The United States Black Chamber Inc. (USBC), on Thursday, March 27th, hosted its annual “Power 50 Women of Influence” event honoring a diverse group of women from various industries.
This honor, for Ingrid Best, the founder and CEO of IBest Wines, a South African-sourced product, was “surreal.” While Best is known as a spirit and wine marketing force, having worked with Moët Hennessy, Bacardi and Diageo, she said getting this honor feels good when fundraising has proven to be a challenge as a Black woman.
“Raising capital for IBest Wines has been a struggle.” And not because I’m not a great founder, not because it’s not a great brand, but because historically Black women have a really hard time raising capital for wonderful businesses,” she told ESSENCE. And that’s tough, right? But my faith is so much stronger than my fear or a momentary challenge. Or some folks that just haven’t gotten it right and invested in us yet, right? Faith over fear.”
Research from a Harvard Business Review article shows that while 17% of Black women in the United States start or manage new ventures, a mere three percent achieve sustained success.
Best continues to prove her marketing prowess when she offered her wine to all 50 tables with a guest list surpassing 300 people at the event. In 2024, Best was accepted into American Airlines Global First-Class Wine Program, which will feature her wine in their first class section.
With President Donald Trump’s latest executive order “Continuing the Reduction of The Federal Bureaucracy,” aiming to cut the Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA), Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) chairwoman and Congresswoman Yvette Clarke, D-NY., addressed this at the event, highlighting the gumption of Black business owners amid funding challenges.
Clarke told the audience that despite “turmoil and uncertainty in our national politics, our spirit and tenacity remains strong. Even in hard times, we continue fighting to make our community, our country, a better place.”
Senior vice president of basketball operations and team development at the New Orleans Pelicans, Swin Cash-Canal said this recognition in the nation’s capital made her feel “seen.”
“I felt so much power, and I felt like our ancestors [are] in this room. That’s why I think it’s a little bit overwhelming for me because a lot of times in sports, I’m in male-dominated spaces. When I get into these spaces, I just really feel my cup,” the two-time Olympic gold medalist said.
The luncheon celebrated Nigerian-American Luvvie Ajayi Jones, a four-time, New York Times best-selling author and CEO of The Book Academy.
Asked what was her I didn’t come to play moment that made people sit up and take notice of her, she told ESSENCE: “When I started writing Scandal recaps, a lot of people started paying attention to my words because they would watch the show on Thursday nights and on Friday mornings they’ll come on my blog and from that point on I feel like my career has taken off in different ways.”
Angela Yee, former radio personality of The Breakfast Club and host of Way Up with Angela Yee said getting together to celebrate women meant a lot to her because sometimes women can feel discouraged and feel divided. Yee added but when people come together in these settings, it shows how much power Black women truly have.
Regarding power, Yee just purchased a 30-unit building in Mid-town Detroit, a power move she made that she said she was surprised by. Ten of her units will go to formerly incarcerated women.
“Finally getting this building done in Detroit [was a power move that surprised me]. We bought this 30-unit building in Midtown Detroit. It took us two years to get this rehab, and finally, people start moving in on April 18, [2025],” she told ESSENCE, adding: “I did not think it was going to happen, and I’m just happy that we got to the finish line.”
Helping people to the finish line is a task Wendy Osefo takes on as an assistant professor of Education at John Hopkins University. The Nigerian-American was honored alongside other women and she leaves a message of hope to women by encouraging them to keep going despite challenges.
“It doesn’t matter what anyone says; it matters what you think and how you believe in yourself, and it may not happen tomorrow. It may not happen next month, but your dreams will be [a] reality, so just keep on going forward,” she said.
Osefo is also known for her participation in the Real Housewives of Potomac; however, she focuses on being a citizen of the world through her other roles.
USBC president, founder and CEO Ron Busby Sr., in his speech, told the audience that from boardrooms to the ballot box, Black women continue to move mountains and his chamber will continue to support their businesses, voices and wins.
Egypt Sherrod, the former V-103 radio personality, was among the honorees. Sherrod carved a lane out for herself in TV after leaving radio to start an HGTV show called “Married to Real Estate” with her husband, DJ Mike Jackson. The show is in its fourth year. However, for Sherrod, before her TV show’s success, she tried to align with an image that others projected on her.
“I was often auditioning for roles and positions and jobs of how people saw me. The power move I made was by saying, ‘I’m tired of begging for a seat at the table or auditioning for a seat at the table.’ I’m going to go over here to build my own table. I’m going to go over here and create my own show, build my own company, develop my own furniture line [Indigo Road by Egypt Sherrod] and do it my way,” she said.
For women looking for a blueprint to success, Sherrod says “Walk your own path,” adding: “You can use my journey and how I found my courage to continue to stand and rise … but you have to carve your own path because in you doing so, now you’re encouraging the next generation.”
Sherrod touted the success of her businesses, noting, “We have 110 employees. Designers, realtors, administrators, creatives, videographers, everyone in our production company, in our real estate brokerage, in our design firm. We created 110 opportunities, and that’s just in one year. I’m walking in my purpose.”
For women wondering how to win in business Sherrod told ESSENCE: “When we make a choice about what we want the narrative to be. The universe aligns in support of us.”
