Propeller’s experience gave me a lot of things that I can put into practice. It was challenging, like going to school for me. But without a doubt, I wouldn’t change doing it because it was necessary for our growth to make these steps, to make these connections, and to bring these tools into practice. Next year, we as a team will be a lot stronger for it.

The biggest thing I think I learned during the Propeller program was more that it takes a real team to be successful. Growing up, I always played team sports, so I understand the team concept. But, finding the right players to be part of your team is pivotal. You can’t just think you can do it all yourself. You really have to trust other peoples’ judgement and those that have been there before you who can guide you through this process. I forever feel like Propeller is family, and I look forward to continuing to work together.

Stepping into this environment as an entrepreneur just really taught me that the questions are limitless. Being around so many other people and ventures – being with other entrepreneurs – taught me that inquiry is where it’s at. That’s how your project grows, how you find connections, how you find new people. My biggest takeaway from Propeller is to ask as many questions as you possibly can because that’s how you’re going to take your venture to the next level…” “…I feel like my experience is wrapped up in the relationship I was able to establish with my Lead Mentor. Propeller’s network is so vast and so clear that we got exactly what we needed when we needed it. What we needed to do was to figure out how we were going to finance this project and build a model a few years out so that it’s sustainable. The only reason we were able to do that is because of how we were matched with the right person.

My experience was amazing overall. I think the biggest thing I’m taking forward are the connections I’ve made. Every time that I thought of something that I needed or a problem that I had, my program manager would say, “oh, here’s this person that you need to talk to, and here’s this person that you need to talk to” so I have just long lists of connections, resources, and websites. For any problem that I might have, I have a resource for that.

We feel this program is a great and valuable asset to us as a new business. The resources and experience from the team has really helped us be mindful in what we need to concentrate on for the business to grow. …even further, through this pandemic, we found that it’s important to stay open to serve the community surrounding our store. And having fresh produce available for the families around here was instrumental in keeping residents staying local and not venturing too far out during the stay home-mandate.

Propeller gave me EVERYTHING that I needed to continue successfully building my business. Every individual and group meeting was carefully planned to make the best of the time spent with the program. I am most impressed by the accountability that is offered during individual meetups. They didn’t just give me a lead mentor and hope that all went well with the pairing, but provided a mediator to assure that my needs as a business owner were best served. In this one setting, not only have I observed other Black women who have matriculated through the program and experienced follow-up success – but I also received empowering words from Black women of excellence who too were confident in my success if I simply allow myself to arrive prepared and ready to be fully present. The segment on race and economic development offered a sense of authenticity to the program that I’ve had yet to witness in ANY of the accelerators I’ve engaged with.

The Accelerator was a huge benefit to me and my business. When the program started, I had been in business about a year and a half and had just gone through a very tough stretch during COVID-19. My revenue stayed completely flat for 4-5 months. During the program, I began to redirect more of my time towards serving the community, meeting with families to help connect them to free healthcare resources in the area. Amazingly, my revenue has soared, increasing over 50% year-to-date. All of this…because of placing a bigger emphasis on community service. I am so happy to have been a part of Propeller’s Accelerator program. I have never felt so connected to New Orleans, or so firmly confident of the success of my business.