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Black Founder Weekend 2025 at Paul Quinn College will feature more than 40 speakers across five tracks\u2014Sell, Grow, Amplify, Lead, and Invest\u2014each designed to drive real outcomes for Black founders and funders. Pictured clockwise from top left: Noelle LeVeaux, Michael Sorrell, David A. Wilson, Alphonzo \u201cPhonz\u201d Terrell, Jasmin Brand, Elizabeth Wattley, and Rachel Cargle. [Courtesy photos via Paul Quinn College]\n<\/p>\n
A new conference in Dallas aims to deliver measurable results for Black entrepreneurs\u2014and close persistent gaps in access to capital, revenue, and opportunity.<\/strong><\/p>\n Over three days\u2014June 27\u201329 at Paul Quinn College\u2014the inaugural event will bring together Black tech founders, creative entrepreneurs, investors, and ecosystem builders from across the state. The goal: track $100,000 in direct economic impact over the course of the weekend, from founder funding and brand deals to service partnerships and new hires.<\/p>\n That focus on outcomes is what sets Black Founder Weekend apart, organizers say. From curated investor matchups and revenue-focused workshops to retail innovation and cultural connection, the event is structured to help founders scale\u2014and help funders see what\u2019s been missing.<\/p>\n According to organizers, Black founders are the fastest-growing group of entrepreneurs in the U.S., yet receive less than 1% of venture capital. On average, Black-owned businesses generate 11 times less revenue than white-owned firms.<\/p>\n The setting reinforces the mission. Paul Quinn College\u2014the nation\u2019s only urban work college\u2014aims to operate at the intersection of innovation and equity. Hosting the conference on its campus puts ownership, access, and legacy at the center of the conversation.<\/p>\n A private kickoff for Black women leaders<\/p>\n On Thursday, the CROWNED Legacy Luncheon is an invite-only gathering for Black women investors and executives. Designed for candid conversations around capital, leadership, and long-term impact, it features a fireside chat with best-selling author and investor Rachel Cargle.\u00a0<\/p>\n What to expect: tracks, speakers, and capital in motion<\/p>\n Black Founder Weekend is about who you meet, what you build, and how much closer you get to your next milestone. The conference is a marketplace, strategy lab, and cultural summit all in one.<\/p>\n Programming is built around five tracks:<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Each track offers hands-on sessions led by founders and funders who\u2019ve done the work, designed to move attendees forward, whether they\u2019re bootstrapping to seven figures, landing their first retail deal, or exploring how to invest in others.<\/p>\n Featured speakers include Calvin Golden, who helped scale Wingstop\u2019s franchise empire; Marty McDonald and Simone Kendle on \u201cThe Imperfect Pitch\u201d; and April Allen and Elizabeth Wattley in a fireside chat on shaping public space through ownership and cultural design.<\/p>\n Attendees will also hear from media leader David A. Wilson, co-founder of TheGrio, one of the largest Black news platforms in the U.S., sharing his next act\u2014building AI-powered tools to foster high-trust professional connections\u2014and marketing expert Noelle LeVeaux, unpacking how she led branding efforts for FIFA in North Texas.<\/p>\n Other highlights from the agenda are:<\/p>\n \u00a0 Organizers say the conference format includes tech-forward programming and curated activations designed to drive discovery, spark collaboration, and keep capital moving, like:\u00a0<\/p>\n The Deal Room aims for real matchmaking, pairing vetted founders with funders for private, curated meetings. Organizers say the format is designed to remove friction and get to \u201cyes\u201d faster, making space for early checks, strategic advice, and direct investment. Participation is by application only.<\/p>\n The Black Market is a high-tech retail takeover that highlights product-based Black-owned brands in a fresh way. Instead of vendor tables, attendees interact with a QR-coded gallery wall that showcases products from skincare to fashion to home goods\u2014and their founder stories\u2014with direct links to buy.<\/p>\n The Exchange adds a creative drop-in space that puts service-based entrepreneurs\u2014lawyers, marketers, strategists, and others\u2014at the center. Expect live demos, pop-up consults, and bite-sized business-building sessions where founders can get real-time advice and explore partnerships on the spot.<\/p>\n PAM, the AI Assistant, launched with the conference app this month, is a custom-built AI tool designed to help attendees personalize their experience. It offers smart agenda planning, curated session recommendations, and real-time tracking of the event\u2019s total economic impact\u2014from grants and spending to investment deals closed on-site.<\/p>\n Culture, community, and closing moments<\/p>\n The conference officially kicks off Friday night with an opening happy hour hosted by The Connect Dallas, led by BFW25 advisory council member Taylor Moody. Founders, funders, and community leaders will gather for music, drinks, and intentional connection.<\/p>\n On Saturday afternoon, the event opens up to the broader public with a free community block party celebrating Black Music Month. Expect a live DJ, food and drink from Black-owned vendors, and a spotlight on local organizations serving the community year-round.