597
00:34:15,440 --> 00:34:17,880
Speaker 1: the show today and thank you our listening to the

598
00:34:17,960 --> 00:34:20,320
Speaker 1: audience now. If you want to listen to any episode

599
00:34:20,400 --> 00:34:22,440
Speaker 1: I want to be a guest on the show, visit

600
00:34:22,719 --> 00:34:27,480
Speaker 1: Moneymakingconversations dot com. Our social media handle is Moneymaking conversation.

601
00:34:27,920 --> 00:34:30,319
Speaker 1: Join us next week and remember to always leave with

602
00:34:30,400 --> 00:34:31,840
Speaker 1: your gifts. Keep winning,