<\/p>\n The weekend ends Sunday with \u201cSeeds & Mimosas,\u201d a reflective brunch for visioning what\u2019s next. With live music, a guided visioning experience, and remarks from Jeff Meade, director of Paul Quinn\u2019s new Entrepreneurship Program, the brunch sends attendees off with connection and clarity.<\/p>\n How to attend<\/p>\n Black Founder Weekend runs June 27\u201329 at Paul Quinn College, located at 3837 Simpson Stuart Road in Dallas. General admission is free and open to the public. A limited number of VIP tickets remain for $199. To register or learn more, go here.<\/a><\/p>\n Don\u2019t miss what\u2019s next. Subscribe\u00a0to\u00a0Dallas\u00a0Innovates.<\/p>\n Track Dallas-Fort Worth\u2019s business and innovation landscape with our curated news in your inbox Tuesday-Thursday.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n \tR E A D\u00a0\u00a0 N E X T\t<\/p>\n A constellation of North Texas female funders has emerged. They’re bringing new perspectives and new deals to the table.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n Founded in 2019, Thrift for Good enables people to buy and donate used goods while helping out charities, in an industry where 84% of donated clothes end up either dumped in a landfill or destroyed. Cooper and her fellow co-founder and co-owner, Taylor Watts, are building AI-based software for thrift stores to try to reduce that waste and inefficiency\u2014while working to grow their DFW footprint.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n Four years and about 600,000 laundry loads later, founder Laurel Hess has scaled to 33 major metros across 19 states.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n Launched in 1989 after its founders moved to North Texas, the family-owned theatrical and home entertainment distribution company has evolved alongside the film industry. It moved beyond DVDs and Blu-Ray discs to launch its proprietary streaming service, Hi-YAH!, which is dedicated to Asian action cinema\u2014and also engages audiences through theatrical runs and film festivals.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n Leaders light up LinkedIn thread on ex-Google CEO’s work-life balance comment.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Black Founder Weekend 2025 at Paul Quinn College will feature more than 40 speakers across five tracks\u2014Sell, Grow,…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":5881,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5135],"tags":[7389,5229,7390,7391,7392,7393,7394,7395,7396,7397,7398,7399,7400,7401,7402,1596,7403,7404,7405,7406,7407,7408,7409,2034,7410,7411,1258,7412,7413,7414,7415,7416,7417,7418,7419,7420,7421,7422,7423,7424,7425,7426,7427,7428,7429,7430,7431,7432,7433,7434,7435,7436,7437,7438,7439,7440,7441,358,7442,7443,7444,3187,67,586,132,5230,68,2969,7445,7446],"class_list":{"0":"post-5880","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-dallas","8":"tag-alphonzo-phonz-terrell","9":"tag-america","10":"tag-angelia-dunbar","11":"tag-april-allen","12":"tag-b-polished-beauty","13":"tag-baylor-barbee","14":"tag-black-founder-weekend","15":"tag-black-founder-weekend-2025","16":"tag-black-founders","17":"tag-bosswomen-media","18":"tag-brooke-hill","19":"tag-calvin-golden","20":"tag-chanelle-yarber","21":"tag-cierra-gross","22":"tag-corey-jones","23":"tag-dallas","24":"tag-darlisa-diltz","25":"tag-david-sales-dr-tyson","26":"tag-david-a-wilson","27":"tag-deah-berry-mitchell","28":"tag-demetrius-washington","29":"tag-economic-impact","30":"tag-elizabeth-wattley","31":"tag-fifa","32":"tag-forest-theater","33":"tag-frankesha-watkins","34":"tag-funding","35":"tag-goodie-boxx","36":"tag-halperin-park","37":"tag-hiring","38":"tag-inc-tutoring","39":"tag-jasmin-brand","40":"tag-jay-veal","41":"tag-jeff-meade","42":"tag-kelly-flowers","43":"tag-lauryn-a-williams","44":"tag-lindsay-autry","45":"tag-main-industry-entrepreneurship-and-venture-capital","46":"tag-marissa-allen","47":"tag-marty-mcdonald","48":"tag-maxie-taylor","49":"tag-michael-sorrell","50":"tag-myisha-robertson","51":"tag-neil-foote","52":"tag-nik-sallie","53":"tag-noelle-leveaux","54":"tag-partnershiip","55":"tag-paul-quinn-college","56":"tag-prism-work","57":"tag-rachel-cargle","58":"tag-rikki-kelly","59":"tag-sales-trac-coaching","60":"tag-shebuilds-futures","61":"tag-simone-kendle","62":"tag-spill","63":"tag-stephanie-idio","64":"tag-taylor-moody","65":"tag-texas","66":"tag-the-connect-dallas","67":"tag-the-grio","68":"tag-thegrio","69":"tag-tx","70":"tag-united-states","71":"tag-united-states-of-america","72":"tag-unitedstates","73":"tag-unitedstatesofamerica","74":"tag-us","75":"tag-usa","76":"tag-will-baggett","77":"tag-wingstop"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":"Validation failed: Text character limit of 500 exceeded"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5880","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5880"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5880\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5881"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5880"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5880"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5880"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}\n
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\nUnique activations designed for impact<\/p>\n\n
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